Artist
Clyfford Still (American, 1904–1980)American, 1904–1980
CultureAmerican
Titles
- Untitled (PH-241)
- PH-241
Date1949
PlaceUnited States
MediumOil on canvas
Dimensions68 × 58 1/4 in. (172.7 × 148 cm)
Credit LineMuseum purchase funded by The Brown Foundation, Inc.
Object number76.320
Current Location
The Nancy and Rich Kinder Building
Gallery 203
On view
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Department
Modern and Contemporary ArtObject Type
Abstract Expressionist vanguard honed their
practice in New York, Clyfford Still arrived
at his mature style through his experience
of the expansive landscapes of the Pacific
Northwest. This untitled painting typifies
the subtle brushwork he used to bring a
sense of space into his compositions. The
overall tenor is nocturnal, with passages of
ultramarine and a sliver of orange disrupting
the overall field. Still commented, “Black
was never a color of death or terror for me. I
think of it as warm—and generative. But
color is what you choose to make it.”
ProvenanceThe artist; Alfonso Ossorio, New York, 1952; sold through [Thomas Gibson Fine Art Ltd., London, 1976]; [Acquavella Contemporary Art Inc., New York]; purchased by MFAH, 1976.
Exhibition History"Paintings by Clyfford Still," The Buffalo Fine Arts Academy, Albright Art Gallery, November 5–December 13, 1959.
Fourteen Paintings: De Kooning Dubuffet Ossorio Pollock Still. London: Thomas Gibson Fine Art Ltd., 1976 (exhibited as Black Painting, 1950)
A Permanent Heritage: Major Works from the Collection, The Museum of Fine Arts, Houston, 23 October – 4 January 1981.
Modern American Paintings: The Museum of Fine Arts, Houston, The Pinacotheque National Musee Alexandre Soutzos, Athens, Greece, 20 September – 7 November 1982.
"Art in the San Francisco Bay Area," The Oakland Museum, June 15, 1985–August 18, 1985. (LN:85.23).
"The Continuing Present 1945 -1986," Los Angeles Museum of Contemporary Art, December 6, 1986– January 10, 1988. (LN:86.41).
"Direction and Diversity: Twentieth Century Art in the Museum Collection,” The Museum of Fine Arts, Houston, May 21–September 3, 1988.
“Texas Collects Willem de Kooning and His Contemporaries,” The Museum of Fine Arts, Houston, March 19–May 21, 1995.
"Modern and Contemporary Art: Spotlight on the Collection," The Museum of Fine Arts, Houston, February 7–August 27, 2000.
"Art at Midcentury: Spotlight on the Collection of the Museum of Fine Arts, Houston," The Museum of Fine Arts, Houston, April 13–September 3, 2001.
Cataloguing data may change with further research.
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