Shiva as Lord of Music, Western India, Gujarat, Idar, 6th Century

Frank Stella

Frank Stella, b. 1936Frank Stella first came into prominence in 1959, when his spare, black-and-white canvases were featured in a seminal show at the Museum of Modern Art, and he emerged in the 1960s as one of the leading figures of American Abstraction. In marked contrast to the paradigm of painting as a magic window, Stella advanced a more literal, concrete conception of the painted surface as a pattern bounded by edges. His shaped canvases of concentric black-and-white bands set the stage for the Minimalist movement, but Stella began in the later 1960s to integrate color into his increasingly monumental compositions. One of a series of paintings that explored relationships of color, form and pattern, Flin Flon VIII’s petal-like geometric shapes– made of overlapping protractor outlines– seem to project and recede in a dizzying optical dance.

Frank Stella, b. 1936 Frank Stella first came into prominence in 1959, when his spare, black-and-white canvases were featured in a seminal show at the Museum of Modern Art, and he emerged in the 1960s as one of the leading figures of American Abstraction. In marked contrast to the paradigm of painting as a magic window, Stella advanced a more literal, concrete conception of the painted surface as a pattern bounded by edges. His shaped canvases of concentric black-and-white bands set the stage for the Minimalist movement, but Stella began in the later 1960s to integrate color into his increasingly monumental compositions. One of a series of paintings that explored relationships of color, form and pattern, Flin Flon VIII’s petal-like geometric shapes– made of overlapping protractor outlines– seem to project and recede in a dizzying optical dance.

Flin Flon VII1970Size: 108 in. x 108 in. (274.3 cm x 274.3 cm)Museum purchase, 1979:19Frank Stella, b. 1936Frank Stella first came into prominence in 1959, when his spare, black-and-white canvases were featured in a seminal show at the Museum of Modern Art, and he emerged in the 1960s as one of the leading figures of American Abstraction. In marked contrast to the paradigm of painting as a magic window, Stella advanced a more literal, concrete conception of the painted surface as a pattern bounded by edges. His shaped canvases of concentric black-and-white bands set the stage for the Minimalist movement, but Stella began in the later 1960s to integrate color into his increasingly monumental compositions. One of a series of paintings that explored relationships of color, form and pattern, Flin Flon VIII’s petal-like geometric shapes– made of overlapping protractor outlines– seem to project and recede in a dizzying optical dance.

Flin Flon VII 1970 Size: 108 in. x 108 in. (274.3 cm x 274.3 cm) Museum purchase, 1979:19 Frank Stella, b. 1936 Frank Stella first came into prominence in 1959, when his spare, black-and-white canvases were featured in a seminal show at the Museum of Modern Art, and he emerged in the 1960s as one of the leading figures of American Abstraction. In marked contrast to the paradigm of painting as a magic window, Stella advanced a more literal, concrete conception of the painted surface as a pattern bounded by edges. His shaped canvases of concentric black-and-white bands set the stage for the Minimalist movement, but Stella began in the later 1960s to integrate color into his increasingly monumental compositions. One of a series of paintings that explored relationships of color, form and pattern, Flin Flon VIII’s petal-like geometric shapes– made of overlapping protractor outlines– seem to project and recede in a dizzying optical dance.

Frank Stella, Flin Flon VII, 1970

Alfred R. Mitchell

La Jolla Coveca. 1950Size: 24 in. x 36 in. (60.9 cm x 91.4 cm)Gift of the artist, 1965:26Alfred R. Mitchell, 1888--1972After receiving his initial artistic education in San Diego under Maurice Braun, Alfred Mitchell studied at the Pennsylvania Academy of Fine Arts and traveled in Europe before returning to California. He would later serve as President of the San Diego Art Guild and was among those who signed the incorporation papers for the Fine Arts Gallery of San Diego, which today is known as The San Diego Museum of Art.Like many of his contemporary artists in Southern California, Mitchell combined in his work the lessons both of Thomas Eakins's American Realism and of French art; the resulting plein air style has come to be known as California Impressionism. Visitors to The San Diego Museum of Art will find on display a group of California Impressionist paintings that includes Mitchell's work alongside that of such artists as Maurice Braun, Nicolai Fechin, Charles Fries, Charles Reiffel, Guy Rose, and Elliott Torrey.www.TheSanDiegoMuseumofArt.org

