Vanity

Artist Mel Rosas (American, born 1950)

Date1981

MediumLithograph

DimensionsImage Size: 14 3/4 × 21 in. (37.5 × 53.3 cm) Frame Size: 27 1/4 × 32 3/4 in. (69.2 × 83.2 cm)

ClassificationsPrint

Object numberUAC2420

DescriptionAt the beginning of his Detroit career in 1976, highly regarded Wayne State University painting professor Mel Rosas set out to capture the post-industrial landscape of the city. Working mostly in black and white charcoal, Rosas initially created works which were inspired by photo-realism. As his career progressed, his focus shifted to capturing scenes of Latin America. Always a believer in art’s capacity to explore one’s identity and selfhood, Rosas turned to not only painting, but traveling Latin America in pursuit of a deeper understanding of his own heritage. The works reflected a similar urban realism to that of his Detroit landscapes, but with a newfound interjection of surrealist motifs lingering on the conflicting effect of simultaneously losing oneself as well as being excruciatingly present within the vivid cities.

Created in 1981, Rosas’s lithograph Vanity is emblematic of his first years within Detroit. The charcoal drawing portrays in elaborate detail the ornate architectural façade of a building. A giant sign reads “vanity” and “dancing,” made imposing by the dramatic tilting incline of perspective. The playful angle adds character to the conspicuous signage and shows Rosas’s exploration of not only formal techniques, but a novel city. Vanity stands as a lovely precursor to Rosas’s later work; acting as a representation of the artist’s budding interest in the subtle alteration of reality for surrealist effect and self-realization.

Written by Samantha Hohmann