The Addison Gallery, located on the campus of Phillips Academy in Andover, MA, is free and open to the public. Plan your visit >
upcoming exhibitions
Our Mission
Home to a world-class collection of American art, the Addison Gallery, located on the campus of Phillips Academy in Andover, MA, presents an adventurous exhibition program, hosts a vital artist-in-residence program, and works collaboratively with students and faculty at the Academy and in neighboring communities. Through our ongoing query What is America?, the Addison seeks to engage with the history of American art and American experience—past, present, and future.
About Our Collection
Comprised of more than 25,000 works in all media—painting, sculpture, photography, drawings, prints, and decorative arts—from the 18th century to the present, the Addison Gallery’s collection of American art is one of the most important in the world.
The museum’s founding collection included major works by such prominent American artists as John Singleton Copley, Thomas Eakins, Winslow Homer, Maurice Prendergast, John Singer Sargent, John Twachtman, and James McNeill Whistler.
In the nine decades since, aggressive purchasing and generous gifts have added works by such artists as Mark Bradford, Alexander Calder, Stuart Davis, Arthur Dove, Walker Evans, Robert Frank, Marsden Hartley, Hans Hofmann, Edward Hopper, Kerry James Marshall, Eadweard Muybridge, Georgia O’Keeffe, Jackson Pollock, Charles Sheeler, Lorna Simpson, John Sloan, Jaune Quick-to-See Smith, Frank Stella, Kara Walker, and Stanley Whitney.
Lackluster weekend plans? Come to the Addison to see Americans in Paris: Artists Working in Postwar France, 1946-1962! We’re FREE and open to all!
These mediocre iPhone installation shots (I couldn’t wait to have professional shots taken before sharing, sue me) cannot convey the beauty and grandeur of this exhibition—organized by the @nyugrey and curated by @dbbalken and Lynn Gumpert—you’ll just have to see it for yourself.
Americans in Paris is open now through January 5th!
#americansinparis #americansabroad #expats #americanart #whatisamerica #addisongalleryofamericanart
Lackluster weekend plans? Come to the Addison to see Americans in Paris: Artists Working in Postwar France, 1946-1962! We’re FREE and open to all!
These mediocre iPhone installation shots (I couldn’t wait to have professional shots taken before sharing, sue me) cannot convey the beauty and grandeur of this exhibition—organized by the @nyugrey and curated by @dbbalken and Lynn Gumpert—you’ll just have to see it for yourself.
Americans in Paris is open now through January 5th!
#americansinparis #americansabroad #expats #americanart #whatisamerica #addisongalleryofamericanart
Brat summer is over (as is “demure” summer/fall) and we’re back! We’re phasing the opening of our major fall exhibitions this year so don’t be surprised if you see lots of activity (and maybe some hammering) going on in our first floor galleries for the next week or so. As of today, Americans in Paris: Artists Working in Postwar France, 1946-1962 (organized by @nyugrey) is open and looking beautiful! Kay WalkingStick / Hudson River School (organized by @nyhistory) will open on September 14th—more on that soon!
As always, we are completely FREE and open to everyone Tuesday through Saturday from 10 to 5 and Sunday from 1 to 5. Check us out!
#americansinparis #kaywalkingstick
Brat summer is over (as is “demure” summer/fall) and we’re back! We’re phasing the opening of our major fall exhibitions this year so don’t be surprised if you see lots of activity (and maybe some hammering) going on in our first floor galleries for the next week or so. As of today, Americans in Paris: Artists Working in Postwar France, 1946-1962 (organized by @nyugrey) is open and looking beautiful! Kay WalkingStick / Hudson River School (organized by @nyhistory) will open on September 14th—more on that soon!
As always, we are completely FREE and open to everyone Tuesday through Saturday from 10 to 5 and Sunday from 1 to 5. Check us out!
#americansinparis #kaywalkingstick
Dying to see more Americans in Paris now that the Olympics are over? We have you covered…Americans in Paris: Artists Working in Postwar France, 1946–1962 opens September 3rd right here at the Addison! Simone Biles not included.
