The radiant washes in Untitled (D139) appear to fuse with the sheet, denying any three-dimensional illusionism and evoking the tireless, gestural experimentations of Helen Frankenthaler. Employing her soak-stain technique, where she poured thinned oil paint directly onto the sheet, in the present work Wool’s investigations into the gestural qualities of pigment and the haloing of layered paint, conjure the tonal compositions of his Abstract Expressionist forbearer.
Andy Warhol Rorschach, 1984, silkscreen inks on canvas, Bayerische Staatsgemaeldesammlungen Museum Brandhorst. © 2018 The Andy Warhol Foundation for Visual Arts Inc. / Licensed by DACS, London. Image: Scala, Florence.
Helen Frankenthaler Black-Eyed Susan, 1988, acrylic
The artist’s early word paintings, composed of large black stenciled letters on white aluminium sheets, focused already on the concept of reduction, as their constitutive terms were deprived of vowels, or their traditional spelling was altogether supplanted by street slang. Though Untitled (D139) is wordless, it exudes boundless energy. Experimenting with the limits of the printing and painting process, throughout his oeuvre, the artist explores mechanical modes of creation. Alternating between painting, stenciling, stamping and printing, exploring myriad painterly techniques, the artist’s investigation of media and concern with repetition evokes Andy Warhol’s screen-printing process. Manipulating the strokes of paint, akin to Warhol’s Rorschach, 1984, wherein the printed inks are smeared across the composition, the present work is a celebration of the qualities of media. Untitled (D139) was created at a time of widespread celebration for the artist. Three years prior to the execution of the work, an array of Wool retrospectives indeed proliferated across continents in institutions including the Museum of Contemporary Art in Los Angeles, the Carnegie Museum of Art in Pittsburgh, and the Kunsthalle Basel in Switzerland. With the presence of brash words and solid blocks of paint, Wool’s work is as innovative as it is charismatic. As such, it continues to be acclaimed today, and has undeniably cemented its place in the canon of contemporary art.
on canvas, Private Collection. © Helen Frankenthaler Foundation, Inc. / ARS, NY and DACS, London, 2018. Image: Bridgeman Images.
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