An abstract painter throughout his life, Leon Polk Smith developed a distinct formal vocabulary which combined Native American motifs -- reflecting his Cherokee heritage -- with European modernism. Mondrian, whose work Smith first saw in 1936 while attending summer school in New York City, was a major influence although Smith went beyond the constraints of Neoplasticism to explore a wide range of geometric compositions, often based on interlocking forms. Smith's hard-edge style and vast expanses of color anticipated the minimalist movement of the 1960s. This sheet is an example of Smith's torn paper drawings. To create it, he covered a yellow sheet of paper with blue paint and subsequently tore it to reveal a beveled line. He worked out the composition in graphite on the verso in advance and taped it after tearing to secure it.
Signed (Leon Polk Smith) and dated ('68), lower right.