“The Guggenheim Museum presents Josef Albers in Mexico, an exhibition illuminating the relationship between the forms and design of pre-Columbian monuments and the art of Josef Albers (b. 1888, Bottrop, Germany; d. 1976, New Haven). The presentation features a selection of rarely shown early paintings, iconic canvases from Albers’s Homage to the Square and Variant/Adobe series, and works on paper. The exhibition also includes a rich selection of photographs and photocollages, many of which have never before been on view and were created by Albers in response to frequent visits to Mexican archaeological sites beginning in the 1930s. With letters, studies, and unseen personal photographs alongside works drawn from the collections of Guggenheim Museum and the Josef and Anni Albers Foundation, Josef Albers in Mexico presents an opportunity to learn about the least known aspect of his practice, photography, offering new perspective on his most celebrated abstract works.” — Guggenheim Museum
Josef Albers. Prismatic II, 1936. Oil on wood composition panel, 45.7 × 48.3 cm. The Josef and Anni Albers Foundation © 2017 The Josef and Anni Albers Foundation/Artists Rights Society (ARS), New York
Josef Albers. Grand Pyramid, Tenayuca, 1937. Untitled (Great Pyramid, Tenayuca, Mexico). Ohne Titel (Grosse Pyramide, Tenayuca, Mexiko). Gelatin silver print image: 7.8 x 11 cm; sheet: 8.4 x 11.6 cm. Solomon R. Guggenheim Museum, New York, Gift, The Josef and Anni Albers Foundation, 1996 © 2017 The Josef and Anni Albers Foundation/Artists Rights Society (ARS), New York
Josef Albers. Mitla, 1956. Gelatin silver prints and postcards, mounted to paperboard, 20.3 × 30.5 cm. The Josef and Anni Albers Foundation © 2017 The Josef and Anni Albers Foundation/Artists Rights Society (ARS), New York
Josef Albers. To Mitla, 1940. Oil on Masonite, 53.3 × 71.1 cm. The Josef and Anni Albers Foundation © 2017 The Josef and Anni Albers Foundation/Artists Rights Society (ARS), New York
Josef Albers. Study for Sanctuary, ca. 1941–42. Ink on paper, 43.2 × 55.9 cm. The Josef and Anni Albers Foundation © 2017 The Josef and Anni Albers Foundation/Artists Rights Society (ARS), New York
Josef Albers. Variant/Adobe, Orange Front, 1948–58. Oil on Masonite, 23 11/12 x 27 inches (59.6 x 68.5 cm). The Solomon R. Guggenheim Foundation, Gift, The Josef and Anni Albers Foundation in honor of Philip Rylands for his continued commitment to the Peggy Guggenheim Collection, 1997 97.4555
Josef Albers. Study for Homage to the Square: Consent, 1971. Oil on Masonite, 40.3 × 40.2 cm. Solomon R. Guggenheim Museum, New York, Gift, The Josef Albers Foundation, Inc., 1991 © 2017 The Josef and Anni Albers Foundation/Artists Rights Society (ARS), New York
Josef Albers. Governor’s Palace, Uxmal, 1952. Gelatin silver print image: 11.6 x 17 cm; sheet: 12.7 x 18.1 cm. Solomon R. Guggenheim Museum, New York, Gift, The Josef and Anni Albers Foundation, 1996 © 2017 The Josef and Anni Albers Foundation/Artists Rights Society (ARS), New York
Josef Albers. Detail of stonework, Mitla, ca. 1937. Gelatin silver print, 24.7 × 17.7 cm. The Josef and Anni Albers Foundation © 2017 The Josef and Anni Albers Foundation/Artists Rights Society (ARS), New York
Josef Albers (1888-1976). Josef Albers, Mitla, 1935-39. Gelatin silver print, 8.5 × 12.1 cm. The Josef and Anni Albers Foundation © 2017 The Josef and Anni Albers Foundation/Artists Rights Society (ARS), New York
Josef Albers in Mexico is organized by Lauren Hinkson, Associate Curator, Collections, Solomon R. Guggenheim Museum.
Images courtesy Guggenheim Museum.