Betty Parsons
Encyclopedia
Betty Parsons, born Betty Bierne Pierson, (January 31, 1900 – July 23, 1982) was an American artist and art dealer known for her early promotion of Abstract Expressionism
. She was known as "the den mother of Abstract Expressionism"
In 1946 she opened the Betty Parsons Gallery, which was located at 15 E. 57th Street in Manhattan, sharing the fourth floor with the Sidney Janis Gallery
and which specialized in Abstract Expressionism. She showed work by Barnett Newman
, William Congdon
, Jackson Pollock
, Clyfford Still
, Theodoros Stamos
, Ellsworth Kelly
, Mark Rothko
, Forrest Bess
, Michael Loew
, Lyman Kipp
and Robert Rauschenberg
among others. Helen Frankenthaler
, the painter, who met Parsons in 1950, said: "Betty and her gallery helped construct the center of the art world. She was one of the last of her breed." Many of the Abstract Expressionist artists she launched left her gallery for more commercial galleries. Art critic
, B. H. Friedman: "She was resentful. She had struggled so long to get them established, and other dealers capitalized on her efforts."
Her other artists include Agnes Martin
, Richard Pousette-Dart
, Walter Tandy Murch
, Leon Polk Smith
, Richard Tuttle
, Mino Argento
and Oliver Steindecker (who was Mark Rothko's last assistant) among others. She ran the gallery until her death in 1982.
Betty Parsons was also a painter. Her work is held in the collection of the Smithsonian American Art Museum
and the National Museum of Women in the Arts
, her personal papers and those from her gallery are held at the Archives of American Art
.
Archives of American Art
Abstract expressionism
Abstract expressionism was an American post–World War II art movement. It was the first specifically American movement to achieve worldwide influence and put New York City at the center of the western art world, a role formerly filled by Paris...
. She was known as "the den mother of Abstract Expressionism"
In 1946 she opened the Betty Parsons Gallery, which was located at 15 E. 57th Street in Manhattan, sharing the fourth floor with the Sidney Janis Gallery
Sidney Janis
Sidney Janis was a wealthy clothing manufacturer and art collector who opened an art gallery in New York in 1948. His gallery quickly gained prominence, for he not only exhibited the work of most of the emerging leaders of Abstract Expressionism, but also that of such important European artists as...
and which specialized in Abstract Expressionism. She showed work by Barnett Newman
Barnett Newman
Barnett Newman was an American artist. He is seen as one of the major figures in abstract expressionism and one of the foremost of the color field painters.-Early life:...
, William Congdon
William Congdon
William Grosvenor Congdon gained notoriety as an artist in New York City in the 1940s, but lived most of his life in Europe....
, Jackson Pollock
Jackson Pollock
Paul Jackson Pollock , known as Jackson Pollock, was an influential American painter and a major figure in the abstract expressionist movement. During his lifetime, Pollock enjoyed considerable fame and notoriety. He was regarded as a mostly reclusive artist. He had a volatile personality, and...
, Clyfford Still
Clyfford Still
Clyfford Still was an American painter, and one of the leading figures of Abstract Expressionism.-Biography:...
, Theodoros Stamos
Theodoros Stamos
Theodoros Stamos , was a Greek American artist. He is one of the youngest painters of the original group of abstract expressionist painters , which included Jackson Pollock, Willem de Kooning and Mark Rothko...
, Ellsworth Kelly
Ellsworth Kelly
Ellsworth Kelly is an American painter and sculptor associated with Hard-edge painting, Color Field painting and the Minimalist school. His works demonstrate unassuming techniques emphasizing the simplicity of form found similar to the work of John McLaughlin. Kelly often employs bright colors to...
, Mark Rothko
Mark Rothko
Mark Rothko, born Marcus Rothkowitz , was a Russian-born American painter. He is classified as an abstract expressionist, although he himself rejected this label, and even resisted classification as an "abstract painter".- Childhood :Mark Rothko was born in Dvinsk, Vitebsk Province, Russian...
, Forrest Bess
Forrest Bess
Forrest Bess Painter, fisherman, visionary, eccentric - Forrest Bess was one of the most original American artists of his generation. Born in Bay City, Texas, Bess picked up his love of art from his mother. His father worked in the oil fields and ran a bait fishing camp of the Texas coast in...
