Fair Well: Looking Sharp

Some Mid-Century Geometric Abstraction

Previous Miami posts
Is Anybody Happy?
C'est What?

Miami 101 (Part 1): Art Basel Miami Beach, Art Miami, Aqua Art 

Miami 101 (Part 2): Untitled and Miami Project   

Miami 101 (Part 3): NADA

Miami 101 (Part 4): Pulse and Ink  

Miami 101 (Part 5): Design Miami and Sculpture at Bass Museum

The Right Stuff

At DAN Galeria, Sao Paolo, the entire large booth was dedicated to a curated show, Concrete Parallels/Paralelos Concretos; at ABMB

One of the thrills of attending the art fairs is knowing I will see a lot of geometric abstraction from Latin America, and that much of it will be from Mid Century. Unless you studied Latin American art specifically in art school, there are likely to be gaps in your knowledge. Fortunately the Miami fairs, located as they are at the geographic northern edge of Latin America, attract a lot of dealers who exhibit some spectacular work, so you get to continue your education in real time.

This post opens with some of that spectacular work, then flows northward. The whole post focuses on art from the mid-1900s. Next post, I'll look at more contemorary geometric abstraction.

  

From the DAN Galeria exhibition: Lygia Clark, 1960

Another exhibition view, turning left from the opening shot

Above: Geraldo de Barros, 1983

Below: Lygia Clark, 1958-81

Exhibition continues: Two by Willys de Castro, foreground, work from 1960-1972
Closer view below . . .

. . . and Hercules Barsotti, 1981

At Guillermo de Osma Galeria, Madrid: another Hercules Barsotti, 1986

Installation view below to show scale; at ABMB

Also at Guillermo de Osma: Samson Flexner, 1954

At Jorge Mara-La Ruche, Buenos Aires (I think): Ana Sacerdote, work on paper from the 50s and 60s; at ABMB

Another Sacerdote work below

At Galerie Sur, Punte de Este, Uruguay: Maria Friere, 1952

If you're interested in seeing more, checkout the catalog for The Geometry of Hope: Latin American Art from the Patricia Phelps de Cisneros Collection, which looks at work from Buenos Aires, Caracas, Montevideo, Rio de Janiero, São Paolo, and Paris.

Now we move on to mid-century geometric abstraction in the United States. One could be cynical and complain that the work is all secondary market. Who cares? I'm attending the fairs as a viewer, not a collector or gallerist, so I'm happy to see museum-quality work in a setting that allows me close-up views and the opportunity to photograph the work to show you.

At Joan Washburn Gallery, New York City: Alice Trumbull Mason; at ABMB

Closer view below of Mason painting, Remembrance, 1962, oil on canvas

At Mitchell-Innes & Nash, New York City: Julije Knifer, 1967; at ABMB 

At Tibor di Nagy Gallery, New York City: Shirley Jaffe, 1974; at Miami Project

Foreground: contemporary vessel by Kathy Butterly

At Valerie Carberry Gallery, Chicago: Leon Polk Smith; at ABMB

Above: Installation view of a section of the gallery called a Kabinett, dedicated to a solo exhibition; work from the 1950s and 60s

Below: closer view of Untitled work, 1960

Above: turning to the right in the Kabinett

Below: closer view of the Untitled sculpture, 1963

See more on the gallery website

At Yares Art Projects, Santa Fe: Gene Davis, 1961; at Art Miami

At Armand Bartos Fine Art, New York City: Kenneth Noland, 1974

Detail below

At Michael Rosenfeld, New York City: Charmion von Weigand, 1955; at ABMB

Foreground: Bettye Saar sculpture

At Rive Yares: Thomas Downing, 1962: at Art Miami

At Scott White Contemporary, La Jolla, California: Frank Stella, 1973, and Bernar Venet, 1987; at Art Miami

Next up: Contemporary Geometric Abstraction

If you are enjoying these posts from Miami, please consider making a yearly donation of $20 to support my blog. The cost in money and time to attend and report on the fairs is significant for an artist with an ongoing studio practice. A link to PayPal is on the right sidebar close to the top of the page (look for the red type). Any amount is welcome. Thank you.