This morning on Modern Art Notes, I detail a key part of the relationship between Clyfford Still and Barnett Newman. Still famously claimed that Newman stole his “line of force,” the compositionally dominant vertical that Newman called the “zip” and claimed as his own.
So how did the line of force or the zip happen? Does it matter who was first? And more importantly, what can we learn about the development of American abstract art from this story?
The first guest on this week’s Modern Art Notes Podcast is top abstract expressionism scholar David Anfam, who among other responsibilities is the adjunct curator of the new Clyfford Still Museum. Download this week’s MAN Podcast to your PC/mobile device. Subscribe to The Modern Art Notes Podcast via iTunes or RSS. See images of artworks discussed on the program.
Image top: Clyfford Still, PH-247, 1951. Collection of the Clyfford Still Museum, Denver. Image below: Barnett Newman, Cathedra, 1951. Collection of the Stedelijk Museum, Amsterdam.
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