Albright-Knox Museum's Extreme Abstraction Exhibition Revisits Abstract Art Through Contemporary Dialogues
From July 15 to October 2, 2005, the Albright-Knox Art Gallery in Buffalo, New York, showcased an exhibition titled Extreme Abstraction, curated by Louis Grachos. This display included more than 150 artworks, merging historical abstract creations with modern pieces, such as video and digital art. Approximately 60% of the collection was abstract, featuring renowned artists like Kazimir Malevich, Alexander Rodchenko, Piet Mondrian, Jackson Pollock, Arshile Gorky, Mark Rothko, Morris Louis, Kenneth Noland, Donald Judd, Dan Flavin, Sol LeWitt, Polly Apfelbaum, and Lynda Benglis. The exhibition emphasized feminist viewpoints and related to Grachos's earlier 1999 show at SITE Santa Fe, delving into themes of materiality and craft while illustrating the evolution of abstraction influenced by Post-Modernism.
Key facts
- Exhibition Extreme Abstraction ran July 15 – October 2, 2005 at Albright-Knox Art Gallery
- Featured over 150 works juxtaposing historical and contemporary abstract art
- Albright-Knox's collection is approximately 60% abstract, dating to early 20th century
- Director Louis Grachos curated, connecting to his earlier 1999 SITE Santa Fe exhibition Postmark
- Included artists from Malevich to Pollock to contemporary figures like Polly Apfelbaum
- Highlighted feminist works by Apfelbaum, Linda Besemer, and Lynda Benglis
- Explored material experiments beyond painting including video and floor pieces
- Positioned abstraction as evolving through Post-Modern assimilation rather than declining
Entities
Artists
- Jackson Pollock
- Arshile Gorky
- Clifford Still
- Mark Rothko
- Franz Kline
- Willem de Kooning
- Hans Hofmann
- Ad Reinhardt
- Morris Louis
- Kenneth Noland
- Donald Judd
- Dan Flavin
- Sol LeWitt
- Ellsworth Kelly
- Agnes Martin
- Barnett Newman
- Robert Ryman
- Brice Marden
- Richard Serra
- Eva Hesse
- Lynda Benglis
- Craig Kauffman
- Robert Irwin
- Polly Apfelbaum
- Linda Besemer
- John Armleder
- Jennifer Steinkamp
- Leo Villareal
- David Reed
- Liz Larner
- Adam Fuss
- Gregory Kucera
- Jeremy Blake
- Florence Pierce
- Salvador Dalí
- Kazimir Malevich
- Alexander Rodchenko
- Piet Mondrian
Institutions
- Albright-Knox Art Gallery
- SITE Santa Fe
Locations
- Buffalo
- New York
- United States
- Santa Fe