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Deserted Landscape

Object Details

Luce Center Label
Malcolm Roberts painted several landscapes inspired by discarded objects washed up on Seattle’s beaches. Here, a piece of driftwood shaped like a woman’s pelvis balances delicately on a pedestal like a valuable piece of sculpture. In the background, looming constructions rise up from the sand and a rocking chair sits in the dim moonlight, as if somebody has just left the scene. Roberts placed apparently random objects together against a dark sky to evoke the immediate aftermath of some unknown, sinister event.
Data Source
Smithsonian American Art Museum
Artist
Malcolm Roberts, born Seattle, WA 1913-died Seattle, WA 1990
Date
1937
Credit Line
Smithsonian American Art Museum, Transfer from General Services Administration
Medium
tempera on fiberboard
Dimensions
24 x 30 in. (61.0 x 76.2 cm)
Type
Painting

Featured In

  • 1937: A Year in the Collections
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