Night in the City
1957
Image not available — this artwork is under copyright
View on museum website →Medium
brush and black ink with watercolor on wove paper
Dimensions
overall: 63.3 x 47.8 cm (24 15/16 x 18 13/16 in.)
Classification
Drawing
Department
CG-E
Museum
National Gallery of Art, Washington, D.C.
Credit
Gift of Elizabeth C. Lukacs
Accession Number
1994.35.3
Art Historical Context
Frans Masereel’s *Night in the City* captures the restless energy of urban life through fluid lines and subtle washes of color. Created in 1957 with brush and black ink accented by watercolor on wove paper, the drawing reflects the Belgian artist’s lifelong fascination with the modern metropolis. Masereel, a leading figure in early twentieth-century graphic art, first gained renown for his wordless woodcut novels that chronicled the rhythms and tensions of city existence. By the 1950s, Masereel had shifted from the stark contrasts of woodblock printing to the more immediate possibilities of i...