Jonathan Novak Contemporary Art Blog: Tom Wesselmann

Tom Wesselmann sculpture, House and Barn in the Distance, is one of many beautiful works in our current exhibition, Color.

The sculpture was completed in 1994 and was designed utilizing layers of cut-out aluminum, finished with oil paint.

Tom Wesselmann, who passed away in 2004, made pivotal contributions to the American Pop Art movement. Distinguished for colorful paintings, sculpture, prints, and drawings that depict nudes, everyday objects and avant-garde abstractions, Wesselmann's graceful line, tight formal compositions and highly polished style are instantly recognizable and visually enticing.

Wesselmann's works are held in major national and international collections including: the Hirshhorn Museum and Sculpture Garden, Washington, D.C.; the Museum of Modern Art, New York; The Whitney Museum of American Art, New York; the Louisiana Museum, Humblebaek, Denmark; and the Tokyo Central Museum, Japan.

We are excited to present to you, House and Barn in the Distance: a distinguished an important part of our current exhibition.

For more information about the artist, visit our the Tom Wesselmann artist page.

To see other works in the show, please visit our "Color" Exhibition page, closing on April 18, 2014.

Tom Wesselmann / "House and Barn in the Distance" / 1991/1994 / Oil on cut-out aluminum

MARCH 2 – APRIL 11, 2014

Color became the hallmark of painting in the 1960s when a succession of movements—ranging from Color Field to Pop—marked the triumph of American art as an international phenomenon. Pop Art took the vibrant, garish color of advertising and turned it into a positive creative statement. At the same time, abstract painters began to explore color’s sensual and emotional impact as a visceral experience. Since this exciting era, artists have continued to use and work with color as an expression of passion, beauty, and unbridled excitement.

Color surveys Post-War contemporary American and European works by well-known Abstract Expressionists, Pop artists, and Photorealists including: Sam Francis, Paul Jenkins, Robert Motherwell, Andy Warhol, Frank Stella, Tim Bavington, David Hockney, Tom Wesselmann, Jim Dine, Julian Opie, Niki de Saint Phalle, Ben Schonzeit, Robert Gniewek, and David Parrish. These artists communicate through the fundamental language of color. While their works delight the eye, they also possess a resonance based on the deep emotional impact of pure pigment.

Color will be on view through April 11, 2014.