(Saint Paul, Minnesota 1916–1992 New York)
Suspended light, 1978–80, signed and dated R Pousette-Dart July 78 on the reverse, titled and dated on the stretcher as well as inscribed with the technique and measurements, acrylic on linen, 183 x 137 cm, on stretcher, (AR)

Provenance:
Hokin Gallery Inc., Palm Beach/Bay Harbor Islands (label on the reverse)
Marisa del Re Gallery, Inc., New York (2 labels on the reverse)
Gerry and Franca Mulligan Collection
Private Collection, USA

Exhibited:
New York, Marisa del Re Gallery, Richard Pousette-Dart, Presences: Black and white, 1978–1980, 1 October – 7 November 1981, exh. cat. no. 2 with ill.
New York, Marisa del Re Gallery, Black and White, October – November 1988, illustrated in the exhibition catalogue

Literature:
Martica Sawin, Richard Pousette-Dart’s New York in Black and White, in “Arts Magazine” October 1981, with ill.;
Hilton Kramer, A Master Abstractionist. Pousette-Dart’s Abstract Expressionism, in “The New York Times”, 9 October 1981, with ill.;
Michael Kimmelman, Richard Pousette-Dart, 76, Dies – An Early Abstract Expressionist, in “The New York Times”, 27 October 1992

“Suspended light presents an oculus form, circled by an oval framing edge, floating within an energized field of stained and dripped black pigment marks that evoke poetic association with the starry sky and sublime nature phenomena. The ovoid form also suggests a subtly shaded egg, which can be understood, metaphorically, as a sign of order salvaged from the primal chaos.“
(Sam Hunter in Black and White, catalogue of the exhibition held at Marisa Del Re Gallery, New York, October-November 1988)

Pointillistic application of paint, multiple thick layers…these factors all create vibrant, complex surfaces and – particularly in black and white – the impression of sources of light. These hallmarks of the American artist Richard Pousette-Dart’s paintings imbue them with a kind of musicality. The large-scale work “Suspended light“ Dorotheum is offering on auction is no exception.
The spiritual approach of the Minnesota-born Pousette Dart, who was a co-founder of the American Abstract Expressionism movement, is apparent not the least in his love of geometric shapes. For him, circles and squares were universal symbols of cosmic forces. Pousette-Dart, like Mark Rothko, Ad Reinhard and Clifford Still, believed that abstract painting has an innate power to elicit transcendence.
His far-reaching creative output from 1930-1990, the earliest influences of which include Cubism, Pointillism, Surrealism, aboriginal art and art of other ancient cultures, also contains sculpture and graphic art.
He exhibited at the Venice Biennale in 1948 as well as in 1982. Pousette-Dart also participated in the Documenta II in 1959.
The convoluted, surreal shapes of his earlier years give way to seemingly shimmering, luminous paintings from the 1960s onward in a kind of transcendental Op Art. These paintings have such titles as “Stellar Light“, “Space Continuum“ and “Radiance“. Also, the texture of the 1978/80 painting “Suspended light“ gives it a lifelike quality. The central figure, a glowing sphere reminiscent of the sun, has remarkable visual magnetism.
This pioneer Abstract Expressionist of the first generation, stresses symbolism in a clear and explicit way, revealing an immediately recognizable system of personal metaphors for his mystic vision.
“Suspended light presents an oculus form, circled by an oval framing edge, floating within an energized field of stained and dripped black pigment marks that evoke poetic association with the starry sky and sublime nature phenomena. The ovoid form also suggests a subtly shaded egg, which can be understood, metaphorically, as a sign of order salvaged from the primal chaos.“
(Sam Hunter in Black and White, catalogue of the exhibition held at Marisa Del Re Gallery, New York, October-November 1988)