Skip to main content

Wasted Youth I

Leon Golub

Artwork Details

Wasted Youth I
1994
Leon Golub
screenprint on paper
44 1/2 in x 33 5/8 in (113.03 cm x 85.41 cm)
Gift of Thomas Deutsch
1999/1.85

Description

Subject Matter:

Power was a recurring theme in the painter Leon Golub's work, especially related to power- politics and political figures, and the physical violence of individuals. In the 1990s, Golub's work shifted toward the illusionistic with semi-visible figures, as here. 

Golub was a leader of Chicago's Monster Roster group. The group was composed of postwar figurative artists, who were influenced by mythology and ancient art. Many attended and were inspired by Jean Dubuffet's 1951 lecture, "Anticultural Positions" at the Arts Club of Chicago. 

Physical Description:

In this dark print a young man and a woman stand together. The man's left arm is draped across the woman's shoulders. The man wears a t-shirt tucked into pants with the text "WASTED YOUTH." The man's right arm is bent at the elbow, and he makes a hand gesture with his right hand. The woman has curly hair that falls below her shoulders, she wears a t-shirt and pants. There is a green rectangular flap across her chest that has an outline drawing of breasts. The woman's arms are down at her side. The colors used in this print are green, purple, orange, pink, and black.

Usage Rights:

If you are interested in using an image for a publication, please visit https://umma.umich.edu/request-image/ for more information and to fill out the online Image Rights and Reproductions Request Form.