Sept. 23 Art Minute: Nancy Graves, 'Geologic Map of the Sinus Iridum Quadrangle of the Moon, No. 8'
Nancy Graves combines abstraction with natural phenomena in order to convey her dual interest in art and science, along with her fascination with the transmission of visual information. Following upon an earlier series of drawings and paintings related to maps and charts of the ocean floor and Antarctica, in 1972 Graves produced a series of 10 large, color lithographs based on U.S. Geological Survey satellite maps of the moon’s typography. In Geologic Map of the Sinus Iridum Quadrangle of the Moon, Graves relies upon a pointillist technique of close-set dots to translate factual, cartographic data into ethereal patterns of gently glowing colors suggestive of interstellar spaces and clouds.
Read more about the framing of Geologic Map of the Sinus Iridum Quadrangle of the Moon, No. 8 and numerous other works on paper from the Museum’s collection at A Good Frame of Mind, the American Frame blog.