James CastleAmerican, 1899–1977Untitled (Free!)
May one see it?
Not receiving at present
Minneapolis Institute of Art
Minneapolis, United States
It belongs to the collection, but is not on display at present.
- Checked
- 3 days ago
- In this state since
- Sep 25, 2026
- Source
- The museum's own collection data
About the work
Castle’s fascination with text and commercial advertising included a fondness for isolating single words within a composition. Here, he highlights a common marketing refrain—Free!—an enticement that Castle likely chose for both formal and conceptual reasons. With the word centered on the sheet, Castle adds an unusual compositional structure, a fractured, Cubist-like pictorial space that mimics the effect of a kaleidoscope, an optical instrument that alters visual images into abstract geometric arrangements of colored elements. Castle was intrigued by the kaleidoscope from childhood, and, according to family members, possessed several.
Minneapolis Institute of Art
Particulars
- Accession number
- 2014.141.4
In the catalog
Sources
- Minneapolis Institute of Art: the museum's own open data · fetched 3 days ago
- Image: Minneapolis Institute of Art — Copyright © 2018 James Castle Collection and Archive LP, All rights reserved.
![Untitled (SHORT RIBS) [recto], James Castle, n.d.](https://api.nga.gov/iiif/d527843c-fb7f-46ef-909d-bd8ee60f304c/full/!2400,2400/0/default.jpg)
![Untitled (Patterned Figure) [recto], James Castle, n.d.](https://api.nga.gov/iiif/2e1f9484-ba44-4532-81a4-1ddb2ad8eeeb/full/!2400,2400/0/default.jpg)
