Untitled

Kenneth Victor Young, Untitled, 1973, acrylic on canvas, Smithsonian American Art Museum, Gift of Mr. Val E. Lewton, 1987.46
Copied Kenneth Victor Young, Untitled, 1973, acrylic on canvas, 37 5⁄8 x 37 5⁄8 in. (95.6 x 95.6 cm.), Smithsonian American Art Museum, Gift of Mr. Val E. Lewton, 1987.46

Artwork Details

Title
Untitled
Artist
Date
1973
Location
Dimensions
37 5⁄8 x 37 5⁄8 in. (95.6 x 95.6 cm.)
Credit Line
Gift of Mr. Val E. Lewton
Mediums
Mediums Description
acrylic on canvas
Classifications
Subjects
  • Abstract
Object Number
1987.46
Linked Open Data
https://edan.si.edu/saam/id/object/1987.46

Artwork Description

I've always been interested in . . . outer space, inner space, and the development of what occurs--force, magnetism, and that kind of thing.
--Kenneth Victor Young

In Untitled, Kenneth Victor Young cultivates an uncertain sense of space and scale. Black orbs float in a dark field, potentially representing either a microscopic or celestial view. The colorful halos around the orbs were created by applying paint "wet into wet" and allowing it to freely blend and move.

Like Sam Gilliam, whose unstretched painting Swing hangs nearby, Young grew up in Kentucky and studied painting at the University of Louisville before moving to Washington, DC, in the 1960s. Only after settling in DC, did either artist begin working in a fully abstract mode.