Ellsworth Kelly: Slow Curve

Ellsworth Kelly created Diagonal with Curve XII, Blue #611 for his friends, Werner Feibes and James Schmitt. In conjunction with the opening of the Feibes & Schmitt Gallery, this exhibition examines Kelly’s experimentation with curved fields of color, from tight ellipses and shapes with rounded corners to broad arcs and segments. Many of these geometric shapes derived from his simple line-drawn images of nature. Prints from his Plant Series will form a small companion exhibition in the Whitney-Renz Gallery. All of the works come from the extensive collection of Ellsworth Kelly prints belonging to the Jordan Schnitzer Family Foundation in Portland, Oregon.

Credit: Exhibition overview from museum website.

Whether you go or not, Ellsworth Kelly: Plant Drawings (English and German Edition) is a book of drawings and watercolors which make it clear why Kelly is famous for his beautiful drawings of plants, flowers, and leaves as well as for his geometrical paintings. Ellsworth Kelly was one of the most important American painters and sculptors. His career is closely tied to the abstract style of “hard-edge” painting in the 60s, with color field painting and the Minimalist school. His works demonstrate unassuming techniques that emphasize the simplicity of form, frequently enhanced by bright colors. Two texts on the publication describe the plant drawings in the context of Ellsworth Kelly’s oeuvre as a whole.