Reading Abstract Expressionism: Context and Critique

by Ellen G. Landau (Editor)

The first collection of writings on the entire history of Abstract Expressionism--a movement that has inspired six decades of heated rhetoric

Abstract Expressionism is arguably the most important art movement in postwar America. Many of its creators and critics became celebrities, participating in heated public debates that were published in newspapers, magazines, and exhibition catalogues. This up-to-date anthology is the first comprehensive collection of key critical writings about Abstract Expressionism from its inception in the 1940s to the present day.

Ellen G. Landau’s masterful introduction presents and analyzes the major arguments and crucial points of view that have surrounded the movement decade by decade. She then offers a selection of readings, also organized by decade, including influential statements by such artists as Mark Rothko, Robert Motherwell, Jackson Pollock, and Barnett Newman as well as the commentary of diverse critics. Offering new insights into the development of Abstract Expressionism, this rich anthology also demonstrates the ongoing impact of this revolutionary and controversial movement.
  Reading Abstract Expressionism is essential for the library of any curator, scholar, or student of twentieth-century art.

Genres: Art, Art History

768 pages, Paperback

First published May 11, 2005

About the author

Currently an independent art historian and curator in Pasadena. Specialization in 20th century modernism, particularly abstract expressionism. Books on Jackson Pollock, Lee Krasner, abstract expressionist criticism and theory, the impact of Mexico on Pollock, Noguchi, Guston and Motherwell. Recent projects include catalog essays for the Getty (on Pollock) and the Denver Art Museum (on Elaine and Bill de Kooning), Abstract Expressionists: The Women, 2023 book coauthored with Joan M. Marter published in London by Hugh Merrell; lectures in Los Angeles, China and the Hague, among others.