The Cleveland Museum of Art

Collection Online as of April 26, 2024

Scroll

Scroll

1978
(American, 1913–1980)
America, 20th century
oil on canvas
Framed: 203.4 x 244 x 2.5 cm (80 1/16 x 96 1/16 x 1 in.); Unframed: 203.4 x 244 cm (80 1/16 x 96 1/16 in.)
Bequest of Musa Guston 1992.212
© The Estate of Philip Guston
Location: 229B Contemporary

Did You Know?

The artist applied oil paint thinly on the upper portion of the work, resulting in a matte appearance, while the glossy area in the middle suggests a thick, wet-on-wet painting technique.

Description

During the last, most productive decade of Philip Guston’s career, his imagery included ordinary objects such as bottles, books, light bulbs, and shoes—emblematic of art historical, social, and personal experiences. Here a scroll, often associated with the Torah, the book of Jewish law, alludes to Guston’s religious heritage. Isolated against a dark, somber background of turbulent brushstrokes, the scroll has been unrolled to reveal thick hatchings that suggest a text.
  • Estate of Musa Guston
  • Dabrowski, Magdalena. The Drawings of Philip Guston. New York: The Museum of Modern Art, 1988. 41
    Ashton, Dore. A Critical Study of Philip Guston. Los Angeles, California: University of California Press, 1990. 188
    Franklin, David. The Cleveland Museum of Art. London: Scala Arts & Heritage Publishers Ltd., 2012. Reproduced: p. 76 - 77
    "Year in Review for 1992," The Bulletin of the Cleveland Museum of Art, Vol. 80 (Feb. 1993), no. 38. 66
    Godfrey, Mark. "Jewish Image-Maker." In Philip Guston Now. Harry Cooper, ed., 192-203. Washington: National Gallery of Art, 2020. Mentioned and reproduced: P. 193-194, fig. 1
  • Contemporary Gallery Reinstallation 2021. The Cleveland Museum of Art (organizer).
    "Selected Acquisitions," CMA, 1993.
  • {{cite web|title=Scroll|url=false|author=Philip Guston|year=1978|access-date=26 April 2024|publisher=Cleveland Museum of Art}}

Source URL:

https://www.clevelandart.org/art/1992.212