Contrary to entrenched presumptions that Manhattan became the primary locus of art after World War II, Americans in Paris: Artists Working in Postwar France, 1946–1962 delves into the various circles of artists who made France their home during an era of intense geopolitical realignment. Bolstered by the GI Bill, many artists, such as Norman Bluhm, Ed Clark, Sam Francis, Al Held, Ellsworth Kelly, Kenneth Noland, and Jack Youngerman, along with lesser-known figures such as Robert Breer, Harold Cousins, and Shinkichi Tajiri, opted for a foreign rather than a domestic learning experience. Seasoned artists, such as Beauford Delaney, Claire Falkenstein, Carmen Herrera, Joan Mitchell, Kimber Smith, and Mark Tobey, like the GIs, were drawn to the storied modernist traditions that still flowed from this fabled City of Light.
Comprising some 135 artworks by approximately 70 artists, Americans in Paris investigates the academies where many of these artists studied, the spaces where their work was exhibited, the aesthetic discourses that animated their conversations, their interactions with European artists, and the overarching issue of what it meant to be an American abroad.
Organized by the @nyugrey and curated by Debra Bricker Balken (@dbbalken) with Lynn Gumpert, the exhibition is accompanied by a 300-page illustrated publication.
Join us for our fall opening reception from 4-6 on Saturday, September 21st!
#americansinparis
Dying to see more Americans in Paris now that the Olympics are over? We have you covered…Americans in Paris: Artists Working in Postwar France, 1946–1962 opens September 3rd right here at the Addison! Simone Biles not included.
Contrary to entrenched presumptions that Manhattan became the primary locus of art after World War II, Americans in Paris: Artists Working in Postwar France, 1946–1962 delves into the various circles of artists who made France their home during an era of intense geopolitical realignment. Bolstered by the GI Bill, many artists, such as Norman Bluhm, Ed Clark, Sam Francis, Al Held, Ellsworth Kelly, Kenneth Noland, and Jack Youngerman, along with lesser-known figures such as Robert Breer, Harold Cousins, and Shinkichi Tajiri, opted for a foreign rather than a domestic learning experience. Seasoned artists, such as Beauford Delaney, Claire Falkenstein, Carmen Herrera, Joan Mitchell, Kimber Smith, and Mark Tobey, like the GIs, were drawn to the storied modernist traditions that still flowed from this fabled City of Light.
Comprising some 135 artworks by approximately 70 artists, Americans in Paris investigates the academies where many of these artists studied, the spaces where their work was exhibited, the aesthetic discourses that animated their conversations, their interactions with European artists, and the overarching issue of what it meant to be an American abroad.
Organized by the @nyugrey and curated by Debra Bricker Balken (@dbbalken) with Lynn Gumpert, the exhibition is accompanied by a 300-page illustrated publication.
Join us for our fall opening reception from 4-6 on Saturday, September 21st!
#americansinparis
I will not make a joke about French pole vaulter Anthony Ammirati’s recent brush with internet infamy…and a crossbar. I will, however, note that a second Battle of the Bulge befell Western Europe this past Saturday at the Paris Olympics.
Eadweard Muybridge (1830-1904). Plate 165. Jumping; Pole Vaulting from Animal Locomotion, 1885. Collotype. Gift of the Edwin J. Beinecke Trust, 1984.6.39
#olympics #eadweardmuybridge #polevault #addisongalleryofamericanart
I will not make a joke about French pole vaulter Anthony Ammirati’s recent brush with internet infamy…and a crossbar. I will, however, note that a second Battle of the Bulge befell Western Europe this past Saturday at the Paris Olympics.
Eadweard Muybridge (1830-1904). Plate 165. Jumping; Pole Vaulting from Animal Locomotion, 1885. Collotype. Gift of the Edwin J. Beinecke Trust, 1984.6.39
#olympics #eadweardmuybridge #polevault #addisongalleryofamericanart
People over the age of 35 trying to figure out what “brat summer” means.
It would be so Julia for you to come see our shows before we close for reinstallation in August.
#winslowhomer #addisongalleryofamericanart #brat
People over the age of 35 trying to figure out what “brat summer” means.
It would be so Julia for you to come see our shows before we close for reinstallation in August.
#winslowhomer #addisongalleryofamericanart #brat
Looking for something to do tomorrow (Tuesday, July 23rd) at 3:00? Ever wonder why so many of the Addison’s treasures were given by an “anonymous donor?” Join us virtually for the final public program of the season—a virtual tour of Laying the Foundation: Exploring the Nucleus of the Addison’s Collection. All will be revealed!
