May 13, 2017

Philip Guston and the Poets at Gallerie dell’Accademia di Venezia, May 10 – September 3, 2017

“Gallerie dell’Accademia di Venezia presents the work of the pre-eminent American painter Philip Guston (1913 – 1980) in a major exhibition exploring the artist’s oeuvre in relation to critical literary interpretation. In a spirit reflective of how Guston himself cultivated the sources of his inspiration, ‘Philip Guston and the Poets’ considers the ideas and writings of major 20th century poets as catalysts for his enigmatic pictures and visions. Featuring works that span a fifty-year period in Guston’s artistic career, the exhibition includes 50 major paintings and 25 prominent drawings dating from 1930 until his death in 1980. The exhibition draws parallels between the essential humanist themes reflected in these works, and the language and prose of five poets: D. H. Lawrence (British, 1885 – 1930), W. B. Yeats (Irish, 1865 – 1939), Wallace Stevens (American, 1879 – 1955), Eugenio Montale (Italian, 1896 – 1981) and T. S. Eliot (American-born, British, 1888 – 1965).” — Gallerie dell’Accademia di Venezia

“Guston’s passion for Italian culture adds a complex and rich textural depth to his work,” curator Kosme de Barañano has written. “Now, as we view his art anew, though the eyes and the prose of like-minded literary figures – some whom he profoundly gravitated and poured over in the course of his own life, others whom he read casually, and others still whom perhaps existed peripherally – we can study the ways in which their words share affinities with the depths of Guston’s late work.”

Philip Guston. Mother and Child, 1930. Oil on canvas, 101.6 x 76.2 cm / 40 x 30 in. Private Collection.

Philip Guston. For M., 1955. Oil on canvas, 193.7 x 182.9 cm / 76 1/4 x 72 in. © The Estate of Philip Guston. San Francisco Museum of Modern Art. Anonymous gift. Photo: Ben Blackwell.

Philip Guston. The Tale, 1961. Oil on canvas, 174 x 182.9 cm / 68 1/2 x 72 in. © The Estate of Philip Guston. Anderson Collection at Stanford University. Gift of Harry W. and Mary Margaret Anderson, and Mary Patricia Anderson Pence, 2014.1.088. Photo: M. Lee Fatherree.

Philip Guston. Untitled, 1968. Acrylic on panel, 76.2 x 81.3 cm / 30 x 32 in. Private Collection. Photo: Genevieve Hanson.

Philip Guston. The Studio, 1969. Oil on canvas, 121.9 x 106.7 cm / 48 x 42 in. Private Collection. Photo: Genevieve Hanson.

Philip Guston. Painter’s Forms, 1972. Oil on panel, 121.9 x 152.4 cm / 48 x 60 in. Private Collection. Photo: Christopher Burke.

Philip Guston. Pittore, 1973. Oil on canvas, 184.8 x 204.5 cm / 72 3/4 x 80 1/2 in. © The Estate of Philip Guston. Private Collection. Photo: Genevieve Hanson.

Philip Guston. Signals, 1975. Oil on canvas, 175.3 x 251.5 cm / 69 x 99 in. © The Estate of Philip Guston. Cincinnati Art Museum, Bequest of Musa Guston, 1992.333.

Philip Guston. Ocean, 1976. Oil on canvas, 198.1 x 295.9 cm / 78 x 116 1/2 in. © The Estate of Philip Guston. San Antonio Museum of Art. Purchased with funds provided by the National Endowment for the Arts and The Brown Foundation.

Philip Guston. Sleeping, 1977. Oil on canvas, 213.4 x 175.3 cm / 84 x 69 in. © The Estate of Philip Guston. Private Collection. Photo: Genevieve Hanson.

Philip Guston. Painter’s Forms II, 1978. Oil on canvas, 190.5 x 274.3 cm / 75 x 108 in. © The Estate of Philip Guston. Modern Art Museum of Fort Worth. Museum purchase, The Friends of Art Endowment Fund. Photo: Tom Jenkins.

Philip Guston. Story, 197. Oil on canvas, 121.9 x 152.4 cm / 48 x 60 in. © The Estate of Philip Guston. Private Collection, London. Photo: Damian Griffiths.

Philip Guston. The Line, 1978. Oil on canvas, 180.3 x 186.1 cm / 71 x 73 1/4 in. © The Estate of Philip Guston. Private Collection. Photo: Genevieve Hanson.

Philip Guston. East Coker – T.S.E., 1979. Oil on canvas, 106.7 x 121.9 cm / 42 x 48 in. © The Estate of Philip Guston. The Museum of Modern Art, New York. Gift of Musa Guston. 1991. Digital Image © MoMA, NY.

Philip Guston. Wheel, 1979. Oil on canvas, 121.9 x 152.4 cm / 48 x 60 in. © The Estate of Philip Guston. Private Collection.

‘Philip Guston and The Poets’ is curated by Prof. Dr. Kosme de Barañano and is organized by Le Gallerie dell’Accademia di Venezia in collaboration with the Estate of Philip Guston.

Unless otherwise stated, all images: © The Estate of Philip Guston. Courtesy Hauser & Wirth.