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Primary Structures (1966 exhibition)
Encyclopedia
Minimalism
Minimalism describes movements in various forms of art and design, especially visual art and music, where the work is set out to expose the essence, essentials or identity of a subject through eliminating all non-essential forms, features or concepts...
exhibit shown from April 27 - June 12, 1966 at the Jewish Museum
Jewish Museum (New York)
The Jewish Museum of New York, an art museum and repository of cultural artifacts, is the leading Jewish museum in the United States. With over 26,000 objects, it contains the largest collection of art and Jewish culture outside of museums in Israel. The museum is housed at 1109 Fifth Avenue, in...
in New York
New York City
New York is the most populous city in the United States and the center of the New York Metropolitan Area, one of the most populous metropolitan areas in the world. New York exerts a significant impact upon global commerce, finance, media, art, fashion, research, technology, education, and...
. It was organized by the museum's Curator of Painting and Sculpture, Kynaston McShine.
Response
This exhibit was a critical and media success as reported in TimeTime (magazine)
Time is an American news magazine. A European edition is published from London. Time Europe covers the Middle East, Africa and, since 2003, Latin America. An Asian edition is based in Hong Kong...
and Newsweek
Newsweek
Newsweek is an American weekly news magazine published in New York City. It is distributed throughout the United States and internationally. It is the second-largest news weekly magazine in the U.S., having trailed Time in circulation and advertising revenue for most of its existence...
, presenting the public with a show dedicated to a "New Art". Critical labels for the art included "ABC art," "reductive art
Reductive art
Reductive art is a term to describe an artistic style or an aesthetic, rather than an art movement. Movements and other terms associated with reductive art include Minimal art, ABC art, anti-illusionism, cool art, rejective art , Bauhaus aesthetic, work that emphasizes clarity, simplification,...
" and "Minimalism
Minimalism
Minimalism describes movements in various forms of art and design, especially visual art and music, where the work is set out to expose the essence, essentials or identity of a subject through eliminating all non-essential forms, features or concepts...
," though these labels were all roundly rejected by the artists themselves, notably Donald Judd
Donald Judd
Donald Clarence Judd was an American artist associated with minimalism . In his work, Judd sought autonomy and clarity for the constructed object and the space created by it, ultimately achieving a rigorously democratic presentation without compositional hierarchy...
.
The Primary Structures art featured new, stripped-down naked and materials with smooth, shiny surfaces, but perhaps the most unusual new idea to come from the exhibit was the concept of artist as "designer", not necessarily as "maker". During a forum on the "New Sculpture" conducted at the museum, in which McShine, Judd, Barbara Rose
Barbara Rose
Barbara Rose is an American art historian and art critic. She was educated at Smith College, Barnard College and Columbia University. She was married to artist Frank Stella between 1961 and 1969...
, Robert Morris
Robert Morris (artist)
Robert Morris is an American sculptor, conceptual artist and writer. He is regarded as one of the most prominent theorists of Minimalism along with Donald Judd but he has also made important contributions to the development of performance art, land art, the Process Art movement and installation...
, and Mark di Suvero
Mark di Suvero
Marco Polo "Mark" di Suvero is an American abstract expressionist sculptor born Marco Polo Levi in Shanghai, China in 1933 to Italian expatriates. He immigrated to San Francisco, California in 1942 with his family. From 1953 to 1957, he attended the University of California, Berkeley to study...
participated, di Suvero famously remarked, "Primary Structures is the key show of the 1960s...", and also, "...my friend Donald Judd cannot qualify as an artist because he doesn't do the work", to which Judd replied, "...The point is not whether one makes the work or not... I don't see... why one technique is any more essentially art than another..." This show ushered in a radical new way of presenting ideas and space that did not rely on the artist's hand, but rather on the final result.
