Gridiron

Carl Holty, Gridiron, 1943-1944, oil on fiberboard, Smithsonian American Art Museum, Gift of Patricia and Phillip Frost, 1986.92.59
Copied Carl Holty, Gridiron, 1943-1944, oil on fiberboard, 48 x 36 in. (122.0 x 91.5 cm.), Smithsonian American Art Museum, Gift of Patricia and Phillip Frost, 1986.92.59

Artwork Details

Title
Gridiron
Artist
Date
1943-1944
Location
Not on view
Dimensions
48 x 36 in. (122.0 x 91.5 cm.)
Credit Line
Gift of Patricia and Phillip Frost
Mediums
Mediums Description
oil on fiberboard
Classifications
Keywords
  • Abstract
Object Number
1986.92.59
Linked Open Data
https://edan.si.edu/saam/id/object/1986.92.59

Artwork Description

Holty believed that abstract forms could express human experiences of space, time, and movement, but only if the artist started with the things he saw around him. In Gridiron he abstracted the kneeling form of a football player, "exploding" the figure into a network of lines and shapes that capture the physical energy of the game. Not long after Holty made this work, a younger generation of abstract expressionists took the country by storm, unleashing their subconscious desires and impulses in paint. But Holty remained suspicious of abstract art that only meant something to the artist, saying "I would like to paint about the world, not myself."

Exhibition Label, Smithsonian American Art Museum, 2006