Sagittarius
Modern and Contemporary Art

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Sagittarius
Artwork Details
Artist/Maker
Helen Frankenthaler
American, 1928–2011
American, 1928–2011
Date
1967
Medium
Acrylic on canvas
Accession #
69.18
Dimensions
Please contact the Museum for more information.
Location
Currently Not on View
Description
Helen Frankenthaler’s large, atmospheric paintings have a poetic sense of color and shape. During the early 1950’s, inspired by Jackson Pollock’s technique of “action painting,” Frankenthaler began to paint on unprimed canvas spread on the floor. Although Frankenthaler has continued to refine this technique, she abandoned oil paint in the early 1960’s and turned to acrylic paint, which gave her a bolder palette. Her new medium also allowed her to further explore the tension between chance and control in her art. In Sagittarius, rich shades of magenta, ultramarine and deep green complement one another and bleed together where they overlap.
Credit
Purchase with funds from the National Endowment for the ArtsImage Copyright
© 2018 Helen Frankenthaler Foundation, Inc./Artists Rights Society (ARS), New York