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Washington University in St. Louis
Sam Fox School of Design & Visual Arts

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Richard Pousette-Dart

Blue Presence

1958

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One of the original artists associated with Abstract Expressionism in the 1940s, Richard Pousette-Dart explored primitive archetypes, using a combination of abstract shapes and symbolic imagery to express ideas about universal and essential human myths and truths. By the late 1950s he turned from the use of totemic forms and pictographic symbols inspired by the art of ancient African, pre-Columbian, and Native American cultures to render in a more purely abstract manner what he referred to as “presences.” These often appear as vaguely suggestive spiritual or human figures emerging from richly layered, shimmering fields of paint, inspired by Byzantine and medieval art. In "Blue Presence" a dense yet iridescent tapestry of green, blue, and white pigment has been built up through multiple applications of paint as well as by scraping or rubbing away. The elliptical shape that appears in the center of the painting is mysterious yet allusive; the curvilinear lines that radiate outward from it toward the top of the painting suggest a winged figure. Devoted to art as a means of accessing the spiritual and the transcendent through universal forms and themes, Pousette-Dart shared the belief of many of his contemporaries that the alienation of modern man could be redeemed through transcendental abstraction. [Exhibition label, 2015]

  • Artist Richard Pousette-Dart (American, 1916–1992)
  • Title Blue Presence
  • Date 1958
  • Medium Oil on canvas
  • Dimensions framed | 61 3/4 x 43 1/4 in.
  • Credit line Gift of Mrs. James W. Singer, Jr., 1961
  • Object number WU 3921

From Picasso to Fontana: Collecting Modern and Postwar Art in the Eisendrath Years, 1960–1968
Mildred Lane Kemper Art Museum, Washington University in St. Louis, 01/23/2015 - 04/19/2015

Richard Pousette-Dart: Presences
Mildred Lane Kemper Art Museum, Washington University in St. Louis, 10/05/1969 - 10/24/1969

A Galaxy of Treasures from St. Louis Collections
Saint Louis Art Museum, 01/18/1961 - 02/13/1961

1961
Thomas Singer

This artwork record may be incomplete or need refinement. Our staff actively researches the collection and revises records when new information is available. If you have questions or comments about this record, please contact us.

Related Content

go to A Galaxy of Treasures from St. Louis Collections page
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Exhibitions

A Galaxy of Treasures from St. Louis Collections

January 18, 1961–February 13, 1961
go to Richard Pousette-Dart: Presences page
no image
Exhibitions

Richard Pousette-Dart: Presences

October 05, 1969–October 24, 1969
go to From Picasso to Fontana: Collecting Modern and Postwar Art in the Eisendrath Years, 1960–1968 page
no image
Exhibitions

From Picasso to Fontana: Collecting Modern and Postwar Art in the Eisendrath Years, 1960–1968

January 23, 2015–April 19, 2015

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