Chuck Close (aka Charles Thomas Close)
American, 1940–2021
Moving away from his signature large-scale Photo-Realist paintings of friends and family of the 1970s, Chuck Close began making looser images in the 1980s. Still using photographs as a point of reference, Close began employing colorful marks that he calls "donuts and lozenges" into a grid pattern. Up close these marks are abstract, but as the viewer moves further away, they coalesce into a clear image.
Close has explored many printmaking processes and, to transform his painting of his first wife, Leslie, the artist turned to the traditional Japanese "ukiyo-e" technique of woodblock printing. This process closely mimics his approach to painting by using numerous colors built up in layers to complete the overall image. Here Close utilized 51 blocks of linden wood, carved and printed with 10 different hues that overlap and mix on the paper to create the wide variety of colors.
American, 1940–2021
Leslie
1986
Object Type:
Print
Creation Place:
North America, American
Dimensions:
24 3/4 in. x 21 7/16 in. (62.87 cm x 54.45 cm)
Medium and Support:
Color woodcut on paper
Accession Number:
1998.0009.0002
Credit Line:
Montgomery Museum of Fine Arts Association Purchase
Moving away from his signature large-scale Photo-Realist paintings of friends and family of the 1970s, Chuck Close began making looser images in the 1980s. Still using photographs as a point of reference, Close began employing colorful marks that he calls "donuts and lozenges" into a grid pattern. Up close these marks are abstract, but as the viewer moves further away, they coalesce into a clear image.
Close has explored many printmaking processes and, to transform his painting of his first wife, Leslie, the artist turned to the traditional Japanese "ukiyo-e" technique of woodblock printing. This process closely mimics his approach to painting by using numerous colors built up in layers to complete the overall image. Here Close utilized 51 blocks of linden wood, carved and printed with 10 different hues that overlap and mix on the paper to create the wide variety of colors.
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