In our April “Recent Acquisitions” video we discuss two works ……the first by Walasse Ting whose 1960’s drip paintings are extremely scarce and an early 1965 canvas//collage titled “Detour” by the celebrated African American artist Frank Wimberley.
In addition, we are presenting a small punchy gem from 1944 by the American Surrealist James Guy, a rare 1950 canvas by the California modernist John McLaughlin exhibited at Andre Emmerich and the Pasadena Museum of Art in 1955, a thirty inch square Vivian Springford given to her caregiver which was also the painting hanging in her room upon passing. A 1944 Eleanor de Laittre titled “Black Harlequin” from the American Abstract Artist group and a rarely seen early 1978 Deborah Butterfield horse sculpture completely made out of wooden branches and twigs instead of bronze, similar to her later works.
Behind me is a 1968 Walasse Ting drip painting titled “Much More Rain”. Raised in Shanghai, settling in Paris in 1949, he befriended Sam Francis who became a collaborator along with the members of the Cobra Group. Upon moving to New York City in 1960 things really began to happen for Ting. His painting, poetry, a blossoming romance with Vivian Springford, publishing 13 books including the ground breaking elephant portfolio titled “One Cent Life” along with receiving the Guggenheim Fellowship in 1970. He is included in the permanent collections of the Guggenheim, MOMA, The Art Institute of Chicago, The Tate and The Pompidou.
Continuing with our “Recent Acquisitions” is a 1959 John Little titled “Alaska” one the original Abstract Expressionist’s beginning in 1948 along with his great friend Jackson Pollock, a kinetic sculpture by Jerome Kirk titled “Proud Bird II” who also has over sixty publicly placed sculptures worldwide including his 45 foot piece at the famed Storm King Sculpture Park in Mountainville, New York, a colorfield work by Carl Holty that was from his 1958 exhibition at James Graham & Sons, and an impastic 1957 Robert Richenburg titled “The Garden” painted at his studio in “The Springs” artist colony in East Hampton.
Finally we highlight our 1965 Frank Wimberly titled “Detour”. This is a masterpiece of his early multilayering of canvas and collage along with his painted frame becoming part of the overall composition. Wimberly builds his canvas by layering it over and over again giving it depth, dimension by using the starkness of black and white creating a bold composition to be reckoned with. Of the living African American artists from this period Wimberly is finally getting the proper recognition he deserves.
Once again, I thank you for watching our monthly “Recent Acquisitions” video so please stay tuned as we continue to have interesting ideas and subjects coming soon.