The Flowers
Modern and Contemporary Art

The Flowers
Artwork Details
Artist/Maker
Robert Vickrey
American, 1926–2011
American, 1926–2011
Date
ca. 1958
Medium
Tempera on panel
Accession #
58.65
Dimensions
6 1/8 x 24 1/8 inches
Location
On View - Stent Family Wing, Level 3, Gallery 301
Description
Robert Vickrey was a proponent of the magical realist aesthetic in American art. He worked in the Renaissance tradition of egg tempera but abstracted and reinvented his surroundings to create complex, surreal scenes.
The Flowers is an example of Vickrey’s early work, which transformed ordinary suburban street scenes into moments of almost mystical clarity and an uncanny sense of the protagonist’s awareness. The influences of film noir and Expressionism are evident in Vickrey’s work—particularly in its provocative angles—and motivated him to create distinctly surrealist and American portraits.
Credit
Anonymous giftImage Copyright
© Estate of Robert Vickrey/VAGA at Artists Rights Society (ARS), New York