2000.20.5
Untitled
Artist
Burgoyne Diller
(1906 - 1965)
Title
Untitled
Creation Date
1946
Century
20th century
Dimensions
16 5/8 in. x 13 3/4 in. (42.23 cm x 34.93 cm)
Object Type
drawing
Creation Place
North America, United States
Medium and Support
graphite and crayon on vellum
Credit Line
Gift of halley k harrisburg, Class of 1990, and Michael Rosenfeld
Copyright
This artwork may be under copyright. For further information, please consult the Museum’s
Copyright Terms and Conditions.
Accession Number
2000.20.5
Burgoyne Diller is recognized as the first American to practice Neoplasticism, a form of geometric abstraction introduced by Piet Mondrian (1872--1944) in 1917 and strictly based on the use of black and white and primary colors in squares and rectangles. Diller responded to Neoplasticism by developing three categorical themes. This drawing falls into the category of Theme One, which is defined as arrangements of vertical and horizontal lines of different thicknesses on rectangular and monochromatic backgrounds. In this version, the thin red, blue, and yellow vertical lines touch the edges of the vellum-colored rectangles, while the horizontal black rectangles float. Diller presents each on a smooth graphite pool that isolates and highlights the rectangles of the composition. While some of his drawings were used as references for later sculptural work, most of them were created as unique artworks in their own right.