Helen
FRANKENTHALER
United States of America
1928
–
2011
A slice of the stone itself
1969
planographic
colour lithograph printed from two stones
on brown-gray, French, handmade paper
hors de commerce
edition: 24, 4 artist's proofs; 2 progressive proofs; 2 trial proofs; 4 work proofs; hors de commerce
Harrison, P. (1996), p.18
signed and dated lower right, pencil "Frankenthaler '69"
composition
48.8 (h)
x 38.0 (w)
cm
sheet
48.8 (h)
x 38.0 (w)
cm
Purchased 1986
National Gallery of Australia, Canberra
NGA 1986.1072
© Helen Frankenthaler
- with Sylvan Cole Gallery, New York;
- from whom bought by the Australian National Gallery, February 1986
- The Spontaneous Gesture
- National Gallery of Australia 06 Jun 1987 – 13 Sep 1987
- Abstract Expressionism: the National Gallery of Australia celebrates the centenaries of Jackson Pollock and Morris Louis
- 14 Jul 2012 – 24 Feb 2013
Of the artists associated with Abstract Expressionism, Frankenthaler was one of the most prolific printmakers. She seems to have particularly enjoyed the lusciousness of lithography, and there is a direct visual connection between the print technique and the ‘soak-stain’ method used in many of her paintings. This work shows Frankenthaler’s interest in framing and edging, positive and negative space, as well as the influence of calligraphy and Chinese characters. The subtlety of her lines and use of colour complement the handmade paper.[1]
Frankenthaler made her first lithographs at Universal Limited Art Editions in 1961. Tatyana Grosman, who established the workshop at her home on Long Island in 1955/57, introduced the French tradition of the artist–printmaker to the United States of America and nurtured a generation of printmakers. Initially Frankenthaler was unhappy with the choice of paper for this work but, later, on Grossman’s advice, she reconsidered. She concluded that the paper was ‘just like a slice of the stone itself! It’s as if you skimmed the top of the stone with all of its chips and chunks, just that color, with all the missing parts and the crumbling and cracks’.[2]
Lucina Ward
[1] The proof prints show the care Frankenthaler took over the placement and colour of her lines, especially the yellow one, for which she tried several placements and variants of yellow; see Pegram Harrison, Frankenthaler: A catalogue raisonné: Prints, 1961–1994, New York: Abrams 1996, cat. 18, pp. 110–13
[2] Helen Frankenthalerprints: 1961–1979, New York: Harper and Row 1980, p. 80
Discussion of the work
Of the artists associated with Abstract Expressionism, Frankenthaler was one of the most prolific printmakers. She seems to have particularly enjoyed the lusciousness of lithography, and there is a direct visual connection between the print technique and the ‘soak-stain’ method used in many of her paintings. This work shows Frankenthaler’s interest in framing and edging, positive and negative space, as well as the influence of calligraphy and Chinese characters. The subtlety of her lines and use of colour complement the handmade paper.[1]
Frankenthaler made her first lithographs at Universal Limited Art Editions in 1961. Tatyana Grosman, who established the workshop at her home on Long Island in 1955/57, introduced the French tradition of the artist–printmaker to the United States of America and nurtured a generation of printmakers. Initially Frankenthaler was unhappy with the choice of paper for this work but, later, on Grossman’s advice, she reconsidered. She concluded that the paper was ‘just like a slice of the stone itself! It’s as if you skimmed the top of the stone with all of its chips and chunks, just that color, with all the missing parts and the crumbling and cracks’.[2]
Lucina Ward
[1] The proof prints show the care Frankenthaler took over the placement and colour of her lines, especially the yellow one, for which she tried several placements and variants of yellow; see Pegram Harrison, Frankenthaler: A catalogue raisonné: Prints, 1961–1994, New York: Abrams 1996, cat. 18, pp. 110–13
[2] Helen Frankenthalerprints: 1961–1979, New York: Harper and Row 1980, p. 80
