MoMA's Abstract Expressionism Exhibition Reveals Complex Museum History and Marginalized Artists

From October 3, 2010, to April 25, 2011, the Museum of Modern Art in New York hosted 'Abstract Expressionist New York: The Big Picture,' showcasing pieces from its own collection. Featured artists included Jackson Pollock, Willem de Kooning, and Mark Rothko, along with some lesser-known figures. The exhibition emphasized the strained relationship between MoMA and the Abstract Expressionist movement, as critic Clement Greenberg pointed out in 1949 the museum's insufficient backing. Key artworks comprised Pollock's The She-Wolf and One: Number 31, 1950, Sam Francis's Big Red, and Joan Mitchell's Ladybug. The accompanying catalogue explored the movement's rise amid postwar challenges, shaped by European modernism and figures like Mondrian, while also comparing it to the evolution of Islamic art from Greco-Roman influences.