Night Sky 1 (Reversed)
A luminous expanse of deep, velvety darkness is punctuated by a constellation of faint stars in this intricate intaglio print by Vija Celmins. Working from a photographic source, Celmins employs photogravure, aquatint, photoetching, and drypoint to render the night sky with extraordinary subtlety and tonal depth on fine Hahnemühle paper. The "reversed" quality of the image inverts the familiar celestial view, transforming the cosmos into a meditative surface that hovers between representation and pure abstraction.
- Medium
- Photogravure, aquatint, photoetching and drypoint, on Hahnemühle paper, with full margins.
- Location
- Phillips, Salt Lake City, UT
- Spotted At
- Auction House · PhillipsView on map
🔨 Auction Lot
Editions and Works on Paper Including Works from the Piero Crommelynck Collection
April 18, 2017
Spotted works by Vija Celmins
Artists in conversation
Kiki Smith
American · b. 1954
Kiki Smith has created numerous intaglio prints exploring celestial and cosmic imagery with similar tonal richness and meditative depth, using photogravure and aquatint techniques to render astronomical subjects with quiet intensity and contemplative stillness.
Robert Longo
American · b. 1953
Robert Longo works from photographic sources to create large scale black and white works of extreme tonal precision and photorealistic depth, sharing Celmins's commitment to rendering observed phenomena with obsessive fidelity and a similarly dark, velvety atmospheric quality.
Hiroshi Sugimoto
Japanese · b. 1948
Sugimoto's long exposure photographic works exploring seascapes and theaters share the same meditative darkness, tonal subtlety, and philosophical blurring between representation and abstraction that defines this specific night sky print by Celmins.
Start the Discussion
Request access to join the discussion