Primeval wall (“A teacher affects eternity; he can never tell where his influence stops.”), from the series Great Ideas of Western Man.

William Baziotes, Primeval wall ("A teacher affects eternity; he can never tell where his influence stops."), from the series Great Ideas of Western Man., 1959, oil on canvas, Smithsonian American Art Museum, Gift of Container Corporation of America, 1984.124.30
Copied William Baziotes, Primeval wall ("A teacher affects eternity; he can never tell where his influence stops."), from the series Great Ideas of Western Man., 1959, oil on canvas, 24 1⁄4 x 30 3⁄8 in. (61.6 x 77.1 cm.), Smithsonian American Art Museum, Gift of Container Corporation of America, 1984.124.30

Artwork Details

Title
Primeval wall (“A teacher affects eternity; he can never tell where his influence stops.”), from the series Great Ideas of Western Man.
Artist
Date
1959
Location
Dimensions
24 1⁄4 x 30 3⁄8 in. (61.6 x 77.1 cm.)
Credit Line
Gift of Container Corporation of America
Mediums
Mediums Description
oil on canvas
Classifications
Subjects
  • Abstract
Object Number
1984.124.30
Linked Open Data
https://edan.si.edu/saam/id/object/1984.124.30

Artwork Description

William Baziotes created Primeval Wall for the advertising campaign “Great Ideas of Western Man” for the Container Corporation of America. He didn’t want to clarify the meaning of the imagery, but preferred to evoke “strangeness and otherworldliness” with his choice of titles (“An Interview with William Baziotes,” Perspective No. 2, 1956-57). Here, the two pale forms resemble microscopic cells enlarged to vast proportions. The soft outlines and subdued, blurred colors create a dreamlike scene of twisting shapes, floating in some ethereal substance.