Franz Kline, an American Abstract Expressionist known for his distinctive monochromatic paintings, created “Untitled” in 1957. The large-scale abstract painting features highly charged, broad strokes of black on a white ground. Kline’s mature style was deliberately planned despite their appearance of immediacy.
Kline began his career as a figurative painter but shifted to creating large-scale abstract works in the late 1940s when he used a projector to enlarge his drawing of a black rocking chair onto the wall. “Untitled” is an example of Kline’s work from this period and his association with the Abstract Expressionist movement led by artists such as Jackson Pollock, Willem de Kooning, and Robert Motherwell.
Many art enthusiasts praise “Untitled” for its bold contrasts between black and white and its ability to evoke strong emotions from viewers. Although there is no clear representation in the painting itself, its size and scale can be seen as representative of something greater than oneself. It has become an icon of mid-20th-century abstract expressionism.
