Essay on Artwork | Myra Yepez

Cy Twombly’s 1961 painting, Untitled (Rome) is composed of marks made by oil paint, wax crayon and lead pencil. At first glance, the tan canvas seems to be worked on by a child. The marks are sloppy and have no distinct pattern to them. Flesh toned oil paint is thickly slapped on to some areas creating another dimension to the two-dimensional work. Scribbles drawn in pencil and crayon are layered on top of oil paint while a lot of the original background peeks through shades of red, brown, pink, and cream. On the upper right is Twombly’s name and the word “Roma”- a signature written in blue crayon that could easily be mistaken for a six year-old’s.
Unfortunately, it’s very unlikely that a six year-old’s painting would be hanging at the LACMA. This aspect of the work is what engages the viewer and demands attention. The viewer is instantly reminded of childhood and youth. The way in which Twombly manipulates the material automatically brings nostalgia to the viewer. Twombly achieves this by using a tan canvas reminiscent of the recycled paper schoolchildren write on. If he were to use a standard white canvas, he would not have achieved the same results. The tan canvas is incredibly instrumental in initially setting a warm tone for the viewer. Besides the color of the canvas, the palette Twombly uses is so warm it’s alive. He uses fleshy tones that seem to instantly bring life to the canvas. They personify the work, making it almost as approachable as a person. Even though using these flesh-like tones and reds could result in something that looks straight out of a horror film, it doesn’t. Instead, the pinks and corals he uses end up looking like the colors found on a child’s blushing cheeks or their mother’s chest. In capturing the essence of childhood, he also employs the use of crayon and lead pencil. These common elementary school mediums make this painting seem even more childlike.
Although this painting brings back memories of childhood in the way it is created, it challenges the traditional ideas of what art is. It forces the viewer to reevaluate what is considered to be art and what is not. This Twombly does not fit the mold of how oil paint is traditionally used, and the wax crayon and lead pencil create doubts when classifying this as a painting. It responds to contemporary culture by rejecting traditional styles of painting and creating a new category with the media it uses and the techniques used.