Kenneth Noland's 1960s stripe paintings at Leslie Feely Fine Art reveal color mastery beyond MoMA's 'Color Chart'

From May 8 to June 27, 2008, Leslie Feely Fine Art showcased Kenneth Noland's horizontal stripe paintings created during the mid- to late-1960s. This exhibition predominantly highlighted lighter pieces from the series, such as 'Shade' (1969), which features a palette of chartreuse, yellow, apple green, deep red, rust, magenta, and bark, and 'Via Shimmer' (1968), showcasing seven or eight tones of ecru, beige, pale mauve, and the lightest blue. Noland emphasized the meticulous paint mixing and varying viscosity he employed, contrasting with the commercial paint methods highlighted in MoMA's 'Color Chart: Reinventing Color, 1950 to Today.' His technique of using masking tape and rollers resulted in sharply defined color bands, aligning with the post-painterly aesthetics of the 1960s, while raw canvas sections introduced textural contrast. Noland's work was also part of MoMA's 1965 op art exhibition 'The Responsive Eye.' The horizontal orientation of his paintings suggests landscapes, with titles like 'Via Light' and 'Via Shimmer' alluding to Roman roads and air mail stickers, evoking themes of travel and movement. The overall composition and color interplay convey a sense of harmony and tranquility.