Helen Frankenthaler Solar Imp. 1995 New York, Helen Frankenthaler Foundation
Helen 2.0 by Beatrice Brandini
Starting tomorrow, Palazzo Strozzi celebrates Helen Frankenthaler with the most comprehensive exhibition ever held in Italy; the visionary artist of the twentieth century who broke the rules of painting, in dialogue with works by Jackson Pollock, Robert Motherwell and Mark Rothko.
Helen Frankenthaler Moveable Blue, 1973. New York, Helen Frankenthaler Foundation
Helen Frankenthaler Fiesta, 1973 e Untitled, 1973
The exhibition, which will be open until January 26, 2025, offers an extraordinary journey through majestic canvases, works on paper and sculptures from the Helen Frankenthaler Foundation and famous international museums such as the Metropolitan Museum of Art in New York and the Tete Modern in London. A career, that of Helen Frankenthaler, protagonist for over six decades, transforming the panorama of abstract painting with an absolutely innovative vision and technique.
Jackson Pollock Number 14, 1951
The exhibition organized by the Fondazione Palazzo Strozzi in collaboration with the Helen Frankenthaler Foundation and curated by Douglas Dreishpoon, Director of the Helen Frankenthaler Catalogue Raisonné, is structured with works that chronologically range from the 1950s to the 2000s.
A glimpse of the exhibition Helen Frankenthaler Painting without rules
Helen Frankenthaler Open Wall, 1953
An important artist, Helen Frankenthaler (1928-2011), who played a fundamental role in the transition from Abstract Expressionism to Color Field painting, challenging customs and rules, and expanding the boundaries of “traditional” art in search of a new expressive freedom. Also known for the soak-stain technique, that is the use of diluted paint spread horizontally on the canvases, to obtain an effect similar to that of watercolor even if oil colors are used. The paint expands, mixes with other colors, so as to obtain unique chromatic interactions.
Helen Frankenthaler The Human Edge, 1967 e Tutti-Frutti, 1966
A glimpse of the exhibition Helen Frankenthaler Painting without rules. In the background, the work by David Smith Untitled, 1964
Helen Frankenthaler. Painting without rules is a significant exhibition that highlights a great artist, a protagonist of the second half of the twentieth century, close to important figures of American art with whom, in some cases, she will not only collaborate, but will also become a collector.
Helen Frankenthaler was above all a strong personality who always tried to challenge the limits, not only artistic but also conventional, proposing a painting of shapes and colors, opening up, in fact, new opportunities for abstract painting.
Morris Louis Aleph Series V, 1960
Mark Rothko Untitled, 1964
A glimpse of the exhibition Helen Frankenthaler Painting without rules. In the background Yard, 1972 and Madrid, 1984
The exhibition at Palazzo Strozzi is also a stimulating comparison between the works of the American artist with authors contemporary to her such as Morris Louis, Mark Rothko, David Smith and many others. An unmissable opportunity to see these undisputed masterpieces. Finally, a series of photos and correspondence, allows the visitor to discover and learn about the personal life of this incredible artist.
Helen Frankenthaler Star Gazing, 1989
A glimpse of the exhibition Helen Frankenthaler Painting without rules
“The project will allow us to discover the free and unconventional art of an artist who has marked the history of painting and the figure of women in the world of art”, Arturo Galansino, President of the Fondazione Palazzo Strozzi.
The facade of Palazzo Strozzi, home of the exhibition Helen Frankenthaler Painting without rules
It is important to celebrate Helen Frankenthaler, an artist who was not so “popular”, especially because she was a woman, an archaic and demeaning cliché about women artists, which we sometimes find even today, not only in the art world.
Good life to everyone!
Beatrice