La Jolla Cove ca. 1950 Size: 24 in. x 36 in. (60.9 cm x 91.4 cm) Gift of the artist, 1965:26 Alfred R. Mitchell, 1888--1972 After receiving his initial artistic education in San Diego under Maurice Braun, Alfred Mitchell studied at the Pennsylvania Academy of Fine Arts and traveled in Europe before returning to California. He would later serve as President of the San Diego Art Guild and was among those who signed the incorporation papers for the Fine Arts Gallery of San Diego, which today is known as The San Diego Museum of Art. Like many of his contemporary artists in Southern California, Mitchell combined in his work the lessons both of Thomas Eakins's American Realism and of French art; the resulting plein air style has come to be known as California Impressionism. Visitors to The San Diego Museum of Art will find on display a group of California Impressionist paintings that includes Mitchell's work alongside that of such artists as Maurice Braun, Nicolai Fechin, Charles Fries, Charles Reiffel, Guy Rose, and Elliott Torrey. <a href="http://www.TheSanDiegoMuseumofArt.org" rel="nofollow" target="_blank">www.TheSanDiegoMuseumofArt.org</a>

Alfred R. Mitchell, La Jolla Cove, ca. 1950

The Hands of Dr. Moore1940Diego Rivera, 1886--1957Size: 18 in. x 22 in. (45.7 cm x 55.9 cm)Bequest of Mrs. E. Clarence Moore, 1970:20In this non-traditional portrait, Diego Rivera chose to focus on the doctor's hands instead of creating a more typical image that featured the sitter's face. The inscription reads, "These are the hands of Dr. Clarence Moore of Los Angeles, California. They trim the tree of life so that it is renewed and does not die. Diego Rivera painted them in 1940."With its reference to roots, female anatomy, and blood, and through the use of a ribbon-like banner that includes an inscription, the painting recalls the work of Frida Kahlo, a Mexican artist whom Rivera twice married.The anthropomorphic tree that is transformed from a symbol of the natural world to the female figure reflects the status of the tree as an iconic symbol in Mexican art history from pre-Columbian to contemporary times. Moreover the tree motif appears in the Museum's other painting by Rivera, the Mandrágora of 1939, and in such works as Pan American Unity, also created in 1940, and permanently on view at San Francisco City College.www.TheSanDiegoMuseumofArt.org

The Hands of Dr. Moore 1940 Diego Rivera, 1886--1957 Size: 18 in. x 22 in. (45.7 cm x 55.9 cm) Bequest of Mrs. E. Clarence Moore, 1970:20 In this non-traditional portrait, Diego Rivera chose to focus on the doctor's hands instead of creating a more typical image that featured the sitter's face. The inscription reads, "These are the hands of Dr. Clarence Moore of Los Angeles, California. They trim the tree of life so that it is renewed and does not die. Diego Rivera painted them in 1940." With its reference to roots, female anatomy, and blood, and through the use of a ribbon-like banner that includes an inscription, the painting recalls the work of Frida Kahlo, a Mexican artist whom Rivera twice married. The anthropomorphic tree that is transformed from a symbol of the natural world to the female figure reflects the status of the tree as an iconic symbol in Mexican art history from pre-Columbian to contemporary times. Moreover the tree motif appears in the Museum's other painting by Rivera, the Mandrágora of 1939, and in such works as Pan American Unity, also created in 1940, and permanently on view at San Francisco City College. <a href="http://www.TheSanDiegoMuseumofArt.org" rel="nofollow" target="_blank">www.TheSanDiegoMuseumofArt.org</a>

Diego Rivera, The Hands of Dr. Moore, 1940

The SomnambulistRufino Tamayo, 1899--19911954Size: 39 1/2 in. x 31 1/2 in. (100.3 cm x 80 cm)Anonymous gift, 1964:130An avid collector, Tamayo acquired art that today forms the core of two museums in Mexico: one in Oaxaca that displays pre-Columbian art and another in Mexico City that presents modern and contemporary art. These interests are found in his own works, which incorporate traditional Mexican imagery, yet are infused with the spirit of contemporary Surrealism.Tamayo created both easel paintings and large-scale murals. He was a contemporary of the Mexican muralists Diego Rivera, José Clemente Orozco, and David Alfaro Siqueiros, but he explored abstraction to an extent not attempted by these others. The Somnambulist reveals Tamayo's interest in developing a highly original style in its rendering of a sleepwalker with angular Cubist shapes and bold hues of orange and blue.

