Purple - Concrete 1962

Reva Urban made this screenprint, “Purple-Concrete,” using a stencil to apply ink to paper. The image is built from simple shapes, and the hard edges speak to her interest in the built environment. Urban was deeply engaged with modernist abstraction, a style that favors pure form over representation. Notice how the flat purple planes overlap and intersect. This arrangement emphasizes the material qualities of the print, its flatness, and graphic impact. Screenprinting is a process often associated with industrial production, allowing for the reproduction of images on a large scale. Artists have long adopted it, and it's a medium that has been used for both fine art and commercial purposes. Considering the title, Urban seems to be suggesting a connection between the abstract forms and the harsh realities of urban construction. This print blurs the lines between design, craft, and fine art, inviting us to consider the social and material conditions that shape our visual world.