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Joseph Nechvatal (American, b.1951)
LOT ID: 64599
Web, 1984

Mixed Media, unique work using lithography
19 х 21 in. cm.
Signed, titled, and dated on verso
Edition 1/1
Lot description
Entitled 'Web', this unique lithograph cut down by the artist from a larger work, exemplifies Joseph Nechvatal's characteristic use of complex compositions which infuse the figurative within the abstract. Filled with chaotically interweaving lines, Nechvatal builds up each figure subtly, asking the viewer to investigate the composition further in order to tease out exactly what it is they're looking at. Various cultures are puzzled together, from the bust of a Greek statue and the head of an Egyptian pharaoh, to the forms of a modern child in a nightgown and a man in a conductor's cap. This incredibly dynamic piece constantly vies for the eye's attention and draws the viewer ever deeper into the aesthetics created by the artist.

Conceptual digital artist Joseph Nechvatal (B. 1951) works with computers and custom created computer viruses to produce enigmatic abstracted paintings, photographs, and animations. Nechvatal developed his own art theory known as viractualism, which is based off the concept that digital technology is not only a vital means of understanding contemporary art, but making it as well. This in turn leads to an amalgamation of the virtual and the actual where the viractuality aims to create an interface between the two, employing one to create and comprehend the other. An example of this includes using computer-robotic assistance in creating paintings on canvas. Nechvatal attended Southern Illinois University Carbondale, Cornell University, and Columbia University, where he was a student of Arthur C. Danto. He has received numerous awards including three National Endowment for the Arts grants, a Pollock-Krasner Foundation award, and two New York Foundation for the Arts awards, among others. He has exhibited at numerous venues including the Andy Warhol Museum (Pittsburg, PA), Museum of Modern Art (Shenghai, China), New Museum (New York, NY), and Seoul Museum of Art (Seoul, Korea).

Select Public Collections:
Museum of Modern Art (New York, NY)
Jewish Museum (New York, NY)
Israel Museum (Jerusalem, Israel)
Los Angeles County Museum of Art (Los Angeles, CA)
Portland Museum of Art (Portland, Oregon)
National Gallery of Art (Washington, DC)
Museum of Contemporary Art (Los Angeles, CA)
Alternate Views: 1 of 1
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