Topeka, Kan. – An exhibition of paintings and drawings curated from the Rita Blitt Legacy Collection presented with works by Elaine de Kooning, Helen Frankenthaler, Lee Krasner and Joan Mitchell is on exhibit at the Mulvane Art Museum on the Washburn University campus through February 2025.
Abstract Expressionism came to the world’s attention in the mid-twentieth century in New York City where the New York School dominated. De Kooning, Frankenthaler, Krasner and Mitchell were among a handful of women who were part of the first and second generation of women artists working at the center of the movement.
As scholars, art historians and curators dig deeper into the traditional narrative of Abstract Expressionism, a more complex history is emerging. Far from New York City, mid-twentieth century artists were contemplating post-war political and social environments. Conversant in abstraction, they explored and expressed their concerns in a new vocabulary of expressive gesture and color. Rita Blitt was one such artist working outside the mainstream.
The Mulvane holds more than 2,000 works on paper, paintings and sculptures created by Blitt over the past five decades. Altogether the works chart the iterative process of Blitt’s exploration of color, light and movement through her sculptures and paintings as well as video. Beginning in the 1990s, Blitt embraced the expressionistic minimalism of line while continuing to work in a variety of media. She has produced hundreds of paintings and drawings that serve as a bridge between Abstract Expressionism and contemporary abstract art.
The Mulvane Art Museum galleries are open to the public Tuesdays, 12-7 p.m.; Wednesdays through Fridays, 12-5 p.m.; and Saturdays, 12-4 p.m.
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