Nassau County Museum of Art presents Ab-Ex Re-Con an exhibition on view June 16, 2013.
Joseph Fiori Untitled, 1954 Oil on canvas 20 x 34 inches Private Collection, Roslyn, New York
AB-EX / RE-CON: Abstract Expressionism Reconsidered explores both the best known and less familiar practitioners of abstract and gestural painting who dominated American art, criticism and commentary during the late 1940s and throughout the 1950s. Included in the exhibition are works by the stars of Abstract Expressionism, among them Richard Diebenkorn, Helen Frankenthaler, Hans Hofmann, Franz Kline, Robert Motherwell and Mark Rothko. The exhibition also offers viewers the excitement of discovering some of the lesser-known but highly-regarded artists of the movement, among them Fritz Bultman and Jon Schueler. Bultman, a member of the inner circle of Lee Krasner and Jackson Pollock and a close associate of Motherwell and Hofmann, is the topic of The Last Irascible, a talk presented at the museum on May 5 by the noted art writer Charles A. Riley II, Ph.D. Schueler, the subject of Jon Schueler: A Life in Painting, a 28-minute film being screened four times a day throughout the exhibition, was influenced by Clyfford Still (his teacher) and Milton Avery, and became a part of the New York School of artists.
Three focused installations included in AB-EX / RE-CON are devoted to Abstract Expressionists working today: Judith Godwin in New York City, Stan Brodsky on Long Island, and Rita Rogers in Rhode Island. On April 27, independent curator Kenneth Wayne, Ph.D., presents a talk on Stan Brodsky.
In addition to The Last Irascible, Jon Schueler: A Life in Painting and Dr. Wayne’s talk on Stan Brodsky, the museum is offering several other programs in conjunction with the exhibition. A 20-minute film, Abstract Expressionism, is being screened four times a day throughout the exhibition. Three Brown Bag lectures are offered, April 11, May 9 and June 6, in which Museum Docent Riva Ettus presents a talk on the exhibition, followed by a public tour. The films, the Brown Bag talks, and daily 2 p.m. exhibition tours are free with museum admission on a first come, first served basis. For details on these and other events offered in conjunction with AB-EX / RE-CON or to register, www.nassaumuseum.com