A 1939 geometric collage by American artist Balcomb Greene, featuring sharp, abstract forms in a balanced, non-representational composition.

This work, dated 1939, represents the early period of Balcomb Greene's career, during which he was a founding member of the American Abstract Artists group. The composition is constructed through the layering of paper elements, creating a flat, geometric arrangement that prioritises formal relationships over representational imagery. Two primary dark, trapezoidal forms dominate the centre of the frame, set against a light blue ground. Within these dark shapes, smaller segments of red and white paper provide a controlled contrast, suggesting a tension between the foreground elements and the surrounding space. Greene was instrumental in introducing European non-objective art to the United States. His work from this decade often features sharp edges and a restricted palette, reflecting his interest in the structural logic of synthetic cubism and the purism of the era. The collage technique allows for clean, crisp boundaries between the coloured planes, avoiding the painterly softness that would characterise his later, more atmospheric canvases. The inclusion of a small, detached triangular element at the bottom left introduces a sense of imbalance, preventing the composition from becoming purely symmetrical. This piece offers a clear view into the rigorous intellectual approach Greene applied to his early experiments with non-representational form. It is a study in spatial economy, where the interaction of colour and shape dictates the viewer's experience of the surface.