McShine, in an effort to broaden appeal and show a wide variety of artists working in this form, included a West Coast contingent and most of the British artists from the "New Generation" show at the Whitechapel Art Gallery from 1965. It appeared that Primary Structures was to be formulated around Anthony Caro
Anthony Caro
Sir Anthony Alfred Caro, OM, CBE is an English abstract sculptor whose work is characterised by assemblages of metal using 'found' industrial objects.-Background and early life:...
's former St. Martin
Central Saint Martins College of Art and Design
Central Saint Martins College of Art and Design is a constituent college of the University of the Arts London. The school has an outstanding international reputation, and is considered one of the world's leading art and design institutions...
's students, and the American group led by a relatively established Tony Smith
Tony Smith (sculptor)
Tony Smith was an American sculptor, visual artist, architectural designer, and a noted theorist on art. He is often cited as a pioneering figure in American Minimalist sculpture.-Education:...
.
1993 renovation
In 1989, a major expansion and renovation project was undertaken at the museum. Upon completion in June 1993, the layout of the Primary Structures show was done away with, and only a few installation shots of the show remain to record the original exhibit and the old galleries.Sculpture Court/Entry
- David Annesley, Swing Low, 1964
- Anthony CaroAnthony CaroSir Anthony Alfred Caro, OM, CBE is an English abstract sculptor whose work is characterised by assemblages of metal using 'found' industrial objects.-Background and early life:...
, Titan, 1964 - Tony SmithTony Smith (sculptor)Tony Smith was an American sculptor, visual artist, architectural designer, and a noted theorist on art. He is often cited as a pioneering figure in American Minimalist sculpture.-Education:...
, Free Ride, 1962
Lobby
- Judy Cohen Gerowitz (Judy ChicagoJudy ChicagoJudy Chicago is a feminist artist, author, and educator.Chicago has been creating artwork since the mid 1960s. Her earliest forays into the art world coincided with the rise of Minimalism, which she eventually abandoned in favor of art she believed to have greater content and relevance...
), Rainbow Picket, 1966 - Robert SmithsonRobert SmithsonRobert Smithson was an American artist famous for his land art.-Background and education:Smithson was born in Passaic, New Jersey and studied painting and drawing in New York City at the Art Students League of New York....
, Cryosphere, 1966
Gallery 1
- Dan FlavinDan FlavinDan Flavin was an American minimalist artist famous for creating sculptural objects and installations from commercially available fluorescent light fixtures.-Early life and career:...
, corner monument 4 for those who have been killed in ambush (for Jewish Museum) (for *P.K. who reminded me about death), 1964 - Peter ForakisPeter ForakisPeter Forakis was an American artist known as an abstract geometric sculptor. The son of a Greek immigrant, he grew up on the Wyoming prairie until the age of 10 when his family moved to Oakland, California. Eventually they settled in Modesto, California...
, JFK, 1963 - Ellsworth KellyEllsworth KellyEllsworth 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...
, Blue Disc, 1963 - Forrest Myers, Zygarat & W. & W.W.W., 1965
- Salvatore Romano, Zeno II, 1965
- William TuckerWilliam G. TuckerWilliam G. Tucker is a modernist British sculptor and modern art scholar. He was born to English parents in Cairo, Egypt in 1935. In 1937, his family returned to England, where Tucker was raised. He attended the University of Oxford from 1955-1958...
, Meru I, 1964 - William Tucker, Meru II, 1964
- William Tucker, Meru III, 1964–65
- David von SchlegellDavid von SchlegellDavid Von Schlegell was an American abstract artist and sculptor.-Biography:David Von Schlegell was born in St. Louis, Missouri in 1920, the son of American impressionist artist William von Schlegell. He studied at the University of Michigan in the 1940s, and then entered the United States Air Force...
, Wave, 1964
Underpass
- Gerald Laing, Indenty, 1966
- Gerald Laing, Trace, 1965
- Tina Matkovic (Spiro), Projection, 1965
Gallery 2
- Carl AndreCarl AndreCarl Andre is an American minimalist artist recognized for his ordered linear format and grid format sculptures. His sculptures range from large public artworks to more intimate tile patterns arranged on the floor of an exhibition space Carl Andre (born September 16, 1935) is an American...
