Description:
Robert Natkin (American, b. 1930)
Untitled
Signed and dated "Natkin '75" l.c.
Acrylic on canvas, 15 x 75 in. (38.1 x 190.5 cm),framed.
Condition: Good.
N.B. Beginning in 1963, Robert Natkin created compositions using vertical stripes which he termed Apollo paintings. The paintings from the Apollo series marked a break with Natkin's earlier abstract work as the structured format of vertical lines allowed the artist to experiment with light and color (thus named after the Greek God of sun and poetry). His work (both from the Apollo series and later) is marked by strong sense of color. The verticality of these compositions references the work of Henri Matisse and Pierre Bonnard who often used the contrast of interior and exterior space to create a dynamic tension in their compositions. In the 1960s Natkin modified the composition of the Apollo paintings to create Straight Edge and Step paintings. Similar to the Apollo pieces, these works are marked by clear delineation in the vertical stripes which Natkin used masking tape to create. These works reveal the artist's disparate influences that include 20th century American architecture, the color work of Josef Albers, Persian miniatures, Irish illuminated manuscripts, and Japanese Noh and Kabuki costumes.1
1. Nelis, Leda Natkin, from Robert Natkin, A Retrospective: 1952-1996, exhibition catalogue, The Butler Institute of American Art, Youngstown, Ohio, 1997. www.robertnatkin.com
Estimate $8,000-12,000