Malcolm Roberts, Deserted Landscape, 1937, tempera on fiberboard, 24 x 30 in. (61.0 x 76.2 cm), Smithsonian American Art Museum, Transfer from General Services Administration, 1971.447.77
Copied
Artwork Details
- Title
- Deserted Landscape
- Artist
- Date
- 1937
- Location
- Dimensions
- 24 x 30 in. (61.0 x 76.2 cm)
- Credit Line
- Transfer from General Services Administration
- Mediums
- Mediums Description
- tempera on fiberboard
- Classifications
- Subjects
- New Deal — Works Progress Administration, Federal Art Project — Washington State
- Landscape — plain
- Object Number
- 1971.447.77
Artwork Description
Malcolm Roberts painted several landscapes inspired by discarded objects washed up on Seattle’s beaches. Here, a piece of driftwood shaped like a woman’s pelvis balances delicately on a pedestal like a valuable piece of sculpture. In the background, looming constructions rise up from the sand and a rocking chair sits in the dim moonlight, as if somebody has just left the scene. Roberts placed apparently random objects together against a dark sky to evoke the immediate aftermath of some unknown, sinister event.