Action, Gesture, Paint - Whitechapel Gallery

I’m a big fan of Abstract Art and in particular Abstract Expressionism. There is something so personal about how paint is applied by different artists that the exchange between viewer and artist is somehow deeper. The presence of the artist is often palpable in the surface of the canvas by the use of gesture and bold applications that drip, splash, blend or overlap, all coming together to tell the story of its creation. This exhibition at Whitechapel Gallery is a glorious celebration of just that. The exhibition title is Action, Gesture, Paint: Women Artists and Global Abstraction 1940-70 and it was wonderful to see the focus on the women artists of this time who were often overlooked or had to take on male names in order to be taken seriously as artists.

Audrey Flack. Abstract Force: Homage to Franz Kine 1951-51

I enjoyed the themed curation as paintings were grouped in sections focussing on materiality, abstract signs & symbols,, manifestations of feelings, rhythm & gesture and environment. Here I will share with you a few of my favourites and what I liked about them.

A huge watery canvas’ by Helen Frankenthaler welcomes you at the start which is impressive in sheer size but my heart was captured almost immediately by Audrey Flack’s ‘Abstract Force: A Homage to Franz Kline’ which was just across the room. American artist Flack often named her paintings after artists she admired. The colour composition in this piece and the way the bold black almost provides a structure for the other colours to work around drew me across the room many times for just another look.

I also loved these 2 pieces by artist Wook-kyung Choi who was Korean but moved to the US in the early 60s and was influenced by Korean Art Informel which was considered the first radical artistic movement in postwar Korea focussing on complete abstraction. She was also inspired by Abstract Expressionism & Pop Art. I like the combination of the comparatively formal painted stripes against the rough brushwork.

Then there was this surprising piece by Yuki Katsura, a Japanese artist who was considered pioneering amongst avant-garde artists of both pre-war and post-war Japan. Katsura’s career spanned 6 decades and made abstract paintings while living in New York from 1958-61. This piece was delicately textured through the application of wet washi tape onto the painted canvas. Katsura manipulated the paper by twisting and threading it’s edges to achieve the finer lines emanating from the central form. It stood out to me due to it’s calm vibe after the punchiness of many of the works around it. It captivated my imagination, I loved it’s weirdness. A bit like the sun, a bit insecty but also maybe plant shoots? …and standing in front of that warm textured yellow was like being bathed in positivity.

The last piece I want to share with you is by Canadian artist Miriam Schapiro, a femanist artist who painted abstract works based on paintings by old masters, specifically referencing male artists and recreating their works in her own style so as to position herself as an equal. Pictured below is her ‘Idyll II’ and for me, it’s an absolute triumph. It looks like it could be a familiar scene but there is nothing recognisable in it other than perhaps a sense of place, so everything else is up to you.

Grace Hartigan (George), Lee Krasner and Joan Mitchel are all represented but I was thrilled to discover these new artists that I had not witnessed before. It is a larger exhibition than I was expecting and I kept forgetting that ALL the artists were women. It is amazing and appalling how sidelined these artists were. This exhibition shines a light on their extraordinary creativity and ballsy spirit to keep making important artistic strides in a time of great flux historically and socially. It was a time when it was deemed that a woman’s place was in the home and any other contribution was simply valued as less….but they found a way and continued to make inspirational work. Thank goodness! It was wonderful to see the global view of Abstract Art in this period and I left the gallery eager to get my own paints out when I got back. If only I could paint something half as cool.

These are just my highlights form the exhibition, there is loads more there to see. The exhibition is on until 7 May 2023 at Whitechapel Gallery if you can get along then I highly recommend it. Tickets are £16.50 but concessions are available and I also recommend the coffee shop next door, Exmouth Coffee Co for a friendly vibe and great coffee. I was there at the wrong time for lunch but the food looked amazing too.

If you visit the exhibition, do let me know what you think.

If you’ve enjoyed reading this little review you may enjoy my thoughts on the Edvard Munch exhibition that I visited in Paris recently. Click here to read.