Helen Frankenthaler

Vocabulary Words

Abstract -of or pertaining to the formal aspect of art, emphasizing lines, colors, generalized or geometrical forms, etc., especially with reference to their relationship to one another.

Expressionism     a. (usually lowercase) a manner of painting, drawing, sculpting, etc., in which forms derived from nature are distorted or exaggerated and colors are intensified for emotive or expressive purposes.

b. a style of art developed in the 20th century, characterized chiefly by heavy, often black lines that define forms, sharply contrasting, often vivid colors, and subjective or symbolic treatment of thematic material.

Nonconformist - a person who refuses to conform, as to established customs, attitudes, or ideas.

Definitions from Dictionary.com

December 12, 1928 - December 27, 2011 (obituary: http://www.legacy.com/ns/obituary.aspx?n=helen-frankenthaler&pid=155222443 )

Helen was born into a very affluent New York Family. Her father was a New York Supreme Court Justice.   Jackson Pollock and Robert Motherwell were inspirational to her. These artists were abstract Expressionists and  non-conformists when it came to traditional art. Helen was intrigued by their art work.  She was very interested in allowing paint and color to move and create movement through the use of paints and stains. She pioneered the use of diluted paints to create her artwork. This became known as ‘stain painting’.  Helen would use the color stain to create a piece where the colors would play off against one another.  She would also leave areas of raw canvas to contend with the colored areas of varied densities.  Helen would work with her canvas face up on the floor. She would then drip, pour and soak the colors into the fabric. She enjoyed working on very large pieces.  Many of her canvases would be up to 10 feet high! This large scale would create a feeling of expansiveness and grandeur. She began to exhibit her work when she was in her early 20’s.  Art Critics tended to be uninterested in her work until she received a first prize award at the 1959 Paris Biennial.  The following decade she was recognized as an impressive force of the abstract expressionism movement. She later began doing pieces using thicker paints, such as acrylic. She would roll or drip the paint onto her canvas. She would create abstract landscapes using this technique.  During the 1980’s she experienced a high interest in her work that enabled her to command a large sum for her work.  As we look at her piece, Blue Atmosphere, shown here, we can envision a landscape with a colorful sky, gaseous formations in space, or whatever your imagination creates from the colors and shapes of the piece.

Helen currently has a home and studio in Darien, Connecticut.

At the Eccles Community Art Center, we have a two abstract pieces in our permanent collection that have a similar feel to them.  The first is Memories Negatives by local artist Nolan Preece.  Here the artist has used a chemical painting process on photographic paper, called Chemo Gram. Similar to the Helen Franenthaler, Preece has allowed the piece to take on a life of its own by allowing the pigment to drip and flow. This piece is currently on display on the third floor of the Art Center.

 The next piece was done by local artist Carole Barnes, it also has a similar feel to it. Carol has used an acrylic collage technique to create her piece titled Landscape Forms – 1981. We can see what could be a horizon line, wonderful shapes that can take your imagination to a place in your memory or experience that helps you create what this piece means to you. The artist has used texture and color to guide your eye through the piece.

*This piece is part of our Art to Go Abstract Presentation.