Join Gordon Wilkins, Robert M. Walker Curator at the Addison, for a virtual tour and discussion of the exhibition exploring the eclectic mix of works that comprise the Addison’s founding collection, which reflects not just the best of what was available on the market at the time but also the specific tastes and predilections of those who contributed to its creation.
This program is free but registration is required—click the link in our bio.
All of our current exhibitions close on July 31st—get over here before it’s too late!
Winslow Homer (1836-1910). Casting, 1897. Watercolor and graphite on paper. Gift of anonymous donor, 1928.22
#addisongalleryofamericanart
Looking for something to do tomorrow (Tuesday, July 23rd) at 3:00? Ever wonder why so many of the Addison’s treasures were given by an “anonymous donor?” Join us virtually for the final public program of the season—a virtual tour of Laying the Foundation: Exploring the Nucleus of the Addison’s Collection. All will be revealed!
Join Gordon Wilkins, Robert M. Walker Curator at the Addison, for a virtual tour and discussion of the exhibition exploring the eclectic mix of works that comprise the Addison’s founding collection, which reflects not just the best of what was available on the market at the time but also the specific tastes and predilections of those who contributed to its creation.
This program is free but registration is required—click the link in our bio.
All of our current exhibitions close on July 31st—get over here before it’s too late!
Winslow Homer (1836-1910). Casting, 1897. Watercolor and graphite on paper. Gift of anonymous donor, 1928.22
#addisongalleryofamericanart
We can hardly believe it ourselves but you have just slightly over a month to see our current slate of exhibitions! Everything must close on July 31st!
We have A/C. We’re also free. We’re also only 20 miles north of Boston and not, as many seem to believe, in western Massachusetts.
📸: @kathytphotos
We can hardly believe it ourselves but you have just slightly over a month to see our current slate of exhibitions! Everything must close on July 31st!
We have A/C. We’re also free. We’re also only 20 miles north of Boston and not, as many seem to believe, in western Massachusetts.
📸: @kathytphotos
Coming soon! June Leaf: Shooting from the Heart.
The Addison Gallery of American Art, @phillipsacademy and the Allen Memorial Art Museum at @oberlincollege are co-organizing a major exhibition devoted to the artist June Leaf (born 1929), whose enigmatic, beguiling, and often irreverent work is both endlessly experimental and uncategorizable. Drawing from the artist’s vast archive along with loans from select private and institutional collections, June Leaf: Shooting from the Heart will consider the breadth of Leaf’s 75-year career. Arranged thematically, it will be the most comprehensive exhibition of the artist’s work in more than three decades. Leaf’s enchanting and provocative sculptures, both kinetic and stationary, paintings, and works on paper will be intermingled and placed in dynamic conversations across media, revealing the artist’s sustained engagement with such motifs and themes as theater and performance, the human drama, dance, gender, motion, urban life, mythology, and interpersonal relationships.
Accompanied by a publication, the exhibition will debut at the @addisongalleryofamericanart from March 15 through July 31, 2025 before traveling to the @nyugrey (September–December 2025) and the @allenartmuseum (January 27–May 24, 2026).
June Leaf (born 1929). Shooting from the Heart, 1980. Tin plates, rods, spring, and gears. 18 x 8 inches. Addison Gallery of American Art, Phillips Academy, museum purchase, 1995.62. Photograph by Robert Frank/@leaffrankfoundation
#juneleaf #shootingfromtheheart #addisongalleryofamericanart #phillipsacademy #allenmemorialartmuseum #oberlincollege
Coming soon! June Leaf: Shooting from the Heart.
The Addison Gallery of American Art, @phillipsacademy and the Allen Memorial Art Museum at @oberlincollege are co-organizing a major exhibition devoted to the artist June Leaf (born 1929), whose enigmatic, beguiling, and often irreverent work is both endlessly experimental and uncategorizable. Drawing from the artist’s vast archive along with loans from select private and institutional collections, June Leaf: Shooting from the Heart will consider the breadth of Leaf’s 75-year career. Arranged thematically, it will be the most comprehensive exhibition of the artist’s work in more than three decades. Leaf’s enchanting and provocative sculptures, both kinetic and stationary, paintings, and works on paper will be intermingled and placed in dynamic conversations across media, revealing the artist’s sustained engagement with such motifs and themes as theater and performance, the human drama, dance, gender, motion, urban life, mythology, and interpersonal relationships.
