The composition of Rue reveals an armature of horizontal and vertical lines, and in the central section of the painting, a dark mass of concentrated force hovers in front of the structure. Rue stands nearly 9 feet tall and 7 feet wide and possesses a "mural effect" where the picture functions as an element of architecture. cat., Menil Collection, Houston, 1994, pp. Anfam, "Kline's Colliding Syntax," Franz Kline: Black & White 1950-1961, exh. With regard to Kline's classic abstractions, David Anfam writes in the Franz Kline: Black and White 1950-1961 exhibition catalogue, "Each presents an epic field that functions as wall, an environment unto itself, and a sheer surface of almost industrial power and rawness upon which momentary radiance contends against ashen gloom." (D. Like his predecessors, Kline was keenly interested in the visual effects of absolute tonal contrasts however, his use of black and white is more subjective in aim, by engaging the viewer on a more emotional level. He admired the art of Diego Velasquez, Eduard Manet, Gustave Courbet and Paul Cézanne, who themselves worked in a black and white palette, which excluded distracting color, focussed on the structure of the composition, and reveled in the drama created by the sharp contrast between black and white, whether it be shadows and light, foreground or background. cat., Fundaciò Antoni Tàpies, Barcelona, 1994, p. Friedman, "Franz Kline: A Personal Biographical/Bibliographical Collage," Franz Kline: Art and the Structure of Identity, exh. Friedman recalled seeing him in an elegant dark suit standing with Willem de Kooning, equally well dressed, at parties, calling them "a pair of natural aristocrats." (B. Kline's hand as shown in the brushwork of Rue is extraordinarily confident and daring, that pushed against the edge of the canvas, but also successfully reined in the raw energy of his seemingly uninhibited brushstrokes.Īlthough Kline was born in rural Pennsylvania, he had the demeanor of a cultured European he had urbane wit and cut a striking figure. Shapiro, Abstract Expressionism: A Critical Record, 1990, Cambridge and New York, p. Each painting is a complete and open declaration of feeling." (Cited in D. He did not wish to be "in" his painting, as Pollock did, but to create the event of his passage, at whatever intersection of space and time, through the world. Frank O'Hara stated in his introduction to the Franz Kline Retrospective Exhibition, 1964:"To Kline, art meant power, power to move and to be moved. Kline goes further than any of his colleagues, except for perhaps Jackson Pollock, in order to attempt a picture of complete disengagement from the external world, so that he might forge a new reality in painting. Yet unlike the masters of the early 20th century, Kline imbued abstraction with vigor and boldness, that is at once bracing and awe-inspiring, akin to watching a daredevil diver poised to take a leap. He belongs to the rarified group of artists such as Piet Mondrian and Kasimir Malevich who made abstraction a subject unto itself, and not just a simplification or reduction of some kind of figurtative representation. Rue, 1959 is a classic example from this period, which embodies the qualities that made Kline one of the most important abstract painters of the 20th century. His position as a key figure of "Action Painting" and Abstract Expressionism had solidified and attracted new audiences abroad and throughout the United States. His epic black and white abstractions grew even larger in scale, and the sheer visual force of these paintings engulfed the viewer. New York, C & M Arts, Franz Kline, April-June 2003.īy the end of the 1950s, Franz Kline was at the height of his creative powers. 7.īarcelona, Fundació Antoni Tàpies London, Whitechapel Art Gallery Madrid, Museo Nacional Centro de Arte Reina Sofia, and Saarbrücken, Saarland Museum, Franz Kline: Art and the Structure of Identity, March 1994-February 1995, p. New York, Andrew Crispo Gallery, Franz Kline: Paintings and Works on Paper, January-February 1981, no. New York, Andrew Crispo Gallery, Masterpieces of American Art in the 1950s by de Kooning, Kline and Rauschenberg, September-October 1981, no. 49 in London (illustrated).īinghampton, University Art Gallery, State University of New York and Purchase, Neuberger Museum, State University of New York, Franz Kline: The Early Works as Signals, March-November 1977, no. 50 in Amsterdam, Turin, Brussels, Vienna, Basel no. 5 (illustrated).Īmsterdam, Stedelijk Museum Turin, Galleria Civica d'Arte Moderna Brussels, Palais des Beaux-Arts Kunsthalle Basel Vienna, Museum dea 20 Jahrhunderts London, Whitechapel Art Gallery Museé d'Art Moderne de la Ville de Paris (organized by the Museum of Modern Art, International Circulating Exhibitions), Franz Kline, September 1963-September 1964, no. New York, Sidney Janis Gallery, Franz Kline, March-April 1960, no.
0 Comments
Leave a Reply. |
Details
AuthorWrite something about yourself. No need to be fancy, just an overview. ArchivesCategories |