Three US Cities Declare May 31 “Ellsworth Kelly Day”

Happy Ellsworth Kelly Day! The mayors of 3 United States cities — Austin, Chicago, and New York — person officially declared May 31 “Ellsworth Kelly Day” to commemorate what would person been the 100th day of the artist. To grant Kelly’s legacy, a year-long solemnisation of his seven-decade vocation takes signifier successful respective existent and upcoming exhibitions crossed the US and Europe.

The American painter, sculptor, photographer, draftsman, and printmaker was a pioneer of the abstract Color Field question successful the 1940s and ’50s and became known for his Minimalist style, distinctive usage of colour and geometric shapes, and incorporation of hard-edge coating techniques. Born and raised successful Newburgh, New York, Kelly lived and worked successful the authorities up until his decease successful December 2015 astatine the property of 92. For his centennial, a fig of institutions including the Art Institute of Chicago (AIC); the Lever House successful New York City; the Edward Hopper House successful Nyack; the Glenstone Museum successful Potomac; and the Santa Barbara Museum of Art are celebrating his lasting bequest with a fig of peculiar shows and programs honoring some Kelly’s astir celebrated and lesser-known contributions to the creation world.

Through March 17, 2024, the Glenstone Museum is displaying an encyclopedic accumulation titled Ellsworth Kelly astatine 100, which brings unneurotic implicit 70 paintings, sculptures, insubstantial works, and photographs including Kelly’s large-scale level sheet installation “Yellow Curve” (1990). In May 2024, the amusement volition question to the Fondation Louis Vuitton successful Paris and past to the Fire Station successful Doha successful October 2024.

Ellsworth Kelly’s “Austin” astatine the Blanton Museum (photo by Lars Plougmann via Flickr)

Earlier this month, Kelly’s section assemblage successful Columbia County besides hosted respective peculiar events successful grant of the artist’s centennial which included a municipality hallway dedication successful Austerlitz; a documentary movie screening of Ellsworth Kelly: Fragments (2007); a amusement of Kelly’s accumulation posters astatine Spencertown Academy; and an open-house circuit of the artist’s workplace successful Spencertown. In an exhibition connected presumption until June 11 astatine the Museum of Modern Art (MoMA) successful Manhattan, wherever Kelly held his archetypal retrospective successful 1973, visitors tin presumption the paintings “Spectrum IV” (1967) and “Chatham VI” (1971) arsenic good arsenic “Sculpture for a Large Wall” (1957), a site-specific enactment designed by the creator for Philadelphia’s Transportation Building.

From July 1 to October 23, visitors tin research Kelly’s drawings astatine the AIC successful Ellsworth Kelly: Portrait Drawings. The amusement displays 95 intimate portraits the creator drew of himself and his friends betwixt 1994 and 2002, successful summation to drawings made erstwhile helium was 21 years aged during his subject work successful World War II. The AIC is readying an further installation of Kelly’s works, which were precocious talented to the museum, and is expected to denote details soon.

The Ellsworth Kelly centennial is besides being celebrated successful respective different exhibitions astatine the Fondazione Nicola Del Roscio successful Rome, the Philadelphia Museum of Art, Gemini GEL successful New York and Los Angeles, Peder Lund Gallery successful Oslo, and the Blanton Museum of Art astatine the University of Texas astatine Austin. The second famously houses Kelly’s “Austin” (2015), an artist-designed, 2,715-square-foot chromatic operation whose facade is embedded with rows of colorful solid windows. A afloat overview of the centennial exhibitions tin beryllium viewed online. 

Maya Pontone is simply a Staff Writer astatine Hyperallergic. Originally from bluish New Jersey, she studied journalism and governmental subject astatine Emerson College successful Boston, MA. She presently resides successful Brooklyn, NY. More by Maya Pontone