NY, NY No. X
- Artist: Hedda Sterne
- Date: 1948
- Medium: Oil paint on canvas
- Dimensions: support: 835 x 1185 mm
- Museum: Tate Modern
- Collection record: Tate Modern website
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About this artwork
This is the “NY, NY No. X” by Hedda Sterne. Painted in 1948, it’s an oil on canvas that condenses the frenetic energy of New York’s bridges and elevated railways into a grid of lines and planes. The backdrop is a vivid blue that recalls the sky over the city. Sterne, a Romanian‑born artist who arrived in New York in 1941, was part of the New York School. She became the sole woman featured in Nina Leen’s 1951 Life magazine photo of the “Irascibles,” a group of abstract expressionists protesting the Met’s conservatism. In this work the red and black stripes mimic pedestrian crossings seen from above, while the fragmented geometry speaks to the city’s continuous motion. The painting captures her fascination with urban forms, turning everyday structures into rhythmic abstractions.
See it in person
NY, NY No. X is in the collection of Tate Modern on Bankside, London — free to enter. Point your phone at any artwork there and audioguide.london plays a free audio guide in six languages — no app download needed.