Accompanied by a publication, the exhibition will debut at the @addisongalleryofamericanart from March 15 through July 31, 2025 before traveling to the @nyugrey (September–December 2025) and the @allenartmuseum (January 27–May 24, 2026).
June Leaf (born 1929). Shooting from the Heart, 1980. Tin plates, rods, spring, and gears. 18 x 8 inches. Addison Gallery of American Art, Phillips Academy, museum purchase, 1995.62. Photograph by Robert Frank/@leaffrankfoundation
#juneleaf #shootingfromtheheart #addisongalleryofamericanart #phillipsacademy #allenmemorialartmuseum #oberlincollege
The American artist and theoretician Donald Judd was born on this day in Excelsior Springs, Missouri in 1928. The Addison is fortunate enough to hold two significant works by Judd in its permanent collection through the generosity of Frank Stella.
@kimkardashian, as you may recall, infamously claimed to display work by Judd (knock-off tables) in her 40,000-square-foot beige mansion/Scandinavian prison/monastery for millennials. Today, in honor of Judd’s birthday, we explore how the Addisons (Rae and Gallery of American Art) are connected to the Kardashians through the work of this minimalist master. Please follow the slides in order to fully ascertain the significance of this konspiracy.
Slide 1. We begin this sordid tale with the Addison’s Untitled, 1984, a wonderful example of work produced during Judd’s fruitful collaboration with the Swiss company Lehni AG. This work was lent to the Museum of Modern Art’s major 2020 Donald Judd survey exhibition.
Slide 2. October 14, 2020. Famed rocker chick @kourtneykardash (now Barker) and @addisonraee visit MoMA to see Judd. Kardashian posts this masked photograph of herself on her grid standing near a series of additional Judd sculptures from the same series as the Addison’s work with the caption “Art Barbie.”
Slide 3. The aforementioned Addison Rae, a TikTok star with millions of rabid teen followers, discovers the existence of the Addison Gallery of American Art after reading the wall text next to the Addison’s piece. Perhaps Kourtney drew her attention to it—we’ll never know. Rae posts this photograph to her story. Attempts to convince Addison Rae to be the Addison Gallery’s unpaid spokesperson remain unsuccessful.
Slide 4. Everything is connected. Follow the money. Wag the dog. Did this encounter set anything in motion? Probably not. Would Donald Judd have found this funny or interesting? Probably not. Will you? Probably not. Does this change art historical scholarship forever? Yes. Are we going to get sued now? Probably.
Donald Judd (1928-1994). Untitled, 1984. Enameled aluminum. Gift of Frank Stella (PA 1954), 1991.45. Image: Timothy Doyon © Judd Foundation
#donaldjudd #juddfoundation
The American artist and theoretician Donald Judd was born on this day in Excelsior Springs, Missouri in 1928. The Addison is fortunate enough to hold two significant works by Judd in its permanent collection through the generosity of Frank Stella.
@kimkardashian, as you may recall, infamously claimed to display work by Judd (knock-off tables) in her 40,000-square-foot beige mansion/Scandinavian prison/monastery for millennials. Today, in honor of Judd’s birthday, we explore how the Addisons (Rae and Gallery of American Art) are connected to the Kardashians through the work of this minimalist master. Please follow the slides in order to fully ascertain the significance of this konspiracy.
Slide 1. We begin this sordid tale with the Addison’s Untitled, 1984, a wonderful example of work produced during Judd’s fruitful collaboration with the Swiss company Lehni AG. This work was lent to the Museum of Modern Art’s major 2020 Donald Judd survey exhibition.
Slide 2. October 14, 2020. Famed rocker chick @kourtneykardash (now Barker) and @addisonraee visit MoMA to see Judd. Kardashian posts this masked photograph of herself on her grid standing near a series of additional Judd sculptures from the same series as the Addison’s work with the caption “Art Barbie.”
Slide 3. The aforementioned Addison Rae, a TikTok star with millions of rabid teen followers, discovers the existence of the Addison Gallery of American Art after reading the wall text next to the Addison’s piece. Perhaps Kourtney drew her attention to it—we’ll never know. Rae posts this photograph to her story. Attempts to convince Addison Rae to be the Addison Gallery’s unpaid spokesperson remain unsuccessful.
