Untitled [trial proof]
2000
Image not available — this artwork is under copyright
View on museum website →Medium
linocut in black and gray on laid paper [trial proof]
Dimensions
image: 10.16 × 12.7 cm (4 × 5 in.) sheet: 31.75 × 25.4 cm (12 1/2 × 10 in.)
Classification
Department
CG-W
Museum
National Gallery of Art, Washington, D.C.
Credit
Patrons' Permanent Fund and Special Friends of the National Gallery of Art
Accession Number
2010.116.621
Art Historical Context
Jasper Johns, a pivotal figure in post-World War II American art, created *Untitled [trial proof]* 2000, late in his illustrious career. Renowned for his innovative prints and paintings that blurred the line between representation and abstraction—think flags, targets, and numbers—this linocut exemplifies his enduring fascination with everyday motifs transformed into enigmatic symbols. Produced as a trial proof, it represents an experimental stage in printmaking, where Johns tested composition, ink density, and tonal effects in black and gray on laid paper before committing to a final edition. ...
About the Artist
Jasper Johns
Jasper Johns (born May 15, 1930) is an American painter, sculptor, draftsman, and printmaker whose revolutionary work fundamentally transformed the trajectory of postwar American art. Emerging in the 1950s when Abstract Expressionism dominated the New York art world, Johns introduced a radically different approach by painting familiar, everyday symbols—flags, targets, numbers, and maps—that he des...