The Cleveland Museum of Art

Collection Online as of July 8, 2026

An ink drawing on deckled, off-white paper features a dense cluster of organic forms. Centered irregular blotches of black and gray ink form a square, separated by thin, light gaps. Reminiscent of cells or stones, the ink features soft, feathered edges that bleed into the textured surface. Several forms radiate from a central point, while stray ink droplets dot the margins on the left and right.

Untitled

1987–88

Jacqueline Humphries

(American, 1960-)
America
ink on paper
Sheet: 25.8 x 25.2 cm (10 3/16 x 9 15/16 in.)
Gift in Memory of Toby Devan Lewis 2024.91.2
Location: Not on view

Did You Know?

Jacqueline Humphries has referred to her artistic practice as “my machine for thinking.”

Description

Jacqueline Humphries was one of a number of artists during the 1980s who worked to revive painting at a time when it had fallen out of favor in the New York art scene. This untitled set of drawings exemplifies the artist’s use of gestural forms to consider the legacy of Abstract Expressionist painting. Rather than improvisational brushstrokes, she presents carefully calculated and manipulated but organic forms.
  • Toby Devan Lewis [1934–2022], Cleveland, OH
    2022–24
    Estate of Toby Devan Lewis, Cleveland, OH
    2024
    Adam Joseph Lewis, Ivy Beth Lewis, and Mark C. Lewis, given to The Cleveland Museum of Art, Cleveland, OH
    September 9, 2024–
    The Cleveland Museum of Art, Cleveland, OH
  • {{cite web|title=Untitled|url=false|author=Jacqueline Humphries|year=1987–88|access-date=08 July 2026|publisher=Cleveland Museum of Art}}

Source URL:

https://www.clevelandart.org/art/2024.91.2