The Porch II
Artist
Philip Guston
(American, 1913 - 1980)
Date1947
MediumOil on canvas
DimensionsOverall: 62 1/2 x 43in. (158.8 x 109.2cm)
Framed: 66 x 47in. (167.6 x 119.4cm)
Framed: 66 x 47in. (167.6 x 119.4cm)
ClassificationsPAINTINGS
Credit LineMuseum Purchase
Terms
Object number48.26
Description On View
On viewCollections
CopyrightPresumed copyright: the artist or the artist's representative/heir(s).
Label TextImmediately after World War II, when Philip Guston learned of the Holocaust and the extermination of six million people, he was outraged and saddened by such barbarism. He sought to communicate these feelings allegorically in his paintings.
In Porch No. 2, Guston creates a tense atmosphere through his use of clashing color and constrained space - all the painting's activity is claustrophobically crammed into the foreground. One figure sits in a chair behind a vertical post and in front of a horizontal one. The two posts create a cross, a strong symbol of sacrificial killing. Directly behind the seated figure is a strange parade of musicians. It is not a festive event, however. They march as if in a funeral, against the backdrop of barred windows and black background.
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