Constellation—Uccello
started 1982, published 1983
Image not available — this artwork is under copyright
View on museum website →Medium
hardground and softground etching and aquatint on Fabriano Rosaspina wove paper
Dimensions
plate (left): 22.23 × 15.56 cm (8 3/4 × 6 1/8 in.) plate (right): 25.08 × 17.46 cm (9 7/8 × 6 7/8 in.) sheet: 69.5 × 58.8 cm (27 3/8 × 23 1/8 in.)
Classification
Department
CG-W
Museum
National Gallery of Art, Washington, D.C.
Credit
Gift of Gemini G.E.L. and the Artist
Accession Number
1988.74.15
Art Historical Context
**Constellation—Ucc** by Vija Cel invites visitors into the mesmerizing vastness of the night sky. Created in 1982 and published in 1983 this intricate print showcases Celmins' signature obsession with natural phenomena, rendered with hypnotic precision. Composed of two plates—left at 22.23 × 15.56 cm and right at 25.08 × 17.46 cm—on a generous Fabriano Rosaspinaove sheet measuring 69.5 × 58.8 cm, it captures a specific constellation pattern, evoking the infinite cosmos through delicate, starlit forms. Celmins employs advanced printmaking techniques—hardground and softground etching combined ...
About the Artist
Vija Celmins
Vija Celmins, born on October 25, 1938, in Riga, Latvia, endured a tumultuous early life marked by World War II displacement. Her family fled Soviet occupation, living in German refugee camps before immigrating to the United States in 1948 via sponsorship from a Lutheran church. Settling in Indianapolis, Indiana, where her father worked as a carpenter and her mother in a hospital laundry, young Vi...