The Somnambulist Rufino Tamayo, 1899--1991 1954 Size: 39 1/2 in. x 31 1/2 in. (100.3 cm x 80 cm) Anonymous gift, 1964:130 An avid collector, Tamayo acquired art that today forms the core of two museums in Mexico: one in Oaxaca that displays pre-Columbian art and another in Mexico City that presents modern and contemporary art. These interests are found in his own works, which incorporate traditional Mexican imagery, yet are infused with the spirit of contemporary Surrealism. Tamayo created both easel paintings and large-scale murals. He was a contemporary of the Mexican muralists Diego Rivera, José Clemente Orozco, and David Alfaro Siqueiros, but he explored abstraction to an extent not attempted by these others. The Somnambulist reveals Tamayo's interest in developing a highly original style in its rendering of a sleepwalker with angular Cubist shapes and bold hues of orange and blue.

Rufino Tamayo, The Somnambulist, 1954

Eastman Johnson

Eastman Johnson, 1824--1906Woman Readingca. 1874Size: 25 1/8 in. x 18 5/8 in. (63.8 cm x 47.3 cm)Museum purchase with funds provided by the Gerald and Inez Grant Parker Foundation, 1977:9Eastman Johnson created intimate scenes of daily life that contribute to our understanding of the American cultural landscape during his lifetime. Born in Lovell, Maine, Johnson lived mostly in New England, and this painting is likely one of the many works that were inspired by the landscape of Nantucket, Massachusetts.Women figured prominently in Johnson's work, and he frequently painted them alone and often engaged in tasks that were popular activities for women in the late 19th century, such as reading or walking outdoors.

Eastman Johnson, 1824--1906 Woman Reading ca. 1874 Size: 25 1/8 in. x 18 5/8 in. (63.8 cm x 47.3 cm) Museum purchase with funds provided by the Gerald and Inez Grant Parker Foundation, 1977:9 Eastman Johnson created intimate scenes of daily life that contribute to our understanding of the American cultural landscape during his lifetime. Born in Lovell, Maine, Johnson lived mostly in New England, and this painting is likely one of the many works that were inspired by the landscape of Nantucket, Massachusetts. Women figured prominently in Johnson's work, and he frequently painted them alone and often engaged in tasks that were popular activities for women in the late 19th century, such as reading or walking outdoors.

Eastman Johnson, Woman Reading, ca. 1874

Four Carved East African Spoons

Edwin Binney

Edwin Binney 3rd Collection of South Asian paintings

Frank Stella, b. 1936Flin Flon VII1970Size: 108 in. x 108 in. (274.3 cm x 274.3 cm)Museum purchase, 1979:19Frank Stella first came into prominence in 1959, when his spare, black-and-white canvases were featured in a seminal show at the Museum of Modern Art, and he emerged in the 1960s as one of the leading figures of American Abstraction. In marked contrast to the paradigm of painting as a magic window, Stella advanced a more literal, concrete conception of the painted surface as a pattern bounded by edges. His shaped canvases of concentric black-and-white bands set the stage for the Minimalist movement, but Stella began in the later 1960s to integrate color into his increasingly monumental compositions. One of a series of paintings that explored relationships of color, form and pattern, Flin Flon VIII’s petal-like geometric shapes– made of overlapping protractor outlines– seem to project and recede in a dizzying optical dance.

Frank Stella, b. 1936 Flin Flon VII 1970 Size: 108 in. x 108 in. (274.3 cm x 274.3 cm) Museum purchase, 1979:19 Frank Stella first came into prominence in 1959, when his spare, black-and-white canvases were featured in a seminal show at the Museum of Modern Art, and he emerged in the 1960s as one of the leading figures of American Abstraction. In marked contrast to the paradigm of painting as a magic window, Stella advanced a more literal, concrete conception of the painted surface as a pattern bounded by edges. His shaped canvases of concentric black-and-white bands set the stage for the Minimalist movement, but Stella began in the later 1960s to integrate color into his increasingly monumental compositions. One of a series of paintings that explored relationships of color, form and pattern, Flin Flon VIII’s petal-like geometric shapes– made of overlapping protractor outlines– seem to project and recede in a dizzying optical dance.

