The Art of Lawrence Ferlinghetti
dal 26/3/2004 al 27/6/2004
Segnalato da
26/3/2004
The Art of Lawrence Ferlinghetti
San Jose Museum of Art, San Jose
He describes his work as 'always wavering between the pure figurative and an emotive expressionism.' They emit a 'passionate intensity [and] at times a lightness' in their ever-expanding search for the lyricism, beauty, and sadness that so often define human experience.
It seemed to me
All you have to do
Is conceive of the whole world
And all humanity
As a kind of artwork
— Lawrence Ferlinghetti
"Instructions to Painters and Poets"
On Saturday, March 27, 2004, the San Jose Museum of Art
welcomes "The Art of Lawrence Ferlinghetti" to the Koret Gallery. We are pleased
to present a selection of Ferlinghetti's most recent works in this special show.
Long admired as a prolific poet, author, and iconic publisher, Lawrence
Ferlinghetti is also a well-established and respected painter. Whether using the
visual medium to communicate intimate personal views or to make pointed
political statements, his work is characterized by a unique lyricism that is
powerful and passionately engaging. This exhibition features a selection of
Ferlinghetti's current work.
Ferlinghetti's early work reflects an interest in Abstract Expressionism, a
style that became the calling card of fellow artists Franz Kline, Willem De
Kooning, and Robert Motherwell, among others. However, Ferlinghetti soon
discovered that his vision lay somewhere between the abstract and the figural.
He describes his work as "always wavering between the pure figurative and an
emotive expressionism." They emit a "passionate intensity [and] at times a
lightness" in their ever-expanding search for the lyricism, beauty, and sadness
that so often define human experience.
Ferlinghetti was born in Yonkers, New York in 1919 and currently lives in San
Francisco , where he owns and operates City Lights Bookstore, the celebrated
bohemian gathering place that has attracted writers, artists, and intellectuals
for more than fifty years. Under the imprint of City Lights Books, Ferlinghetti
published significant early writings of Beat-era poets such as Diane di Prima,
Michael McClure, Kenneth Rexroth, Gary Snyder, and most famously Allen Ginsberg.
Ginsberg's epic poem "Howl" was the subject of an obscenity trial — Ferlinghetti
and Ginsberg won — that became a landmark event in the history of free speech in
America. Ferlinghetti holds degrees from the University of North Carolina,
Chapel Hill; Columbia University; and the University of Paris, Sorbonne. While a
doctoral student in Paris, he made his first foray into the visual arts when he
enrolled in a drawing class at the Académie Julien. Upon his return to the
United States in the early 1950s, he continued to experiment with painting and
drawing.
The San Jose Museum of Art and its educational programs are supported by the
City of San Jose; the National Endowment for the Arts, a federal agency; the
Arts Commission, City of San Jose; the California Arts Council; the William
Randolph Hearst Education Endowment; the David and Lucile Packard Foundation;
the Koret Foundation; and Museum members.
San Jose Museum of Art
110 South Market Street CA 95113-2383 San Jose
tel 408 2716881