Slide 4. Everything is connected. Follow the money. Wag the dog. Did this encounter set anything in motion? Probably not. Would Donald Judd have found this funny or interesting? Probably not. Will you? Probably not. Does this change art historical scholarship forever? Yes. Are we going to get sued now? Probably.
Donald Judd (1928-1994). Untitled, 1984. Enameled aluminum. Gift of Frank Stella (PA 1954), 1991.45. Image: Timothy Doyon © Judd Foundation
#donaldjudd #juddfoundation
We’re thrilled to announce the acquisition of Market by George Tooker (PA 1938). This exceptional work was donated to the Addison by John P. Axelrod (PA 1964) with additional support provided in memory of the late John O’Reilly and Jim Tellin.
Market, an early masterwork, was executed shortly after the artist’s return from a six-month tour of Europe in 1949. Joined by Paul Cadmus, Tooker’s mentor and lover, the two artists journeyed throughout France, Italy, and England, visiting countless museums, monuments, and works in situ during their extended sojourn. Tooker’s firsthand, intimate experiences with early Renaissance masterworks had a profound impact on the burgeoning painter’s career and aesthetic trajectory. Arriving back in the United States with a slew of reproductions of key works encountered during his travels, Tooker set about digesting and assimilating the lessons of the Renaissance, creating Market as both a paean to Quattrocento masters and a forceful early manifestation of the artist’s singular, idiosyncratic style.
While Tooker appropriated aesthetic lessons from the past, the painting is decidedly contemporary—not simply due to the inclusion of a glittering skyscraper peeking through receding awnings. Tooker’s figures do not exist within a precisely proportioned, controlled classical exterior but, instead, occupy a bustling and sophisticatedly rendered open market, inspired by those he encountered near his Bleecker Street home in Greenwich Village. Market defamiliarizes the urban landscape, offering a claustrophobic vision of midcentury America, one that surfaces a pervasive sense of alienation and loneliness. Tooker’s figures appear lost in contemplation or simply disinterested, staring into space while they perform their prescribed societal roles—shopkeeper, matron, stockboy—like automata, the boisterous and convivial space of an open market distilled into a series of rote interactions.
George Tooker (1920-2011). Market, 1949. Egg tempera on gesso panel. 22 x 22 inches. Gift of John P. Axelrod (PA 1964) and partial museum purchase in memory of John O’Reilly and Jim Tellin, 2024.99
#georgetooker #addisongalleryofamericanart
We’re thrilled to announce the acquisition of Market by George Tooker (PA 1938). This exceptional work was donated to the Addison by John P. Axelrod (PA 1964) with additional support provided in memory of the late John O’Reilly and Jim Tellin.
Market, an early masterwork, was executed shortly after the artist’s return from a six-month tour of Europe in 1949. Joined by Paul Cadmus, Tooker’s mentor and lover, the two artists journeyed throughout France, Italy, and England, visiting countless museums, monuments, and works in situ during their extended sojourn. Tooker’s firsthand, intimate experiences with early Renaissance masterworks had a profound impact on the burgeoning painter’s career and aesthetic trajectory. Arriving back in the United States with a slew of reproductions of key works encountered during his travels, Tooker set about digesting and assimilating the lessons of the Renaissance, creating Market as both a paean to Quattrocento masters and a forceful early manifestation of the artist’s singular, idiosyncratic style.
While Tooker appropriated aesthetic lessons from the past, the painting is decidedly contemporary—not simply due to the inclusion of a glittering skyscraper peeking through receding awnings. Tooker’s figures do not exist within a precisely proportioned, controlled classical exterior but, instead, occupy a bustling and sophisticatedly rendered open market, inspired by those he encountered near his Bleecker Street home in Greenwich Village. Market defamiliarizes the urban landscape, offering a claustrophobic vision of midcentury America, one that surfaces a pervasive sense of alienation and loneliness. Tooker’s figures appear lost in contemplation or simply disinterested, staring into space while they perform their prescribed societal roles—shopkeeper, matron, stockboy—like automata, the boisterous and convivial space of an open market distilled into a series of rote interactions.
