Tamarind-Tanic
1970
William Richard Crutchfield (American, 1932-2015)
Not on View

William Crutchfield made this lithograph and Eucalyptus II during his residency at the Tamarind Lithography Workshop in Los Angeles. Though their subject matter appears similar—two doomed ships at sea—his approach to each ship differs slightly, both technically and metaphorically.

Overbuilt redundancy, a trope the artist often used to take a critical look at progress, manifests itself as almost two hundred sails in Eucalyptus II. In Tamarind-Tanic, building spires and a paddle wheel make the ship nonfunctional in the open sea. The handling of color and composition in each lithograph reveals the artist’s level of technical mastery. The faint rust-colored lines of Tamarind-Tanic reinforce the title’s sense of foreboding and the ultimate demise of the ship. In Eucalyptus II, the boat emerges from the negative space left open by the colors of sky and sea, as if it were made out of thin air.

The titles of these two artworks hint at ideas the artist does not blatantly state. Tamarind-Tanic alludes to the famous luxury liner, the Titanic, which struck an iceberg on its maiden voyage. The opulent Titanic succumbed to its own hubris, just as the pompously constructed ship pictured here will not stay afloat.

Eucalyptus II refers to an Australian tree imported to Southern California as a possible timber alternative—the eucalyptus, also known as “blue gum.” It was later found to warp and twist when drying, and was therefore not a viable replacement for other types of wood. Long rows of the rapidly growing tree did become used as windbreaks, not too dissimilar from Crutchfield’s own use of ten masts on this ship.

Details

  • Artist Name: William Richard Crutchfield (American, 1932-2015)
  • Title: Tamarind-Tanic
  • Date: 1970
  • Medium: Lithograph
  • Dimensions: Sheet: 30 x 22 in. (76.2 x 55.88 cm.)
  • Publisher: Tamarind Lithography Workshop, Inc.
  • Printer: Edward Hamilton
  • Credit Line: Norton Simon Museum, Anonymous Gift, 1972
  • Accession Number: P.1972.08.244
  • Copyright: © 2011 William Crutchfield

Additional Artwork by Artist

Air Land Sea Alphabet William Richard Crutchfield 1970
Air Land Sea I: Playground William Richard Crutchfield 1970
Air Land Sea II: 2-8-4 Flyer William Richard Crutchfield 1970

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