On View
On viewObject number1980/1.81.2
Manhattan (Blue)
Artist
Oskar Kokoschka
(Austrian, 1886 - 1980)
Date1967
Mediumlithograph
Dimensionsimage: 21 × 26 in. (53.3 × 66 cm)
sheet: 30 × 35 in. (76.2 × 88.9 cm)
sheet: 30 × 35 in. (76.2 × 88.9 cm)
Credit LineGift of Mr. Ira H. Levy through the Martin S. Ackerman Foundation, New York, New York
Label TextAcross his long career, Oskar Kokoschka lived in Vienna, Berlin, Prague, Scotland, and Switzerland. His images of Manhattan reflect a foreign perspective on New York City’s rapidly changing skyline and its compact urban environment. Kokoschka was particularly drawn to depicting the city’s towering skyscrapers and the energy of American city life.
Like many artists, Kokoschka was keenly interested in the Statue of Liberty and what it represented about American ideals. In Manhattan (Blue), Kokoschka singles out Lady Liberty, emphasizing the monument’s grand presence, rather than its location. First dedicated in 1886, the statue has long been viewed as a symbol of freedom and welcome. In this composition, it dominates the scene, functioning as a visual anchor within the city, and by extension the nation. Kokoschka’s interpretation reflects a fascination with the American urban experience, filtering one of its most iconic symbols of national identity through a distinctly European gaze.
[Label Text: For the People: America at 250 Exhibition, June 27 - October 4, 2026]
