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Electric Lights and Buildings

A work made of gouache, over graphite, on cream wove paper.

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  • A work made of gouache, over graphite, on cream wove paper.

Date:

c. 1931

Artist:

Stuart Davis
American, 1892-1964

About this artwork

Stuart Davis’s Electric Lights and Buildings was probably made in 1931, when the artist was creating drawings and lithographs that juxtaposed details of several cities in one view. This drawing demonstrates how Davis’s vision evolved from a scattered grouping of scenes into a reductive composition. His inclusion of separate scenes in one work was the result of his desire to compare and contrast New York, Paris, and Gloucester, Massachusetts, underscoring the composition with a Cubist grid.

Status

Currently Off View

Department

Prints and Drawings

Artist

Stuart Davis

Title

Electric Lights and Buildings

Place

United States (Artist's nationality:)

Date  Dates are not always precisely known, but the Art Institute strives to present this information as consistently and legibly as possible. Dates may be represented as a range that spans decades, centuries, dynasties, or periods and may include qualifiers such as c. (circa) or BCE.

1930–1932

Medium

Gouache, over graphite, on cream wove paper

Dimensions

36.5 × 49.5 cm (14 3/8 × 19 1/2 in.); Image: 27.6 × 38 cm (10 7/8 × 15 in.)

Credit Line

Gift of Professor William A. Hunt

Reference Number

1973.711

Extended information about this artwork

Object information is a work in progress and may be updated as new research findings emerge. To help improve this record, please email . Information about image downloads and licensing is available here.

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