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1947-48-W No. 1

1947–48
On view at The Met Fifth Avenue in Gallery 921
Beginning in 1945, Still periodically lived in New York, though his formative years were spent on the West Coast. In 1961 he settled permanently in Maryland. His mature paintings are characterized by amorphous, jagged forms often applied with a palette knife. In this example, large black and white areas are punctuated by flashes of red, yellow, and blue. Although Still disavowed associative meaning in this abstract work, some scholars have suggested allusions to the rugged terrain of the American West in his compositions, while others maintain that the upright nature of his forms invokes the human figure in relation to the environment.

Artwork Details

Object Information
  • Title: 1947-48-W No. 1
  • Artist: Clyfford Still (American, Grandin, North Dakota 1904–1980 Baltimore, Maryland)
  • Date: 1947–48
  • Medium: Oil on canvas
  • Dimensions: 92 × 71 in. (233.7 × 180.3 cm)
  • Classification: Paintings
  • Credit Line: Gift of Mrs. Clyfford Still, 1986
  • Object Number: 1986.441.3
  • Rights and Reproduction: © 2025 Artists Rights Society (ARS), New York
  • Curatorial Department: Modern and Contemporary Art

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