Artwork details

• H. Lyman Saÿen (American, 1875–1918)
• Open Edition Giclée print
• Year: 1914-1918
• Framed sizes: See framing details below
• Materials: Giclée print on museum-grade Hahnemühle 260gsm paper
• Shipping: Fast shipping from United Kingdom

About the artist

H. Lyman Saÿen (1875–1918) was an American painter and inventor associated with early modernist experimentation in the United States during the early twentieth century.

Born in Philadelphia, Saÿen initially trained in electrical engineering at the University of Pennsylvania and worked as an inventor before turning seriously to painting. His technical background strongly influenced his artistic approach, particularly his interest in abstraction, rhythm, and mechanical structure.

Saÿen spent several years in Paris in the early 1900s, where he became closely connected with the avant-garde art scene. During this period he developed a distinctive style influenced by Cubism and Orphism, incorporating vibrant colour, fragmented forms, and dynamic compositions. His work from this time places him among the earliest American artists to engage directly with European modernist abstraction.

Alongside his artistic practice, Saÿen was a prolific inventor and held numerous patents, including innovations related to early wireless communication technology. This dual career in art and engineering contributed to the highly structured, almost mechanical quality visible in many of his paintings.

Although his life was cut short during the 1918 influenza pandemic, Saÿen’s work has since been recognised for its pioneering role in bringing modernist abstraction to American painting. His paintings are now held in several major museum collections, including the Philadelphia Museum of Art, where his work has helped re-establish his place within the history of early twentieth-century modernism.