The legibility and illegibility of the text is what the work is about—the struggle to decipher something and find meaning.
Glenn Ligon
Excerpt from "Stranger in the Village" that forms the basis of Untitled (Black on Black)
Limited edition of 75
Artwork
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Glenn Ligon's new limited edition print revisits one of the defining bodies of work in his career.
Untitled (Black on Black) belongs to the seminal series, Stranger, where Ligon transcribed James Baldwin's 1953 essay Stranger in the Village onto the canvas again and again. Over time, Ligon transforms Baldwin's reflections on race, history and estrangement into dense, pulsating fields of text, famously using coal dust as a material to give Baldwin's words literal, physical weight.
Produced as a limited edition of just 75, this silkscreen print captures the depth and materiality of Ligon's layered, text-based compositions.
Dimensions
Unframed: 70cm (H) × 53.9cm (W)
Framed: 81.4cm (H) × 65.34cm (W) × 3cm (D)
Medium
5-colour silkscreen print, printed in 5 layers on Somerset Tub Sized Radiant White 410gsm paper and finished with a fine-grade dusted layer of real coal and matte varnish
Edition size
75Authentication
Signed by the artist. Individually numbered.
Certificate of Authenticity
Arrives with a certificate of authenticity.Release date
September 17, 2026Prints can be ordered float-mounted in one of three framing options:
We ship framed and unframed prints in bespoke boxes. The boxes are specially designed to ensure safe arrival, and you'll find gloves and handling instructions inside. If you order more than one unframed print, your artworks may be shipped in the same box.
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