James Siena American (b.1957) Two Floppy Combs, 2004 wood engraving signed and dated lower right. Numbered 51/60. Biography from the Archives of AskArt: Creating brilliantly colored, gem like non-objective drawings whose designs resemble diagrams, James Siena has worked as an artist in New York since the 1980s. He uses a vertical format on aluminum, creating pieces that appear to float on the wall with designs that are rigorously organized with asymmetrical patterns. A determined abstract painter, he says: "An abstract painting is a real thing that shouldn't point to the world. I want it to take you out of the real world. . . . I construct pictures that, I hope, are so complex even a baby can understand them." Siena was born and raised in California, primarily Palo Alto. For college, he attended Cornell University, spent six months in Spain, and then had a stint with a performance-art group. He occupies a large studio on the Lower East Side of Manhattan near the apartment he shares with his wife and son. In his apartment are about 80 antique typewriters that according to him have systems that provide avenues of thinking, suggestions of artificial intelligence and mapping. 12"H x 10"W (sight), 17 1/4"H x 15"W (frame)