Untitled (Blue Painting)

George Morrison, Untitled (Blue Painting), 1958, oil on canvas, Smithsonian American Art Museum, Museum purchase through the Luisita L. and Franz H. Denghausen Endowment, 2021.12, © 2020, Briand Morrison
George Morrison, Untitled (Blue Painting), 1958, oil on canvas, overall: 41 × 54 in. (104.1 × 137.2 cm), Smithsonian American Art Museum, Museum purchase through the Luisita L. and Franz H. Denghausen Endowment, 2021.12, © 2020, Briand Morrison

Artwork Details

Title
Untitled (Blue Painting)
Date
1958
Dimensions
overall: 41 × 54 in. (104.1 × 137.2 cm)
Copyright
© 2020, Briand Morrison
Credit Line
Museum purchase through the Luisita L. and Franz H. Denghausen Endowment
Mediums
Mediums Description
oil on canvas
Classifications
Subjects
  • Abstract
Object Number
2021.12

Artwork Description

"The basis of all art," George Morrison once stated, "is nature." Suggestions of sky, water, and rock emerge often in his abstract paintings. A member of the Grand Portage Band of Chippewa, Morrison grew up in a rural community on the rugged northern shore of Lake Superior before studying art in Minneapolis and New York City.

The luminous quality of this work was achieved through the application of blue, green, red, and orange paint over a darker maroon background. Projecting a quiet yet joyous mood, Untitled (Blue Painting) suggests a sublime vision of a natural scene.

Works by this artist (3 items)

Eric J. García, Chicano Codices #1: Simplified Histories: The U.S. Invasion of Mexico 1846-1848, 2015, offset lithograph on paper, Smithsonian American Art Museum, Museum purchase through the Lichtenberg Family Foundation, 2020.21.1R-V, © 2020, Eric J. García
Chicano Codices #1: Simplified Histories: The U.S. Invasion…
Date2015
offset lithograph on paper
Not on view
Eric J. García, Lechuga Lucha, 2014, lithograph and screenprint on paper, Smithsonian American Art Museum, Gift of Gilberto Cárdenas and Dolores García, 2019.51.56, ©2020, Eric J. García
Lechuga Lucha
Date2014
lithograph and screenprint on paper
Not on view