Leila Heller Gallery's 2013 Exhibition Bridges Calligraphy, Graffiti, and Gestural Painting
From September 5 to October 5, 2013, the Leila Heller Gallery in New York City hosted 'Calligraffiti: 1984/2013,' which examined the relationship between text and visual art. Among the showcased artists were eL Seed with his 2013 piece 'This is just a phrase in Arabic,' Mehdi Qotbi, Keith Haring, Rammellzee's 1984 work 'Decision of Sigma War,' and LA2's 'Fire 911' from 2013. The exhibition also featured Abstract Expressionist pieces like Franz Kline's 'Untitled' (1953) and Pat Steir's 'Untitled' (2004). It drew on Jeffrey Deitch's 1984 observations about calligraphy’s role in modernism and Frank Stella's 1986 'Working Space,' while Oleg Grabar's 1989 lectures underscored the importance of writing in Islamic culture. The objective was to blur the lines between graffiti, street art, and museum art.
Key facts
- Exhibition dates: September 5 to October 5, 2013
- Location: Leila Heller Gallery at 568 West 25th Street, New York City
- Featured artists include eL Seed, Mehdi Qotbi, Keith Haring, Rammellzee, LA2 (Angel Ortiz), Franz Kline, Bill Jensen, Pat Steir, Pierre Soulages, Hans Hartung, and Rob Wynne
- Explores connections between Islamic calligraphy, New York graffiti, and gestural painting
- Jeffrey Deitch argued in 1984 that calligraphy is crucial to modernism
- Frank Stella's 1986 manifesto 'Working Space' derived from graffiti
- Oleg Grabar discussed writing's role in Islamic culture in 1989 lectures
- Exhibition challenges distinctions between street art and museum art
Entities
Artists
- eL Seed
- Mehdi Qotbi
- Keith Haring
- Rammellzee
- LA2 (Angel Ortiz)
- Franz Kline
- Bill Jensen
- Pat Steir
- Pierre Soulages
- Hans Hartung
- Rob Wynne
- Jackson Pollock
- Cy Twombly
- Frank Stella
- Camille Pissarro
- Joachim Pissarro
- Oleg Grabar
Institutions
- Leila Heller Gallery
- Word & Image
- A. W. Mellon lectures
Locations
- New York City
- United States
- Tunisia
- France