Author Description

In the late 1950s, Ellsworth Kelly emerged as a major figure in the vanguard of so-called "Hard Edge" New York abstraction. Noted for their articulate, sharply contoured planes, unified perspective, and shifting balances between foreground and background, Kelly's works expanded the language of both figuration and abstraction, establishing him as one of the leading postwar American artists. Earlier in his career, Kelly had spent six years in France, from 1948 to 1954, a time that proved decisive to the evolution of his art. Sponsored by the G. I. Bill, the artist closely studied contemporary and historical art, architecture and culture in Paris and various regions of France, as well as meeting with several other European and American artists. These were all critical stimuli at a time when Kelly was developing his distinct mature style. Published in connection with an exhibition co-organized by the Galerie Nationale du Jeu de Paume, Paris, and the National Gallery of Art, Washington, D.C., this scintillating volume presents the first complete and accurate portrait of this pivotal stage in Kelly's career, drawing on previously unpublished work and observations by the artist. Excerpts from interviews and correspondence, and a chronicle of the artist's activities are included. The essays address the creative and interpretive issues of Kelly's work in relation to modern abstraction, his use of the "chance" and the modular grid, and the role of his photographs in recording motifs in nature. This volume reproduces for the first time all Kelly's paintings and low-relief sculpture of the period, as well as a selection of his earlier paintings done in New Jersey and Boston. A number of his photographs, drawings, sketchbooks, and collages are also featured. Comparative illustrations include portraits of his artist friends, photographs of Paris, and works by Matisse, Picasso, and others. Ironically, Kelly sold only one painting during his years in Paris although