, Lever, 1966 - Lyman KippLyman KippLyman 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...
, Andy's Cart Blanche - Tim Scott, Peach Wheels, 1962
- Richard Van Buren, Free Epton, 1966
- Isaac WitkinIsaac WitkinIsaac Witkin, internationally renowned modern sculptor, was born in Johannesburg, South Africa on 10 May 1936, and he died 23 April 2006. Witkin entered St Martin’s School of Art in London, in 1957. Studying under Sir Anthony Caro and alongside other luminaries in training such as Phillip King,...
, Nagas, 1964
Gallery 4
- Richard Artschwager, Table with Pink Tablecloth, 1964
- Richard Artschwager, Rocker, 1965–75
- Michael Bolus, No. 6, 1965
- Paul Frazier, Pink Split, 1965
- Douglas HueblerDouglas HueblerDouglas Huebler was an American conceptual artist.-Life and career:Douglas Huebler grew up in rural Michigan during the Depression and served in the Marines in World War II...
, Bradford 2-66, 1966 - John McCrackenJohn McCrackenJohn Harvey McCracken was a contemporary artist who lived and worked in Santa Fe, New Mexico and New York.- Education/teaching :...
, Northumberland, 1965 - Peter Phillips, Tricurvular, 1964–65
- Anne TruittAnne TruittAnne Truitt was a major American artist of the mid-20th century; she is associated with both minimalism and Color Field artists like Morris Louis and Kenneth Noland....
, Sea Garden, 1964
Gallery 5
- Ronald Bladen, Three Elements, 1965
- Robert Grosvenor, Transoxiana, 1965
- Donald JuddDonald JuddDonald Clarence Judd was an American artist associated with minimalism . In his work, Judd sought autonomy and clarity for the constructed object and the space created by it, ultimately achieving a rigorously democratic presentation without compositional hierarchy...
, Untitled, floor 1966 - Donald Judd, Untitled, wall 1966
- Robert MorrisRobert Morris (artist)Robert Morris is an American sculptor, conceptual artist and writer. He is regarded as one of the most prominent theorists of Minimalism along with Donald Judd but he has also made important contributions to the development of performance art, land art, the Process Art movement and installation...
, Untitled (L Beams), 1966-67
Gallery 8
- Larry BellLarry Bell (artist)Larry Bell is a contemporary American artist and sculptor. He lives and works in Taos, New Mexico, and maintains a studio in Venice, California. From 1957 to 1959 he studied at the Chouinard Art Institute in Los Angeles as a student of Robert Irwin, Richards Ruben, Robert Chuey, and Emerson Woelfer...
, Untitled(peach) - Larry Bell, Untitled(pink)
- Larry Bell, Untitled(gold)
- Walter de MariaWalter De Maria-Early life and career:De Maria was born in Albany, California on October 1, 1935. He studied history and art at the University of California, Berkeley from 1953 to 1959. Although trained as a painter, De Maria soon turned to sculpture and began using other media...
, Cage, 1961-65 - Sol LeWittSol LeWittSolomon "Sol" LeWitt was an American artist linked to various movements, including Conceptual art and Minimalism....
, Untitled, 1966
Gallery 10
- Daniel Gorski, Fourth Down
- David Gray, LA/2, 1965
- David HallDavid Hall (video artist)David Hall is a British video artist, whose pioneering work did much to establish video as an art form.-Life and work:David Hall attended Leicester College of Art and the Royal College of Art. During the 1960s he worked as a sculptor and showed his work internationally...
, Izzard, 1966 - Phillip King, Through, 1966
- John McCrackenJohn McCrackenJohn Harvey McCracken was a contemporary artist who lived and worked in Santa Fe, New Mexico and New York.- Education/teaching :...
, Manchu, 1965 - Peter Pinchbeck, Space Jump
- Michael Todd, Viet, 1966
- Michael Todd, Ball Joint, 1966
- Derrick Woodham, Siviley, 1965