Canto III 1 #124

Prints and Drawings

1978

Jerry Saltz
American, born 1951

Now well known as an art critic based in New York, Saltz dropped out of the School of the Art Institute of Chicago to cofound N.A.M.E. Gallery—for years one of Chicago’s most important noncommercial spaces—in 1973. This triptych was inspired by Canto III of Dante Alighieri’s epic poem the Divine Comedy, which takes place in Hell. Though Saltz clearly demonstrated talent, he succumbed to self-doubt and took a hiatus from creating art, working as a truck driver hauling art over long distances (which gave him plenty of time to develop his critical thinking skills).

Status: Currently Off View
Department: Prints and Drawings

Artist: Jerry Saltz
Title: Canto III 1 #124
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.: 1978
Medium: Oil pastel and graphite, with incising, on white wove paper
Dimensions: 56.8 × 76.1 cm (22 3/8 × 30 in.)
Credit Line: Purchased with funds provided by Mr. and Mrs. Phil Shorr
Reference Number: 1979.372

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.