Will Barnet (American, 1911–2012). Totem

Executed with Barnet’s signature clarity of line and reduction of form, Totem exemplifies the artist’s lifelong engagement with archetypal imagery and spiritual symbolism. Renowned for bridging abstraction and figuration, Barnet achieved a unique visual language that evokes both intimacy and universality.

The vertical composition of Totem suggests a meditative presence, recalling Barnet’s exploration of relationships between human figures, animals, and nature within a modernist framework. His work has been exhibited widely, including retrospectives at the Whitney Museum of American Art and the National Academy of Design, and is represented in major institutional collections such as The Museum of Modern Art, the Metropolitan Museum of Art, and the Smithsonian American Art Museum.

A fine and evocative example from one of America’s most respected modernists, Totem resonates with Barnet’s enduring legacy of balance, serenity, and symbolic depth.