Red Zip on Purple Cross
1993-1994
Image not available — this artwork is under copyright
View on museum website →Medium
purified pigmented beeswax and dammar resin on canvas
Classification
Painting
Department
CMC
Museum
National Gallery of Art, Washington, D.C.
Credit
Dorothy and Herbert Vogel Collection
Accession Number
2007.6.210
Art Historical Context
Lynda Benglis's *Red Zip on Purple Cross (1993–1994) is a vibrant exploration of color and form, created using purified pigmented beeswax and dammar on canvas. This work exemplifies Benglis's lifelong experimentation with materials, pushing the boundaries of traditional painting. Known for her provocative latex "pours" in the 1960s and 1970s that blurred the lines between sculpture and painting Benglis here evokes the bold vertical "zips" of Abstract Expressionist Barnett Newman while layering a stark purple cross beneath a vivid red stripe, creating a dynamic tension between structure and ges...
About the Artist
Lynda Benglis
Lynda Benglis (born 1941 in Lake Charles, Louisiana) is an American sculptor, installation artist, and provocateur whose work has been central to the development of postminimalist and feminist art since the late 1960s. She studied at the Newcomb College of Art in New Orleans before moving to New York, where she quickly became embedded in the vibrant downtown art scene of the late 1960s and entered...