Untitled

Untitled

Morris LouisWW-1949-M031759
1949·Ink on paper·18 5/8 x 23 5/8" (47.5 x 60.2 cm)

Catalogue

Year
1949
Dimensions
18 5/8 x 23 5/8" (47.5 x 60.2 cm)

Artist

Morris Louis
Morris Louis

Painting

Morris Louis was an American abstract painter who pioneered the technique of pouring and staining diluted acrylic paint directly onto unprimed canvas, creating luminous veils of color that seemed to float within the weave itself. Working in Washington, D.C., he developed his signature approach in the 1950s, moving away from gestural abstraction toward a practice centered on the optical properties of pigment and ground. His paintings, often organized into series such as the Veils and Florals, eschew both representation and compositional hierarchy, instead treating color saturation and transparency as primary formal concerns. Louis died in 1962 at age fifty, his influence on color field painting and subsequent abstract practices secured despite his brief career.

Baltimore, United States

Full artist profile →

More

More by Morris Louis

View all →
Partition

Partition

1962 · Acrylic paint on canvas

WW-1962-217819
Purple Fill

Purple Fill

1962 · Synthetic polymer paint on canvas

WW-1962-M068532
Alpha-Phi

Alpha-Phi

1961 · Acrylic paint on canvas

WW-1961-218032
Beta Lambda

Beta Lambda

1961 · Synthetic polymer paint on canvas

WW-1961-M069242
Phi

Phi

1960 · Acrylic paint on canvas

WW-1960-228370
VAV

VAV

1960 · Acrylic paint on canvas

WW-1960-218033

Record

Verified by WattsOS
Year
1949
Dimensions
18 5/8 x 23 5/8" (47.5 x 60.2 cm)
Watts ID
WW-1949-M031759

Source

Source
moma
Status
verified

Artist

Morris Louis

Morris Louis

Painting

View artist profile →