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1/2 Blue-Gray Curved Area (Central Section)
Artist
Robert Mangold
(American, born 1937)
Date1967
MediumOil on Masonite
DimensionsOverall: 72 × 72 in. (182.88 × 182.88 cm)
Credit LineCollection of the Modern Art Museum of Fort Worth, Museum purchase, The Friends of Art Endowment Fund
Object number2003.9
Status
On viewSignedsigned on side on strainer bars
Copyright© 2020 Robert Mangold / Artists Rights Society (ARS), New York
Category
Label TextRobert Mangold is one of the few painters accepted into the predominantly sculpture/object-focused Minimalist camp of the 1960s and 1970s. Like much of his work from this time, 1/2 Blue-Gray Curved Area (Central Section) can be viewed as an example of Minimalist art and, at the same time, an abstract, tongue-in-cheek interpretation of Pop art. Its idiosyncratic shape against the white wall presents a forceful, self-contained quality, while the seam in the center and the curve along the lower edge suggest that what is not there is equally important. Mangold’s work explores whether something can stand as a contained, holistic image while still seeming to be part of something else.
1/2 Blue-Gray Curved Area (Central Section) is made of standard-sized building materials. The sections underscore the fact that the painting is an object, keeping the viewer’s eyes on the surface and preventing the perception of an “infinite” monochrome space. In addition to his unique investigations into the structure of painting, Mangold chose colors that would not override structure by becoming emotional. Gentle, resonant colors like paper bag brown and file cabinet gray, applied in a single matte layer, enhance the line and shape of the work. The generic, straightforward shades deal with color like Pop art does with found, mass-produced images.
1/2 Blue-Gray Curved Area (Central Section) is made of standard-sized building materials. The sections underscore the fact that the painting is an object, keeping the viewer’s eyes on the surface and preventing the perception of an “infinite” monochrome space. In addition to his unique investigations into the structure of painting, Mangold chose colors that would not override structure by becoming emotional. Gentle, resonant colors like paper bag brown and file cabinet gray, applied in a single matte layer, enhance the line and shape of the work. The generic, straightforward shades deal with color like Pop art does with found, mass-produced images.