PULLING AT POLARITIES

May 10 – June 16, 2012

Richard Pousette-Dart (1916-1992)
Black & White Animal, 1979-80
Acrylic on linen, 42 1/2 x 85 1/2 inches
Signed and dated verso: "R Pousette-Dart / 80"
SOLD

Conrad Marca-Relli (1913-2000)
Untitled, circa 1973
Collage, 19 5/8 x 25 3/8 inches
Signed lower right: "Marca-Relli"
NFS

Pablo Atchugarry (B. 1954)
Untitled, 2006
Carrara marble, 21 (H) x 7 (W) x 4 (D) inches
NFS

Lisa Bradley (B. 1951)
Hiding, 1997-98
Oil on linen, 47 x 38 1/8 inches
Signed on verso: "Bradley"

Elaine de Kooning (1918-1989)
Charging Bull No 7, 1959
Mixed media and collage on paper , 22 x 30 inches
Initialed lower left: "E de K"
NFS

James Brooks (1906-1992)
Cantanda, 1958
Oil on canvas, 66 1/4 x 78 inches
Signed on verso: "James Brooks"
SOLD

Sal Sirugo (1920-2013)
C-10, 1952
Casein on masonite, 48 x 36 inches
Signed lower right: “SIRUGO”
NFS

Robert Rauschenberg (1925-2008)
Barrel Up, 1990
Acrylic and silkscreen on paper, 36 x 52 inches
Signed and dated lower left: "RAUSCHENBERG 90"
NFS

Alexander Calder (1898-1976)
Untitled, 1972
Gouache on paper, 43 1/4 x 29 1/2 inches
Signed and dated lower right: "Calder 72"
NFS

Willem de Kooning (1904-1997)
Untitled, circa 1965
Gouache, watercolor, and charcoal on paper, 9 1/2 x 7 1/4 inches
Signed lower center: "de Kooning"
NFS

Louise Nevelson (1900-1988)
Untitled, 1959
Painted wood, 11 1/2 (H) x 5 (W) x 3 (D) inches
Signed and dated on top: "NEVELSON / 1959"
NFS

Giorgio Cavallon (1904-1989)
Untitled, 1974
Oil on canvas, 44 1/2 x 54 1/8 inches
Signed and dated lower right: "GIORGIO CAVALLON 1974"
NFS

Press Release

When artists pull at polarities, they activate the pictorial surface, reshaping the creative process. The push and pull between the polarizing optics of black and white, the dichotomy between active gesture and flat ground, and the explicit contrast between tactile surfaces and crystalline flatness are hallmarks of much postwar and contemporary art. The tension that arises from this interplay carries the work to new realms. Exemplified by the paintings in this exhibition, these seemingly opposing aesthetic approaches, rather than working against each other, act in concert to energize the art of painting.