Helen Frankenthaler Stain Painting

Helen Frankenthaler Stain Painting. Legend has it that helen frankenthaler invented the technique that made her famous in 1952. Soak stain art supply list.

Tate Gifted Helen Frankenthaler Painting by Artist’s
Tate Gifted Helen Frankenthaler Painting by Artist’s from www.artforum.com

Helen frankenthaler in her days lumberyard studio, standing in front of black with shadows in provincetown, massachusetts, summer 1961. Inspired by the work of jackson pollock, frankenthaler began experimenting with stain painting. Conceptual basis inspired by childhood travel, helen frankenthaler transformed real and imagined landscapes into deep abstract paintings in which elements of nature became organic shapes and rich fields of color.

In This, The Only Known Shaped Canvas Ever Produced By The Artist, The Sheer Variety Of Painterly Application Is Astounding.


In 1952 frankenthaler created mountains and sea, a seminal, breakthrough painting of american abstraction. Legend has it that helen frankenthaler invented the technique that made her famous in 1952. Introduced early in her career to major artists such as jackson pollock and franz kline (and robert motherwell, whom she later married), frankenthaler was influenced by abstract expressionist painting practices, but developed her own distinct approach to the style.

Frankenthaler Worked Directly On Unprimed Canvas, Staining It With Thin Washes Of Color And Creating A.


The existence of a distinct feminine aesthetic, an issue that has preoccupied many critics, is particularly relevant to frankenthaler’s expressively fluid work. She attended the exclusive brearley school in manhattan and the dalton school where her art teacher was rufino tamayo. Although frankenthaler's work is abstract, a strong suggestion of landscape is often apparent.

The Thinned Out Paint Would Drain Through The Hole Dumping Puddles Of Color All Over Massive Unprimed Canvas That She Lay Across Her Studio Floor.


Pioneering the “stain” painting technique, she poured thinned paint directly onto raw, unprimed canvas laid on the studio floor, working from all sides to create floating fields of translucent color. She poured thinned paint directly onto raw, unprimed canvas laid on the studio floor, working from all sides to create floating fields of translucent color. Helen frankenthaler, mountains and sea (1952) frankenthaler’s landmark work “mountains and sea” marked a departure from most abstract expressionist works.

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Early in her career she developed the stain painting technique, which became a catalyst for a generation of color field painters. Conceptual basis inspired by childhood travel, helen frankenthaler transformed real and imagined landscapes into deep abstract paintings in which elements of nature became organic shapes and rich fields of color. Helen frankenthaler in her days lumberyard studio, standing in front of black with shadows in provincetown, massachusetts, summer 1961.

She Invented The Technique Of Stain Painting.


Instead of using thick, opaque oil paint, frankenthaler would add paint thinner until the paint was the consistency of watercolor. Frankenthaler paints abstractions but the spaces, moods and formats she constructs are indicative of. The artist of this era who has influenced my painting technique, and my favorite, is helen frankenthaler.