In conjunction with its current exhibit “Painting Explosion: 1958-1963,” the Blanton is showing this classic film by Emil de Antonio, which has always been regarded as one of the best films about the art and practice of painting. A friend of many of the artists whose work is on display in this film, de Antonio interviews a couple dozen artists, critics, and gallery owners active in the post-war New York art scene. In the process, de Antonio illuminates much of the theory and practice behind Abstract Expressionism. Painters currently on view in the Blanton exhibit – among them Helen Frankenthaler, Hans Hofmann, Jasper Johns, and Kenneth Noland – are also interviewed in the movie. Other interviewees include Clement Greenburg, Robert Motherwell, Leo Castelli, Andy Warhol, Willem de Kooning, Frank Stella, and more.
This article appears in January 24 • 2003.