(Image 4)
1978
Image not available — this artwork is under copyright
View on museum website →Medium
color aquatint, hard and softground etching, drypoint, spitbite and liftground etching on Arches Satine paper
Dimensions
plate: 30.2 x 30.2 cm (11 7/8 x 11 7/8 in.) sheet: 40.6 x 40.6 cm (16 x 16 in.)
Classification
Department
CG-W
Museum
National Gallery of Art, Washington, D.C.
Credit
Gift of Kathan Brown
Accession Number
2001.142.94.4
Art Historical Context
Pat Steir's *Image 4* (1978) is a captivating square-format print that exemplifies the artist's early mastery of complex intaglio techniques. Created as a color aquatint hard and softground etching, drypoint, spit, and liftground etching luxurious Arches Satine paper this 30.2 x 30.2 cm work showcases Steir's exploration of texture, tone, and chance effects during a pivotal moment in her career. Born in 1940, Steir emerged in the 1970s New York art scene, blending influences from Abstract Expressionism with innovative printmaking, often embracing unpredictability akin to her later monumental w...
About the Artist
Pat Steir
Pat Steir, born Iris Patricia Sukoneck on April 10, 1938, in Newark, New Jersey, to a Russian-Jewish immigrant family, knew from age five that she wanted to be an artist or poet. The eldest daughter of a father who worked in art-adjacent trades like silk-screening and neon sign design, she frequented the Philadelphia Museum of Art as a child. Steir studied at Pratt Institute from 1956 to 1958, the...