Modern Art

Joan Mitchell prevailed in the male-dominated midcentury art world, creating epic canvases in which light and color transmit powerful emotions. By John Dorfman In a 1986 interview with the art historian Linda Nochlin, Joan Mitchell said, with characteristic don’t-give-a-damn humor, “I call myself a ‘lady painter’ and AEOH—Abstract Expressionist Old Hat.” Of course, with regard…

The extremely diverse art practice of Sophie Taeuber-Arp is at long last getting the serious consideration it deserves, in a retrospective exhibition at the Tate Modern in London. By Sarah E. Fensom For the Swiss polymath Sophie Taeuber-Arp, abstraction was square one. Unlike most of her colleagues in Europe’s early 20th-century avant-garde, Taeuber-Arp didn’t begin…

The Italian port city of Genoa, rich from trade and finance, played host to a century and half’s worth of Baroque art creativity. By John Dorfman The art of Genoa has been a well-kept secret. Many of the greatest works are in palazzi and villas, in the form of frescoes created for private enjoyment. Most…

Arthur Dove, a pioneer of abstract painting, eschewed theories and dogmas, intent on representing the forms and forces of nature in his art. By John Dorfman The inception of abstract painting was such a watershed in the history of art, such a transformative change, that historians are inevitably drawn to the question of who did…

Olga de Amaral harnessed traditional weaving techniques to create highly experimental works of abstraction. By Sarah E. Fensom The Colombian-born artist Olga de Amaral is one of the most important voices in postwar Latin American abstraction. Known for large-scale pieces that are intricately woven in brilliant color and, frequently, covered in shimmering gold or silver…

When the Medicis ruled Florence, a current exhibition at the Met showcases, portraiture ascended to new heights. By Sarah E. Fensom The art of political propaganda was perfected thousands of years ago. The ancient Romans, in particular, excelled at communicating sensationalized messages about its leaders through artistic means. The Metropolitan Museum of Art’s collection is…

Oskar Fischinger’s achievements as an abstract painter stem from his bold experiments as an avant-garde filmmaker. By John Dorfman The painter and filmmaker Oskar Fischinger has long been a well-kept secret of the midcentury Southern California modern-art scene—itself a rather well-kept secret of the American art world in general. The German-born artist, who was active…

There’s far more to Biedermeier-era painting than domesticity and sentiment. By John Dorfman The term “Biedermeier” is usually applied to an almost modernistic-looking furniture design style that was popular in the German-speaking lands in the first half of the 19th century. But there is also a Biedermeier style of painting, and it is hardly proto-modern….

An exhibition highlights the fruitful overlap of women artists connected to both abstraction and New York’s storied East End. By Sarah E. Fensom The first artist group to establish roots in the Hamptons was a sort of boys’ club. The Tile Club, an informal, New York City-based fraternal order of artists, writers, and musicians, was…