George Tooker (1920-2011). Market, 1949. Egg tempera on gesso panel. 22 x 22 inches. Gift of John P. Axelrod (PA 1964) and partial museum purchase in memory of John O’Reilly and Jim Tellin, 2024.99
#georgetooker #addisongalleryofamericanart
We continue to remember and celebrate Frank Stella’s indelible legacy today by highlighting just a few of his many extraordinarily generous gifts to the Addison’s permanent collection.
In 1991 Stella, remembering the impact of the Addison’s collection on him as a young artist and keen to expand the Addison’s offering of “immediate sources,” teamed up with then director Jock Reynolds to organize the Addison Art Drive, aimed at strengthening the museum’s holdings of contemporary art and ensuring that future students would be able to engage with the art of their time as well as that of the past. Kicking off an ambitious campaign to add significant works to the collection, Stella invited Reynolds to select works from his personal collection. A magnanimous and transformative gift, works by artists such as Jasper Johns, Donald Judd, Ellsworth Kelly, Ad Reinhardt, Kenneth Noland, Agnes Martin, John Chamberlain, and Stella himself not only gave the contemporary collection a tremendous boost, but remain important sources of inspiration to students and visitors today.
Frank Stella (1936-2024). East Broadway, 1958. Oil on canvas. 85 x 85 inches. Gift of the artist (PA 1954), 1980.14
Adolph Gottlieb (1903-1974). Untitled, c. 1953. Oil and enamel on composite board. 20 9/16 x 28 1/4 inches. Gift of Frank Stella (PA 1954), Addison Art Drive, 1991.43
Ellsworth Kelly (1923-2015). Green Red-Orange, 1974. Oil on canvas. 42 x 154 inches.
Gift of Frank Stella (PA 1954), Addison Art Drive, 1991.39
Jasper Johns (born 1930). Target, 1958. Sculpmetal and collage on canvas. 12 x 11 inches. Gift of Frank Stella (PA 1954), Addison Art Drive, 1991.44
Ad Reinhardt (1913-1967). Abstract Painting, Red, 1952. Acrylic on canvas. 50 x 20 inches. Gift of Frank Stella (PA 1954), Addison Art Drive, 1991.49
Donald Judd (1928-1994). To Susan Buckwalter, December 15, 1965. Galvanized iron, aluminum, and lacquer. 30 x 141 inches. Gift of Frank Stella (PA 1954), 1993.45
Kenneth Noland (1924-2010). Crows Over the Cornfield, 1961. 37 5/8 x 37 5/8 inches. Oil on canvas. Gift of Frank Stella (PA 1954), Addison Art Drive, 1991.47
#frankstella
We continue to remember and celebrate Frank Stella’s indelible legacy today by highlighting just a few of his many extraordinarily generous gifts to the Addison’s permanent collection.
In 1991 Stella, remembering the impact of the Addison’s collection on him as a young artist and keen to expand the Addison’s offering of “immediate sources,” teamed up with then director Jock Reynolds to organize the Addison Art Drive, aimed at strengthening the museum’s holdings of contemporary art and ensuring that future students would be able to engage with the art of their time as well as that of the past. Kicking off an ambitious campaign to add significant works to the collection, Stella invited Reynolds to select works from his personal collection. A magnanimous and transformative gift, works by artists such as Jasper Johns, Donald Judd, Ellsworth Kelly, Ad Reinhardt, Kenneth Noland, Agnes Martin, John Chamberlain, and Stella himself not only gave the contemporary collection a tremendous boost, but remain important sources of inspiration to students and visitors today.
Frank Stella (1936-2024). East Broadway, 1958. Oil on canvas. 85 x 85 inches. Gift of the artist (PA 1954), 1980.14
Adolph Gottlieb (1903-1974). Untitled, c. 1953. Oil and enamel on composite board. 20 9/16 x 28 1/4 inches. Gift of Frank Stella (PA 1954), Addison Art Drive, 1991.43
Ellsworth Kelly (1923-2015). Green Red-Orange, 1974. Oil on canvas. 42 x 154 inches.
