Van Doren Waxter company logo
Van Doren Waxter
Skip to main content
  • Menu
  • Artists
  • Exhibitions
  • Viewing Room
  • Art Fairs
  • News
  • Books & Editions
  • Gallery
Menu
Small is Beautiful
2nd Floor Gallery, February 6 - April 4, 2025

Small is Beautiful: 2nd Floor Gallery

Past exhibition
  • Overview
  • Works
  • Installation Views
  • Artist
  • Overview
    Richard Diebenkorn Cigar Box Lid #11 (CR No. 4378), 1979 Oil on wood (cigar box lid) 6 1/8 x 6 1/2 in 15.6 x 16.5 cm
    Richard Diebenkorn
    Cigar Box Lid #11 (CR No. 4378), 1979
    Oil on wood (cigar box lid)
    6 1/8 x 6 1/2 in
    15.6 x 16.5 cm
    Share
    • Facebook
    • X
    • Pinterest
    • Tumblr
    • Email
     
    Van Doren Waxter is pleased to present Small is Beautiful, an exhibition of small-scale works by 22 artists, both familiar and new faces to the gallery’s program. The exhibition features works by Etel Adnan, Jennifer Bartlett, Rosemarie Beck, Max Bill, James Brooks, Marsha Cottrell, Richard Diebenkorn, Jeronimo Elespe, Tom Fairs, Louise Fishman, Judy Fishkin, Sam Francis, Michael Goldberg, Zoe Longfield, Vera Molnar, Harvey Quaytman, Mariah Robertson, Jackie Saccoccio, Alan Shields, Hedda Sterne, Anne Truitt, and Jack Tworkov.
     
    The title of this group show derives from the book Small is Beautiful: A Study of Economics As If People Mattered by E.F. Schumacher, which challenges the mainstream ethos of “bigger is better” through a collection of essays that propose alternative views on technology and human needs. As society evolves within the structure of capitalism, the value of objects and ideas becomes increasingly dependent on their quality of being measurable or quantifiable, which, more often than not, leads to the misevaluation of the significance of art in our lives. In the age of giantism and automation, art puts pressure on the assumption that human prosperity is solely indexed by macro development and commercial achievement. Demonstrating refinement and painstaking introspection of the artists, the works in Small is Beautiful invite the viewers to come close, and become intimate with the shapes of inexplicable emotions, observations, and instincts. These works bring attention to the personal and spiritual needs of people–– to extend empathy and curiosity about another human’s experiment, to imagine a life behind the fragment of a stranger’s painted memory.
     
    Download Press Release
  • Works
    • abstract shape painting
      Etel Adnan, Satellites, 2020
    • an abstract painting with multiple dots
      Jennifer Bartlett, Color Counting, 1970
    • geometric abstract painting
      Max Bill, farbfeld aus vier gleichen gruppen (color field from four equal groups), 1963-66
    • Rosemarie Beck, Bathers, 1976
      Rosemarie Beck, Bathers, 1976
    • gestural abstract painting
      James Brooks, R, 1952
    • an abstract work on paper with black rectangle at the center
      Marsha Cottrell, Untitled (Mixed Dark_Red, Yellow, Blue, Green), 2022
    • a small abstract painting on a cigar box lid
      Richard Diebenkorn, Cigar Box Lid #11 (CR No. 4378), 1979
    • dark colored figurative painting
      Jeronimo Elespe, Talante Crítico, 2023
    • landscape drawing of a wall
      Tom Fairs, Anna Pavlova's Garden, c. 1990's
    • gestural abstract painting
      Louise Fishman, Untitled, 2007
    • Sam Francis, Untitled, c. 1955
      Sam Francis, Untitled, c. 1955
    • photograph of a grave
      Judy Fiskin, Untitled, from the series New Orleans, 1987/2006
    • gestural abstract painting
      Michael Goldberg, Untitled, c. 1959
    • abstracted landscape
      Zoe Longfield, Untitled, c. 1945-1948
    • geometric abstract orange and green collage
      Vera Molnar, Icone, 1966
    • geometric abstract painting
      Harvey Quaytman, Untitled, 1993
    • gestural abstract photo print
      Mariah Robertson, 2019_042-19, 2024
    • Jackie Saccoccio, Untitled
      Jackie Saccoccio, Untitled
    • small abstract work on canvas
      Alan Shields, 2 Eye Worm (head on), c. 1995
    • an abstract drawing
      Hedda Sterne, Untitled (September 27, 2001), 2001
    • abstract drawing
      Anne Truitt, Untitled, 1966
    • gestural abstract work on paper
      Jack Tworkov, Untitled (Study for Athene), c.1949
    • peach toned abstract painting
      Stanley Whitney, Untitled, 1975
  • Installation Shots
    Open a larger version of the following image in a popup: Vdw Feb25 107
    Open a larger version of the following image in a popup: Vdw Feb25 105
    Open a larger version of the following image in a popup: Vdw Feb25 108
    Open a larger version of the following image in a popup: Vdw Feb25 116
    Open a larger version of the following image in a popup: Vdw Feb25 130
    Open a larger version of the following image in a popup: Vdw Feb25 106
    Open a larger version of the following image in a popup: Vdw Feb25 113
    Open a larger version of the following image in a popup: Vdw Feb25 110
    Open a larger version of the following image in a popup: Vdw Feb25 129
    Open a larger version of the following image in a popup: Vdw Feb25 131
    Open a larger version of the following image in a popup: Vdw Feb25 115
  • Artist
    • a landsape watercolor

      Etel Adnan

    • Jennifer Bartlett

      Jennifer Bartlett

    • figurative painting

      Rosemarie Beck

    • James Brooks

      James Brooks

    • a black work on paper with tan dots

      Marsha Cottrell

    • a small geometric abstract painting

      Richard Diebenkorn

    • abstract interior painting

      Jeronimo Elespe

    • Tom Fairs

      Tom Fairs

    • Louise Fishman

      Louise Fishman

    • Judy Fiskin

      Judy Fiskin

    • Sam Francis

      Sam Francis

    • a lyrical abstract painting

      Zoe Longfield

    • Vera Molnar

      Vera Molnar

    • Harvey Quaytman

      Harvey Quaytman

    • Jackie Saccoccio

      Jackie Saccoccio

    • large abstract canvas

      Alan Shields

    • a lyrical abstract drawing

      Hedda Sterne

    • Anne Truitt

      Anne Truitt

    • geometric abstract artwork

      Jack Tworkov

Back to exhibitions

Van Doren Waxter, 23 East 73rd Street New York, NY 10021

Facebook, opens in a new tab.
Instagram, opens in a new tab.
Artnet, opens in a new tab.
Artsy, opens in a new tab.
Join the mailing list
Send an email
Privacy Policy
Accessibility Policy
Manage cookies
Copyright © 2025 Van Doren Waxter
Site by Artlogic

This website uses cookies
This site uses cookies to help make it more useful to you. Please contact us to find out more about our Cookie Policy.

Manage cookies
Accept

Cookie preferences

Check the boxes for the cookie categories you allow our site to use

Cookie options
Required for the website to function and cannot be disabled.
Improve your experience on the website by storing choices you make about how it should function.
Allow us to collect anonymous usage data in order to improve the experience on our website.
Allow us to identify our visitors so that we can offer personalised, targeted marketing.
Save preferences
Close

Join our mailing list

Signup

* denotes required fields

We will process the personal data you have supplied to communicate with you in accordance with our Privacy Policy. You can unsubscribe or change your preferences at any time by clicking the link in our emails.