Abstraction #1

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Abstraction #1

Artist Jared French (American, 1905-1988)

Date1960s

DimensionsH: 27 in. (68.6 cm); W: 81 in. (205.7 cm) (dealer)

MediumInk on paper.

ClassificationDrawings

Credit LinePurchased with funds from the Libbey Endowment, Gift of Edward Drummond Libbey, by exchange

Object number

2008.163

Not on View

Label TextJared French’s skill at rendering form with illusionary settings is showcased in this landscape with anthropomorphic (human-like) shapes. During the 1960s, French began drawing creatures that at first look like rock formations, as seen in Abstraction #1. On closer examination, fragments of the human body begin to emerge from the landscape. Like French’s larger body of work, this drawing seeks to capture a physiological state of being through manipulating and abstracting the human form. It is common for artists with working and personal relationships to own each other’s work. This is the case with the two American artists Paul Cadmus (1904–1999) and Jared French, who were lovers in their youth, then life-long friends. Prior to entering the collection at the Toledo Museum of Art, Abstraction #1 belonged to Cadmus until his death in 1999. Similarly, an intimate portrait of French by Cadmus titled Jerry belonged to French until his death in 1988 (see Jerry currently on display in Gallery 6).Exhibition HistoryNew York, Midtown Payson Galleries, Jared French: Drawings from the 1960s, October 13 - November 13, 1993.