Gift of Frank Stella (PA 1954), Addison Art Drive, 1991.39
Jasper Johns (born 1930). Target, 1958. Sculpmetal and collage on canvas. 12 x 11 inches. Gift of Frank Stella (PA 1954), Addison Art Drive, 1991.44
Ad Reinhardt (1913-1967). Abstract Painting, Red, 1952. Acrylic on canvas. 50 x 20 inches. Gift of Frank Stella (PA 1954), Addison Art Drive, 1991.49
Donald Judd (1928-1994). To Susan Buckwalter, December 15, 1965. Galvanized iron, aluminum, and lacquer. 30 x 141 inches. Gift of Frank Stella (PA 1954), 1993.45
Kenneth Noland (1924-2010). Crows Over the Cornfield, 1961. 37 5/8 x 37 5/8 inches. Oil on canvas. Gift of Frank Stella (PA 1954), Addison Art Drive, 1991.47
#frankstella
One of the most impactful and innovative artists of our time, Frank Stella (1936-2024) consistently challenged the boundaries of painting and the potential of abstraction. While there is an undeniable thread of logic running from one body of work to the next, the steadfast and dramatic evolution of his art from early disciplined minimalist paintings to the later dynamic, baroque—even explosive—compositions attest to the artist’s extraordinary expansiveness. As the late art historian Bill Agee wrote, Stella offered “one surprise after another that [has] always pointed to new directions and possibilities.”
The Addison is fortunate to have had a long and meaningful relationship with Stella, as an alum (PA 1954), exhibiting artist, artist-in-residence, donor, and board member. The Addison’s collection includes 106 objects (paintings, sculpture, prints, and works on paper) by Stella.
Stella’s experience at @phillipsacademy was crucial to his formation as an artist. It was here that he began to seriously pursue art, studying along with classmates Carl Andre and Hollis Frampton, under the guidance of faulty members Patrick Morgan, and Gordon (Diz) Bensley. As he took art classes in the basement of the museum and learned from the collections in its galleries, Stella found great inspiration in the Addison’s environment. Stella would note in 1982 that the art program at Phillips Academy “would never have been the same without the Addison Gallery…Art education must be a felt presence; you must observe real things. It just doesn’t work to see everything secondhand, through slides and photographs.”
Later he added, “If a young person walks through a gallery of American painting in the 1950 and confronts the work of Copley, Inness, Sargent, Eakins, Remington, Homer, Dove, Hartley, Hofmann, Pollock, and Kline he will want to paint like Hofmann, Pollock, and Kline, admiring Hartley and Dove for the proximity to the former, and acknowledging the rest for their accomplishment and effort in facing the task of art. Looking at what happened and is happening, one has to want to do what is happening. Immediate sources count for a lot.”
#frankstella #phillipsacademy
One of the most impactful and innovative artists of our time, Frank Stella (1936-2024) consistently challenged the boundaries of painting and the potential of abstraction. While there is an undeniable thread of logic running from one body of work to the next, the steadfast and dramatic evolution of his art from early disciplined minimalist paintings to the later dynamic, baroque—even explosive—compositions attest to the artist’s extraordinary expansiveness. As the late art historian Bill Agee wrote, Stella offered “one surprise after another that [has] always pointed to new directions and possibilities.”
The Addison is fortunate to have had a long and meaningful relationship with Stella, as an alum (PA 1954), exhibiting artist, artist-in-residence, donor, and board member. The Addison’s collection includes 106 objects (paintings, sculpture, prints, and works on paper) by Stella.
Stella’s experience at @phillipsacademy was crucial to his formation as an artist. It was here that he began to seriously pursue art, studying along with classmates Carl Andre and Hollis Frampton, under the guidance of faulty members Patrick Morgan, and Gordon (Diz) Bensley. As he took art classes in the basement of the museum and learned from the collections in its galleries, Stella found great inspiration in the Addison’s environment. Stella would note in 1982 that the art program at Phillips Academy “would never have been the same without the Addison Gallery…Art education must be a felt presence; you must observe real things. It just doesn’t work to see everything secondhand, through slides and photographs.”
Later he added, “If a young person walks through a gallery of American painting in the 1950 and confronts the work of Copley, Inness, Sargent, Eakins, Remington, Homer, Dove, Hartley, Hofmann, Pollock, and Kline he will want to paint like Hofmann, Pollock, and Kline, admiring Hartley and Dove for the proximity to the former, and acknowledging the rest for their accomplishment and effort in facing the task of art. Looking at what happened and is happening, one has to want to do what is happening. Immediate sources count for a lot.”
#frankstella #phillipsacademy
