The Artist’s Hand: Drawings, 1937 to 1954. Many of the drawings are on public display and published for the first time. With over 30 drawings, the exhibition seeks to follow de Kooning’s evolution from classical historicism to revolutionary new forms. The exhibition is a rare, in-depth chronicle of de Kooning’s development from the 19th Century-inspired works of the late-1930s through the birth of his signature abstractions of the 1940s to the seminal, explosive "women" works of the early-1950s.
HISTORICAL SURVEY OF DE KOONING’S EARLY
DRAWINGS
MANY WORKS IN THE EXHIBITION ON PUBLIC VIEW FOR
THE FIRST TIME
Mitchell-Innes & Nash is
pleased to announce their exhibition The Artist’s Hand:
Willem de Kooning Drawings, 1937 to 1954. This historical
survey of early drawings by Abstract Expressionist artist
Willem de Kooning will be on view at the Madison Avenue
gallery from January 17 through March 2, 2002. This
exhibition will be presented in collaboration with Matthew
Marks Gallery, New York.
Many of the drawings are on public display and published
for the first time. With over 30 drawings, the exhibition
seeks to follow de Kooning’s evolution from classical
historicism to revolutionary new forms.
The Artist's Hand will present a selection of works on
paper, pencil drawings and watercolors, created over a 17
year span, from 1937 to 1954. This is a particularly critical
period for the artist and one from which very few works
survive. The exhibition is a rare, in-depth chronicle of de
Kooning’s development from the 19th Century-inspired
works of the late-1930s through the birth of his signature
abstractions of the 1940s to the seminal, explosive
"women" works of the early-1950s. De Kooning’s
influences during this period, which range from
Jean-Auguste-Dominique Ingres, the Le Nain brothers,
Pablo Picasso and his contemporaries John Graham and
Arshile Gorky will be explored.
Among the important drawings to be exhibited are two
collections formed by early supporters of de Kooning's
work: property from the estates of the artists Saul Steinberg
and Janice Biala Brustlein. From the Steinberg collection,
the enigmatic and powerful "Self-Portrait with Imaginary
Brother," circa 1938 (the artist’s earliest known self-portrait,
last exhibited in New York at the Whitney Museum of
American Art in 1983), will be on view.
The exhibition will coincide with a survey of the artist’s work
at the Museum of Contemporary Art in Los Angeles from
February 10 - May, 2002. Another survey is currently on
view, at IVAM/Centro Julio Gonzales in Valencia, Spain from
September 6 - December 2, 2001 and will travel to the
Fundacio "la Caixa," in Madrid, Spain, on view from
December 20, 2001 - March 25, 2002.
An opening night reception will take place at Mitchell-Innes
& Nash on January 17, 2002 from 6 to 8pm, together with
the opening of Stephen Sollins: Dwelling. Gallery hours are
10:00am to 5:00pm, Tuesday through Saturday. A fully
illustrated catalogue with an essay by Amy Schichtel, the
Collections Curator of the Estate of Willem de Kooning, will
be available through the Gallery.
Mitchell-Innes & Nash Gallery
1018 Madison Avenue, NY 10021
Hours: Tuesday - Saturday, 10 AM - 5PM
For press information or to request slides, please contact: Stacy Bolton, tel: (212) 721-5350, fax: (212) 721-0780, or Adrian Turner at Mitchell-Innes & Nash at the numbers below.