Boy 

Richard Lindner made "Boy" in 1954 using oil on canvas. The rough texture of the fabric support peeks through the layers of paint, especially in the background and the boy’s flesh. Lindner's method here seems improvisational. The forms aren’t precisely delineated, but rather built up through many delicate strokes. This lends the figure an ambiguous quality, as if he is emerging from the very stuff of the painting. The boy’s features are strongly modeled, yet also strangely blank. This has the unsettling effect of a doll—something man-made, artificial, perhaps even a little sinister. Lindner was deeply interested in the relationship between humans and machines. His style reflects this, with its sharp angles and simplified shapes. Yet, the handwork involved—the evident labor of applying the paint—gives the image an undeniable human presence. By attending to these formal aspects, we can see beyond the traditional boundaries of fine art and craft.