, Michael Loew
Michael Loew
Michael Loew was an American Abstract Expressionist artist who was born in New York City.In the late 1920s, Loew studied at the Art Students League with the Ashcan School and was a recipient of a Sadie A. May Fellowship which allowed Loew to continue his studies in France...
, Lyman Kipp
Lyman Kipp
Lyman Kipp is a sculptor and painter who creates pieces that are composed of strong vertical and horizontal objects and are often painted in bold primary colors recalling arrangements by De Stijl Constructivists...
and Robert Rauschenberg
Robert Rauschenberg
Robert Rauschenberg was an American artist who came to prominence in the 1950s transition from Abstract Expressionism to Pop Art. Rauschenberg is well-known for his "Combines" of the 1950s, in which non-traditional materials and objects were employed in innovative combinations...
among others. Helen Frankenthaler
Helen Frankenthaler
Helen Frankenthaler is an American abstract expressionist painter. She is a major contributor to the history of postwar American painting. Having exhibited her work in six decades she has spanned several generations of abstract painters while continuing to produce vital and ever-changing new work...
, the painter, who met Parsons in 1950, said: "Betty and her gallery helped construct the center of the art world. She was one of the last of her breed." Many of the Abstract Expressionist artists she launched left her gallery for more commercial galleries. Art critic
Art critic
An art critic is a person who specializes in evaluating art. Their written critiques, or reviews, are published in newspapers, magazines, books and on web sites...
, B. H. Friedman: "She was resentful. She had struggled so long to get them established, and other dealers capitalized on her efforts."
Her other artists include Agnes Martin
Agnes Martin
Agnes Bernice Martin was an American abstract painter, often referred to as a minimalist; Martin considered herself an abstract expressionist.She won a National Medal of Arts from the National Endowment for the Arts in 1998....
, Richard Pousette-Dart
Richard Pousette-Dart
Richard Pousette-Dart was an American Abstract Expressionist painter.-Biography:He was born in Saint Paul, Minnesota and grew up in Valhalla, New York. Although Richard never attended art school, his father, Nathaniel J. Pousette-Dart, was a painter and writer on art. He moved to Manhattan in 1937...
, Walter Tandy Murch
Walter Tandy Murch
Walter Tandy Murch was a painter whose still life paintings of machine parts, brick fragments, clocks, broken dolls, hovering light bulbs and glowing lemons are an unusual combination of realism and abstraction...
, Leon Polk Smith
Leon Polk Smith
Leon Polk Smith was an American painter. His geometrically oriented abstract paintings were influenced by Piet Mondrian and his style has been associated with the Hard-edge school, of which he is considered one of the founders....
, Richard Tuttle
Richard Tuttle
Richard Dean Tuttle is an American postminimalist artist known for his small, subtle, intimate works. His art makes use of scale and line.- Biography :...
, Mino Argento
Mino Argento
Mino Argento is an Italian artist, whose works comprise abstract paintings on canvas and paper.-Life and work:Mino Argento was born in Rome, Italy in 1927. He worked in architecture as a young man...
and Oliver Steindecker (who was Mark Rothko's last assistant) among others. She ran the gallery until her death in 1982.
Betty Parsons was also a painter. Her work is held in the collection of the Smithsonian American Art Museum
Smithsonian American Art Museum
The Smithsonian American Art Museum is a museum in Washington, D.C. with an extensive collection of American art.Part of the Smithsonian Institution, the museum has a broad variety of American art that covers all regions and art movements found in the United States...
and the National Museum of Women in the Arts
National Museum of Women in the Arts
The National Museum of Women in the Arts , located in Washington, D.C. is the only museum solely dedicated to celebrating women’s achievements in the visual, performing, and literary arts. NMWA was incorporated in 1981 by Wallace and Wilhelmina Holladay...
, her personal papers and those from her gallery are held at the Archives of American Art
Archives of American Art
The Archives of American Art is the largest collection of primary resources documenting the history of the visual arts in the United States. More than 16 million items of original material are housed in the Archives' research centers in Washington, D.C...
.
External links
- Shaping a generation: The Art and Artists of Betty Parsons
- Smithsonian American Art Museum
- National Museum of Women in the Arts
- American Art: Lesbian, 1900-1969
Archives of American Art
Archives of American Art
The Archives of American Art is the largest collection of primary resources documenting the history of the visual arts in the United States. More than 16 million items of original material are housed in the Archives' research centers in Washington, D.C...