Not on view
Poetry Reading
Artist: Milton Avery (American, 1885 - 1965)
Date: 1957
Medium: Oil on canvas
Dimensions:
Overall: 44 × 56 1/8 × 1 1/4in. (111.8 × 142.6 × 3.2cm)
Framed: 45 5/8 × 57 5/8 × 1 3/4in. (115.9 × 146.4 × 4.4cm)
Signed: Lower right: 'Milton Avery 1957'
Verso, on canvas: 'Poetry Reading / Milton Avery / 1957 / 44 x 56'
Inscribed: Label: 'Grace Borgenicht Gallery, Inc., 1018 Madison Avenue--New York 21, N.Y.'
Credit Line: Museum Purchase
Object number: 59.8
Label Text
Poetry Reading invites the viewer into an intimate scene where two figures sit and read together. They are rendered in simple shapes as they lean toward each other and their reading material. The figures create a strong diagonal line that is in contrast to the opposing lines formed by the furniture and walls; this is the only suggestion of three-dimensional space. Avery composes whimsically, with patterns and color. The figures are reserved in attitude and lack any expression indicating their mood, but Avery’s use of warm brown tones creates a sympathetic atmosphere that corresponds with their postures.
Charlotte Zee
Hamilton College Intern, summer 2016
Copyright
Presumed copyright: the artist or the artist's representative/heir(s) / Licensing by ARS, New York, NY.