Untitled (Exciting Event: House with Figures)
Folk and Self-Taught Art

Search and Share Tools
Untitled (Exciting Event: House with Figures)
Artwork Details
Artist/Maker
Bill Traylor
American, 1854–1949
American, 1854–1949
Date
ca. 1939–1942
Medium
Poster paint and pencil on cardboard
Accession #
1997.114
Dimensions
Please contact the Museum for more information.
Location
Currently Not on View
Description
Bustling with commotion, this drawing exemplifies Traylor’s skill at storytelling through revealing gestures. The work’s negative space takes on a character of its own, intensifying the tension of the scene, which is drawn together in a relationship of curving lines. The arcs interact subtly within each figure and correlate the figures with one another. The artist commonly drew attention to important elements of his works through adjustments in scale. Here the man on the roof seems to provide the key to the action. Only the little man smoking inside seems unaffected by the pandemonium encircling the building.