Tokens V
1961
Image not available — this artwork is under copyright
View on museum website →Medium
lithograph in olive-black on Nacre paper
Classification
Portfolio
Department
CG-W
Museum
National Gallery of Art, Washington, D.C.
Credit
Rosenwald Collection
Accession Number
1964.8.2060.6
Art Historical Context
**Tokens V** by Garo Antreasian, created in 1961, is a striking lithograph printed in olive-black ink on luxurious Nacre paper. This belongs to the artist's *Tokens* series, exemplifying his mastery of printmaking during a pivotal era for American lithography. Antreasian, a prominent figure in mid-20th-century graphics, served as technical director at the newly founded Tamarind Lithography Workshop in Los Angeles, where he championed the revival of this labor-intensive technique through collaborations with leading artists. Lithography, involving greasy crayons or tusche on stone or metal plat...
About the Artist
Garo Antreasian
Garo Zareh Antreasian (1922–2018), an American artist of Armenian descent born in Indianapolis, Indiana, to parents who survived the 1915 Armenian genocide, discovered lithography at age seventeen while attending Arsenal Technical High School, using abandoned equipment there. He earned a BFA from the Herron School of Art in 1948, served as a combat artist in the Pacific during World War II, and th...