Primed & Un-Primed: Paintings from 60s and 70s

Group exhibition Josef Albers Sam Francis Helen Frankenthaler Philip Guston Al Held Hans Hofmann Ellsworth Kelly Morris Louis Joan Mitchell Mark Rothko Cy Twombly

 

Lawrence Rubin Greenberg Van Doren Fine Art is pleased to present a thematic survey of classic American paintings from the 60s and 70s. This exhibition revisits post-war American color field and abstract painting in works by Josef Albers, Sam Francis, Helen Frankenthaler, Philip Guston, Al Held, Morris Louis, Cy Twombly, and others. The exhibition highlights a group of paintings that extend the role of a primed or un-primed support, elevating the canvas from a secondary to a more primary role.

Among the works featured in the exhibition is a rare and beautiful “Unfurled” painting by Morris Louis, Beta Omicron, 1962; a large scale “Blue Balls” watercolor by Sam Francis, Untitled, 1962; and an important Philip Guston transitional painting, The Stranger, 1964. Also included is a blue Josef Albers, Homage to the Square, 1960; Helen Frankenthaler’s Black Noon, 1977; Al Held’s dynamic Circle and Two Squares, 1967; and Cy Twombly’s Untitled (Roma), 1962, a tranquil “portrait” size painting.

Thematically historic, the exhibition asserts the rich legacy of these painters and their influence on mid-career artists such as Peter Halley and Carroll Dunham, as well as a current generation of young painters: Laura Owens, Monique Prieto, and Ingrid Calame, among others