Visitors talk about Frank Stella's Flin Flon VIII

25 Works You Must See

Maria at La Granja,1907Size: 67 1/8 in. x 33 1/2 in. (170.5 cm x 85.1 cm)Gift of Mr. Archer M. Huntington in memory of his mother, Arabella D. Huntington, 1925:1Joaquín Sorolla y BastidaSorolla was the most internationally famous Spanish artist of his day. Early in his career, he was greatly influenced by the realism of Velázquez and other artists of the 17th-century Spanish Golden Age, but he spent much time in Paris in the years around 1900 and developed a particular talent for combining traditional Spanish painting with the new approaches of French Impressionism and Post-Impressionism.Sorolla painted plein air portraits with great skill and success, starting with his family and later portraying even the king and queen of Spain. This portrait is of the artist’s daughter at age 17, when she had recently recovered from tuberculosis. She is shaded by trees that are not shown in the painting, but the juxtaposition of cool shadows with glowing patches of light is one of the artist’s trademarks, as is the deft manipulation of paint into thick impasto highlights.

Maria at La Granja, 1907 Size: 67 1/8 in. x 33 1/2 in. (170.5 cm x 85.1 cm) Gift of Mr. Archer M. Huntington in memory of his mother, Arabella D. Huntington, 1925:1 Joaquín Sorolla y Bastida Sorolla was the most internationally famous Spanish artist of his day. Early in his career, he was greatly influenced by the realism of Velázquez and other artists of the 17th-century Spanish Golden Age, but he spent much time in Paris in the years around 1900 and developed a particular talent for combining traditional Spanish painting with the new approaches of French Impressionism and Post-Impressionism. Sorolla painted plein air portraits with great skill and success, starting with his family and later portraying even the king and queen of Spain. This portrait is of the artist’s daughter at age 17, when she had recently recovered from tuberculosis. She is shaded by trees that are not shown in the painting, but the juxtaposition of cool shadows with glowing patches of light is one of the artist’s trademarks, as is the deft manipulation of paint into thick impasto highlights.

Joaquín Sorolla y Bastida, Maria at La Granja, 1907

Quince, Cabbage, Melon, and Cucumberca. 1602Size: 27 1/8 in. x 33 1/4 in. (68.9 cm x 84.5 cm)Gift of Anne R. and Amy Putnam, 1945:43Juan Sánchez Cotán, 1560–1627Still-life painting was virtually nonexistent in European art before the 1590s, and Sánchez Cotán is considered not only among the first practitioners of the genre, but also arguably the greatest. This work, moreover, is universally acclaimed as his masterpiece.Brilliantly executed, the painting is unflinching in its naturalism and simplicity. The mysterious serenity of the composition, in which the objects are positioned in a perfect curve against the deep black background, has led many to question the meaning or function of the image. For some, the work is an exercise in pure painting, the straightforward depiction of vegetables in a cold cellar. Others, however, believe that the picture may have religious overtones, and that it should be understood as a celebration of God’s most humble creations. In support of the latter reading, it is often noted that Sánchez Cotán gave up his possessions and entered a Carthusian monastery soon after painting this canvas.

Quince, Cabbage, Melon, and Cucumber ca. 1602 Size: 27 1/8 in. x 33 1/4 in. (68.9 cm x 84.5 cm) Gift of Anne R. and Amy Putnam, 1945:43 Juan Sánchez Cotán, 1560–1627 Still-life painting was virtually nonexistent in European art before the 1590s, and Sánchez Cotán is considered not only among the first practitioners of the genre, but also arguably the greatest. This work, moreover, is universally acclaimed as his masterpiece. Brilliantly executed, the painting is unflinching in its naturalism and simplicity. The mysterious serenity of the composition, in which the objects are positioned in a perfect curve against the deep black background, has led many to question the meaning or function of the image. For some, the work is an exercise in pure painting, the straightforward depiction of vegetables in a cold cellar. Others, however, believe that the picture may have religious overtones, and that it should be understood as a celebration of God’s most humble creations. In support of the latter reading, it is often noted that Sánchez Cotán gave up his possessions and entered a Carthusian monastery soon after painting this canvas.

