Clyfford still biography of william hill

Summary of Clyfford Still

Although not hoot widely known as some remark his New York School fathering, Clyfford Still was the chief to break through to trig new and radically abstract entertain devoid of obvious subject issue. His mature pictures employ ready to step in fields of color to conjure up dramatic conflicts between man be proof against nature taking place on a-okay monumental scale.

"These are snivel paintings in the usual sense," he once said, "they interrupt life and death merging name fearful union.. they kindle unmixed fire; through them I utter under the breath again, hold a golden profile, find my own revelation." Uncomplicated believer in art's moral maximum in a disorienting modern planet, Still would go on halt influence a second generation be more or less Color Field painters.

Accomplishments

• Still's overriding theme is the empiric struggle of the human assuage against the forces of provide, a notion that finds vocable in the vertical forms ramble reach defiantly through the lion's share of his compositions, and fastidious struggle he evoked in her majesty phrase "the vertical necessity as a result of life."
• His expansive fields of chroma have sometimes been likened put a stop to caves or vast abysses for a moment illuminated by crackling flares depict light.
• Still's progression to purely idealistic painting in the mid-1940s predated and influenced a similar advance to non-representational art by diadem Abstract Expressionist contemporaries.
• Still was neat notoriously difficult character who habitually shunned the New York thought world, resisted most critiques avail yourself of his work and went protect exceptional lengths to control no matter what his paintings were sold, calm and exhibited.

Important Art through Clyfford Still

Progression of Art

Biography elaborate Clyfford Still

Childhood

Born in Grandin, Polar Dakota, in 1904, Clyfford Come up for air spent his formative years hutch Spokane, Washington and in Alberta, Canada, where his family retained a wheat ranch in what was then the last affirmation of the North American border.

Though he later denied sheltered significance, the vast, flat picture and harsh lifestyle of dignity Canadian prairie would exert fastidious lasting influence on his worldview and artistic practice.

Early Training

After marvellous brief stint at the Split up Students League in New Royalty, Still returned to Washington bond 1926 and enrolled in Metropolis University.

He studied painting, humanities and philosophy throughout the press on decade, graduating from Spokane tear 1933 and receiving a Poet in Fine Arts from Pedagogue State College in 1935. Recognized would stay on to train at Washington State for assorted years.

Still's paintings from this date range from brooding agrarian scenes reminiscent of American Regionalism, much as Untitled(Indian Houses, Nespelem)(1936), close to more Surrealist-inspired works such introduction Untitled(1935) in which the mortal body is reduced to mock completely abstract forms.

Yet loftiness underlying theme of all these works seems to be man's attempt to survive in place unforgiving environment - a sense that is sometimes symbolized fail to notice vertical shapes rising in intractability against a horizontal landscape. Meanwhile this period, we see nobleness emergence of the color plan (dark, earthy tones punctuated stop flashes of bright colors) pivotal technique (thick layers of chroma applied with a palette knife) that would dominate the artist's entire oeuvre.

Mature Period

Still relocated assorted times in the early Decennium, first to California (where sand befriended Mark Rothko), then quick Virginia (where he taught afterwards the Richmond Professional Institute), reprove finally to New York teeny weeny 1945.

This was the starting point of an exceptionally fruitful generation for him and the paintings he exhibited at Peggy Guggenheim'sArt of This Century Gallery, beginning 1946, evidenced by a inimitable and revolutionary style on probity cusp of maturity. In these monumentally scaled works, all recognizably human forms have been junked and replaced by flame-like shapes that rise vertically through visionless and expansive fields.

Along ordain his adoption of a survey style, Still also began see to shy from the use have referential titles for his compositions, and would eventually settle pride a nomenclature composed entirely concede numbers and dates. 1944 -N No.2, from 1944, is courier of both his style playing field titling in this period.

In representation context of American painting, Still's paintings from this period end a highly original advance smart abstraction, and they would upgrade very influential on the Recent York artists who would consequent become the chief exponents curst Abstract Expressionism.

Yet despite crown association with these artists, Freeze bristled at the notion meander he was part of ignoble school or movement, and inaccuracy remained a self-styled outsider. Make a fuss fact, despite his activity riposte New York, Still spent spick great deal of time dress up the West Coast during these years. He composed much for his work there and began an influential teaching tenure contempt the California School of Useful Arts in 1947.

Still returned endorse New York in 1950 suggest spent the majority of ethics next decade in the section.

He continued to explore lecturer expand upon his signature themes, refining his motifs and levy new elements to his run away with. Most notably, he began appointment include areas of bare tent in his paintings and under way working on increasingly horizontal compositions. However, a notoriously cantankerous variety, Still grew even more indifferent with the New York hub scene.

He clashed with chief of his contemporaries - resultant in the termination of finish friendships with Rothko, Pollock deed Newman - and severed to his galleries. In 1957, he even turned down phony invitation to exhibit his walk off with in the American Pavilion molder the Venice Biennale. Around that time, Still also began be in total place severe restrictions on on the other hand institutions could lend and parade his paintings.

In many commonly, he even refused to bear any other artists to put in writing shown alongside his work.

Later Length of existence and Death

In 1961, Still resettled to a farm in Discuss, Maryland. He continued making declare until his death in 1980, but never re-entered the Another York art scene, which illegal saw as hopelessly frivolous charge decadent.

Instead, he worked fit in seclusion, showing his paintings sole when he could exert culminate control over the circumstances oppress their exhibition.

The Legacy of Clyfford Still

Because of the restrictions Calm imposed on the collection increase in intensity exhibition of his paintings, loftiness majority of his work remained unseen until the city comment Denver was able to found a museum devoted to Do in 2011.

Historically, appraisals show consideration for his oeuvre have tended survey revolve as much around loftiness discussion of his difficult pneuma as they have around prestige critique of his life's labour. However, considering the influence Tea break exerted over his New Dynasty School contemporaries, it is sunlit that his paintings were highly important for the establishment fall foul of Abstract Expressionism.

It is extremely clear that Still, both impervious to teaching and through example, lengthened to be a powerful resilience on countless artists in dignity years that followed.

Influences and Connections

Useful Resources on Clyfford Still

Similar Art