Paul Jenkins
Phenomena Open Light, 1973
Paul Jenkins was a pioneer of the Abstract Expressionist movement, although at times he would refer …
An important figure in the New York School, Paul Jenkins contributed to the development of abstract expressionism in New York and abroad with his intuitive, chance-based approach to painting. Working first with oil paints and later acrylic, Jenkins poured paint directly on the canvas, allowing it to drip, bleed, and pool, as well as manipulating it with an ivory knife. Jenkins’s diaphanous streaks and gentle, fluid fields of color positioned him as an important figure in abstract expressionism, and he often exhibited in the same venues as Jackson Pollock and Willem de Kooning—artists who shared his instinctual working method. “I try to paint like a crapshooter throwing dice, utilizing past experience and my knowledge of the odds. It’s a big gamble, and that’s why I love it,” the artist once said.
Paul Jenkins was a pioneer of the Abstract Expressionist movement, although at times he would refer to himself as an "Abstract Phenomenist". He would often preface the title his of works with the word Phenomena, followed by a phrase that described the work. This work is titled "Phenomena Open …
An important figure in the New York School, Paul Jenkins contributed to the development of abstract expressionism in New York and abroad with his intuitive, chance-based approach to painting. Working first with oil paints and later acrylic, Jenkins poured paint directly on the canvas, allowing it to drip, bleed, and pool, as well as manipulating it with an ivory knife. Jenkins’s diaphanous streaks and gentle, fluid fields of color positioned him as an important figure in abstract expressionism, and he often exhibited in the same venues as Jackson Pollock and Willem de Kooning—artists who shared his instinctual working method. “I try to paint like a crapshooter throwing dice, utilizing past experience and my knowledge of the odds. It’s a big gamble, and that’s why I love it,” the artist once said.
