Multitudes

Norman LewisWW-1946-016266

1946·Oil on canvas·99.7 × 67.3 cm (39 1/4 × 26 1/2 in.)

<p>In <em>Multitudes</em>, Norman Lewis rapidly layered calligraphy over a ground of pulsating color. The dense array of lines subtly evokes figures in a crowd, revealing his interest in incorporating nonrepresentational forms evocative of the energy of American cities. The only black member of the first generation of Abstract Expressionists, Lewis took a unique approach among his peers by addressing social concerns through his art. The title of this work alludes to lines from Walt Whitman’s poem “Song of Myself” (first published 1855), which perhaps was intended by Lewis as an acknowledgment of the complications his artistic practice presented at this moment: “Do I contradict myself? / Very well then I contradict myself, / (I am large, I contain multitudes.).”</p>

Catalogue

Year: 1946
Medium: Oil on canvas
Dimensions: 99.7 × 67.3 cm (39 1/4 × 26 1/2 in.)
Collection: Art Institute of Chicago
Artist: Norman Lewis

Artist

Norman Lewis

Painting

Born in 1909 in Harlem, New York, Norman Lewis tirelessly dedicated his life to his art and his community. Alongside the behemoths of Abstract Expressionism, including Jackson Pollock, Willem de Kooning, Mark Rothko, Clyfford Still, and Barnett Newman, Lewis stands as a critical member of this seminal group, and was indeed the only African-American artist present at the historic 1950 symposium at Studio 35 in New York, where the leading artists of the day coined their eponymous term.

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