Untitled (work of art)
Artwork Info
Key Ideas
- This stainless steel sculpture is an example of abstract art.
- The work was inspired by the plastic lid of a takeout coffee cup. It is part of a series of large-scale sculptures.
- Ellsworth Kelly is considered to be one of the most influential abstract artists of the 20th century.
- Kelly is best known for his bold, geometric, abstract paintings. He also created sculptures and prints. His work often explored the relationships between shape, color, and form.
- Kelly is associated with several art movements of the 1950s and 1960s. These include hard-edge painting, color field painting, and minimalism.
Learn More
This abstract sculpture is part of Ellsworth Kelly’s Rocker series. The works in this series were inspired by a takeout coffee cup lid. Kelly cut out a flat section of the plastic lid, folded it in half, and rocked it back and forth on a table. This experiment with an everyday object led him to create multiple sculptures that are simple in form (a folded ellipse) and large in scale.
Everything that I saw became something to be made, and it had to be exactly as it was, with nothing added. It was a new freedom: there was no longer the need to compose. The subject was there already made, and I could take from everything.
Ellsworth Kelly
Untitled is made up of two steel planes that are angled toward one another and meet at the top, similar to a pitched roof. Its rounded edges rest on the flat ground under it. Depending on the viewer’s perspective and the sunlight, the sculpture’s form, depth, and dimensional qualities can look very different.
I think that if you can turn off the mind and look only with the eyes, ultimately everything becomes abstract.
Ellsworth Kelly
Kelly was an American painter, sculptor, and printmaker. He is considered to be one of the most influential abstract artists of the 20th century. He is best known for his abstract geometric paintings (which he called “panels”) that explore the relationships between shape, color, and form. One of Kelly’s monochromatic abstract paintings, Blue Panel, is included in the NCMA’s permanent collection.
Kelly’s work influenced the development of multiple abstract art movements in the 1950s and 1960s. These include hard-edge painting, color field painting, and minimalism. Hard-edge painting is characterized by large, simplified, usually geometric forms on a flat surface. Color field painting involves the application of a single color to large areas of a work. Minimalism often uses simple geometric shapes like squares and rectangles. In the early 1970s, Kelly began creating large-scale outdoor sculptures like this one.
Because this sculpture weighs several thousand pounds, it was challenging to install. A crane was used to lift it from a flatbed truck and over trees to a space on the lawn in the Museum courtyard. Once the sculpture was positioned correctly, it was lowered into place. The installation of this work of art required collaboration and constant communication between the truck driver, the crane operator, and people on the ground. Untitled is on loan from the Hirshhorn Museum and Sculpture Garden in Washington, DC.
Additional Resources
Resources for Teachers
- Read an interview with the artist.
- View a virtual exhibition of Kelly’s sculptures at the Whitney Museum of American Art.
- Watch a video about the artist’s use of abstraction.
Resources for Students
- Read a short article about Kelly’s life and work.
- Watch a video interview with the artist.
- Review a list of facts about the artist.
Images
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Untitled
An abstract, outdoor sculpture in the form of a folded ellipse. The large-scale sculpture is made up of two flat silver planes with curved edges. The flat planes are angled toward one another and form a sharp point at the top. The curved edges at the bottom rest on a round patch of mulch surrounded by green grass. There are green trees and a blue sky in the background.
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Untitled by Ellsworth Kelly
An abstract, outdoor sculpture in the form of a folded ellipse. The large-scale sculpture is made up of two flat silver planes with curved edges. The flat planes are angled toward one another and form a sharp point at the top. The curved edges at the bottom rest on a round patch of mulch surrounded by green grass. There are green trees and a silver building in the background.
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Untitled by Ellsworth Kelly
An abstract, outdoor sculpture in the form of a folded ellipse. The large-scale sculpture is made up of two flat silver planes with curved edges. The flat planes are angled toward one another and form a sharp point at the top. The curved edges at the bottom rest on a round patch of mulch surrounded by green grass. There is a silver building and a blue sky in the background.
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Untitled by Ellsworth Kelly
An abstract, outdoor sculpture in the form of a folded ellipse. The large-scale sculpture is made up of two flat silver planes with curved edges. The flat planes are angled toward one another and form a sharp point at the top. The curved edges at the bottom rest on a round patch of mulch surrounded by green grass. There is a silver building and a blue sky in the background.