Sidney and Lois Eskenazi Museum of Art

About this Work

This drawing of a baboon demonstrates Steinberg’s creative process. In many of his works intended for publication, alterations were covered with small pieces of paper or opaque white pigment for purposes of reproduction. The blatant eraser lines left on this page reveal a renewed willingness on the artist’s part to acknowledge his changes. Upon closer observation, the baboon’s stature was changed from a bipedal (more human) stance to all fours, and its tail has been redrawn several times, gradually making it longer and straighter. Leaving the previous states visible to the viewer gives the drawing a dynamic quality, as if the baboon could come to life on the paper.