We Love New York

Mary Ryan Gallery

As New York City faces the Covid-19 pandemic, our community has come together via myriad acts of neighborly service, along with the tireless efforts of healthcare workers, grocery workers, delivery people, and so many more. The daily push for solidarity has shined a light on the constant resilience of a city that has served as a source of inspiration for many throughout the years. We love New York, and in this spirit we look to some of the artworks our artists created in the city’s honor. View the exhibition here.

Image:
Louis Lozowick
Madison Ave, 1929
Lithograph
Paper: 12 3/4 x 8 3/4 inches (32.4 x 22.2 cm)
This impression from early edition of 15 printed in 1929, a later edition of 10 (numbered I-X) was printed in 1972

Known for his work capturing a burgeoning urban American landscape, Louis Lozowick was deeply fascinated by the rapid evolution of New York City’s skyline. He was a pioneer of Precisionist and Constructivist aesthetics, and was fascinated by the dynamic modernism of American bridges and skyscrapers. Born in Ukraine, Lozowick first emigrated to the United States in 1912. In this print, Lozowick offers us a glimpse of Madison Avenue as it looked in 1929. Employing the visual indicators of modernity, Lozowick draws out his view of the city in rhythmic angles and patterns, interrupted by a smattering of automobiles and a water tank in the foreground. The tone is one of hope for America’s industrial and urban future—it is a call to action that was effectively answered in subsequent years.

Collections: Smithsonian, Yale