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What is: Abstract Expressionism?
'By now, you and I know what we mean when we say it. But it certainly hasn't defined anything. If you take the Abstract Expressionists and try to break down the difference between [Barnett] Newman and [Jackson] Pollock, let's say, where are you other than that big loose loophole called Abstract Expressionism?' - Lee Krasner
Curator Eleanor Nairne explores the commonalities and divergences between the artists we have come to know as Abstract Expressionists. What is the underlying connection between these works that seem so different in terms of colour, form, idea and material?
Nairne unpacks the term paying critical attention to the work of Lee Krasner, a painter who refused to settle on a 'signature image', a uniquely identifiable style and mode of working which was so important to her contemporaries like Jackson Pollock, Mark Rothko and Franz Kline.
Time Period:
20th century
Themes:
Eleanor Nairne is Curator at the Barbican Art Gallery, London, where her exhibitions include 'Lee Krasner: Living Colour' (2019-20) and 'Basquiat: Boom for Real' (2017-18). She is a regular catalogue writer, a contributor to publications including The London Review of Books and frieze and is a former Jerwood Writer in Residence.
1:06
1 Minute 1 Work: Palingenesis, 1971
A sensuous vision of kelly green and hot pink, take a closer look at Lee Krasner's Palingenesis (1971).
1:07
1 Minute 1 Work: Abstract No. 2
Barbican Curator Eleanor Nairne traces the rhythms of Lee Krasner’s ‘jewel-like’ painting.
17:13
Hans Ulrich Obrist visits Etel Adnan
A spirited conversation between two friends, curator Hans Ulrich Obrist and artist Etel Adnan.
1:06
A sensuous vision of kelly green and hot pink, take a closer look at Lee Krasner's Palingenesis (1971).
1:07
Barbican Curator Eleanor Nairne traces the rhythms of Lee Krasner’s ‘jewel-like’ painting.
17:13
A spirited conversation between two friends, curator Hans Ulrich Obrist and artist Etel Adnan.
9:08
Tristram Hunt traces how Josiah Wedgwood changed the face of the decorative arts in Britain with his ambitious pottery designs.
14:17
‘What gets remembered and what doesn’t?’ Mark Sealy examines searing moments in Black history through the lens of Omar Victor Diop’s powerful portraits.
6:42
Articulation Alumni Lucy Miller and Oliver Garland reflect on 'Fructus' by Peter Randall-Page, exploring how the sculpture complements, juxtaposes and transforms the natural landscape in which it is placed.