Broadway
Fairfield Porter
American, 1907–1975
1972
A 1972 lithograph by Fairfield Porter that translates a fleeting, everyday moment on Broadway into a softly colored, painterly street scene, using printmaking to retain the intimacy of on‑the‑spot observation.
You notice first its muted, sunwashed palette and flattened, sketchlike forms—tall buildings melting into a pale haze while small, quietly detailed figures and a rounded green bus hold the foreground with calm immediacy.
Porter, better known as a painter, brought a domestic, lyrical realism to lithography here, demonstrating how representational, observational art could respond to urban modernity at a moment when abstraction dominated the art world.
Medium
Lithograph
Dimensions
composition and sheet (slightly irreg.): 29 13/16 × 21 13/16" (75.7 × 55.4 cm)
Classification
Department
Credit
Gift of the Estate of Fairfield Porter
Accession
105.1998
Palette
Art Terms
Exhibitions
