Robert
Motherwell and Jasper Johns: Poetic Works as Metaphor
An exhibition of forty-six (46) lithographs,
etchings and aquatints, each produced with a relationship to poetry,
some of which are a direct attempt at interpretation while other
works are completely void of any direct relationship between the
poet and painter.
 |
Robert Motherwell
"Elegy Black Black," 1982-83 |
"Much
of Motherwell's life was spent thinking about how and why man
creates. Eventually, he understood that his own practice of painting
was grounded in a set of beliefs, tested in the act of painting,
and not easily translated into words."
| ---
Dore Ashton |
|
"Motherwell,
The Painter's Life As A Banquet" in Motherwell |
|
FUNDACIO
ANTONI TAPIES, BARCELONA, 1996. |
Robert
Motherwell, pioneer and principal exponent of Abstract Expressionism,
and Jasper Johns, one of the leaders responsible for the breakthrough
from Abstract Expressionism to the types of Pop art and Minimal
art which succeeded it, are closely examined here for their serious
intellectual tone and philosophical concerns with reference to
issues that serve to help interpret their works.
The
fifty prints included in this exhibition, nineteen (19) lithographs
by Motherwell and thirty-one (31) etchings by Johns, relate to
their literary collaborations with writers. The works are veined
with curious references to their outlook and philosophy. Both
artists have been a dominant force in the development and maturation
of twentieth century contemporary art, and both show recurring
themes in their work: cross-hatching, flagstones, casts/slats,
and numbers for Johns; Zen-like calligraphic images for Motherwell,
plus three works in Chine collé.
Robert
Motherwell was the only member of the first generation Abstract
Expressionist to create a large body of prints. From the mid-1960s
until his death in 1991, Motherwell produced etchings and lithographs
that reflected the expressive nature of his art, his fascination
with paper and collage, and his passion for the written word.
"My work is largely concerned with relations between seeing
and knowing, seeing and saying, seeing and believing."
Jasper
Johns is arguably acknowledged as the greatest printmaker of our
time. The intaglios that he produced in the 1960s at ULAE (Universal
Limited Art Editions, NY) created a revival in the art of etching.
[Each
of the works in this exhibition are appropriately framed and supported
with bilingual interpretive wall labels--English/Spanish and English/French--with
introduction wall text. An illustrated catalog with essay accompanies
the exhibition.]
