"Josef Albers in America: Painting on Paper" Exhibition
The Morgan Library & Museum
This event has ended.
Josef Albers (1888–1976) is best known for his series of paintings, "Homage to the Square," in which he endlessly explored color relationships within a similar format of concentric squares. Less well-known are the studies he made for these compositions. With approximately sixty oil sketches on paper, this exhibition will reveal a private side of Albers's work. These sketches were never exhibited in the artist's lifetime and have rarely been seen after his death.
On view will be early studies (1930s–early 1940s), studies for Albers's "Adobe" series, inspired by Mexican architecture (1940s–early 1950s), and studies for "Homage to the Square" (1950s–1970s). These vibrant sketches provide insights into the artist's working process and, in contrast with the austerity and strict geometry of the final paintings, are remarkable for their freedom and sensuality.
[Image: Josef Albers "Color Study for White Line Square" oil on blotting paper with gouache, pencil and varnish]
Media
Schedule
from July 20, 2012 to October 14, 2012