Attic Staircase with Sunlight
Attic Staircase and Sunlight is a strong example of Dodd’s interest in depicting doorways, staircases, and other portals in her domestic spaces in New Jersey, Maine, and New York City across seasons, weather conditions, and varying times of day. This painting, unique in its fully frontal take on this subject, focuses the viewer’s attention on the nearly geometric washes of sunlight on the steps. The titular attic looms in the distance and gives the work a mysterious aura—a quality that Dodd especially embraces in her well-known night scenes.
Artwork Details
- Title: Attic Staircase with Sunlight
- Artist: Lois Dodd (American, born Montclair, New Jersey 1927)
- Date: 1987–88
- Medium: Oil on linen
- Dimensions: 60 × 38 in. (152.4 × 96.5 cm)
- Classification: Paintings
- Credit Line: Gift of the Alex Katz Foundation, 2025
- Object Number: 2025.520
- Curatorial Department: Modern and Contemporary Art
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