Juan Sánchez Cotán, Quince, Cabbage, Melon, and Cucumber, ca. 1602

Asher Brown

Asher Brown Durand, In the Catskills, 1848

The Penitent Saint Peterca. 1590-1595Size: 49 1/4 in. x 42 3/8 in. (125.1 cm x 107.6 cm)Gift of Anne R. and Amy Putnam, 1940:76El Greco (Domenikos Theotokopoulos), 1541–1614One of El Greco’s most enduring devotional images, The Penitent Saint Peter was a subject to which the painter often returned, and this is one of at least six known versions of the composition. The painting depicts the repentant Saint Peter, distraught at having denied that he knew Christ when questioned on the eve of the crucifixion.The saint is dramatically isolated, set against the dark trunk of a tree and lit by an ethereal light that emphasizes his soulful expression and posture. The scene in the background at left shows Mary Magdalene returning from Christ’s tomb: having received the news of Christ’s resurrection from an angel, she runs to tell Saint Peter.This work is marked by a religious intensity that can be related to the concerns of the Counter-Reformation church. The biblical description of Saint Peter’s penitence in the days after the crucifixion was used by Counter-Reformation Catholics to justify the sacrament of penance or confession, which had been challenged by Protestantism. Devotional concerns aside, the canvas is a quintessential example of El Greco’s painterly virtuosity and of the poignant humanity of his figures.

The Penitent Saint Peter ca. 1590-1595 Size: 49 1/4 in. x 42 3/8 in. (125.1 cm x 107.6 cm) Gift of Anne R. and Amy Putnam, 1940:76 El Greco (Domenikos Theotokopoulos), 1541–1614 One of El Greco’s most enduring devotional images, The Penitent Saint Peter was a subject to which the painter often returned, and this is one of at least six known versions of the composition. The painting depicts the repentant Saint Peter, distraught at having denied that he knew Christ when questioned on the eve of the crucifixion. The saint is dramatically isolated, set against the dark trunk of a tree and lit by an ethereal light that emphasizes his soulful expression and posture. The scene in the background at left shows Mary Magdalene returning from Christ’s tomb: having received the news of Christ’s resurrection from an angel, she runs to tell Saint Peter. This work is marked by a religious intensity that can be related to the concerns of the Counter-Reformation church. The biblical description of Saint Peter’s penitence in the days after the crucifixion was used by Counter-Reformation Catholics to justify the sacrament of penance or confession, which had been challenged by Protestantism. Devotional concerns aside, the canvas is a quintessential example of El Greco’s painterly virtuosity and of the poignant humanity of his figures.

El Greco, The Penitent Saint Peter, ca. 1590-1595

The Young Shepherdess1885Size: 62 in. x 28 1/2 in. (157.5 cm x 72.4 cm)Gift of Mr. and Mrs. Edwin S. Larsen, 1968:82William-Adolphe Bouguereau, 1825–1905Trained at the Royal Academy in Paris, Bouguereau became one of the most prolific and successful exhibitors at the Parisian Salon in the later 19th century. Like Realist painters including Courbet or Millet, he shared a passion for subjects drawn from rural life. Bouguereau’s rural figures, however, are always closer to the idealized shepherds and shepherdesses of classical pastoral poetry than to the earthy farmers more often depicted by the Realists.Moreover, during the decades when the Realists and Impressionists developed their bold anti-academic styles, Bouguereau remained the principal proponent of traditional painting, and his works are characterized by the superbly drawn anatomy and high degree of finish seen here.

The Young Shepherdess 1885 Size: 62 in. x 28 1/2 in. (157.5 cm x 72.4 cm) Gift of Mr. and Mrs. Edwin S. Larsen, 1968:82 William-Adolphe Bouguereau, 1825–1905 Trained at the Royal Academy in Paris, Bouguereau became one of the most prolific and successful exhibitors at the Parisian Salon in the later 19th century. Like Realist painters including Courbet or Millet, he shared a passion for subjects drawn from rural life. Bouguereau’s rural figures, however, are always closer to the idealized shepherds and shepherdesses of classical pastoral poetry than to the earthy farmers more often depicted by the Realists. Moreover, during the decades when the Realists and Impressionists developed their bold anti-academic styles, Bouguereau remained the principal proponent of traditional painting, and his works are characterized by the superbly drawn anatomy and high degree of finish seen here.

William-Adolphe Bouguereau, The Young Shepherdess, 1885

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