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California Dreaming

March 14 - April 27, 2013

Peter Alexander (b. 1939) Wedge (Purple), 1969 Pol...

Peter Alexander (b. 1939)

Wedge (Purple), 1969

Polyester resin

79 x 5 1/4 x 4 1/2 in; 200.7 x 13.3 x 11.4 cm

Billy Al Bengston (b. 1934) Venice, 1974 Watercolo...

Billy Al Bengston (b. 1934)

Venice, 1974

Watercolor on paper

11 1/4 x 11 1/4 in; 28.6 x 28.6 cm | Framed: 13 1/2 x 13 1/2 in; 34.3 x 34.3 cm

Judy Chicago (b. 1939) Model for Fresno Fan #6, 19...

Judy Chicago (b. 1939)

Model for Fresno Fan #6, 1971

Sprayed acrylic lacquer on acrylic

15 x 30 in; 38.1 x 76.2 cm

Judy Chicago (b. 1939) Optical Shapes #6, 1969 Acr...

Judy Chicago (b. 1939)

Optical Shapes #6, 1969

Acrylic on mat board

11 x 11 in; 27.9 x 27.9 cm

Judy Chicago (b. 1939) Optical Shapes #7, 1969 Acr...

Judy Chicago (b. 1939)

Optical Shapes #7, 1969

Acrylic on mat board

11 x 11 in; 27.9 x 27.9 cm

Ron Cooper (b. 1943) The Mind Sees A Color That Is...

Ron Cooper (b. 1943)

The Mind Sees A Color That Is Not Here, 1972

Neon and fluorescent light

8 x 96 x 5 in; 20.3 x 243.8 x 12.7 cm

Mary Corse (b. 1945) Untitled, 2001 Glass microsph...

Mary Corse (b. 1945)

Untitled, 2001

Glass microspheres in acrylic on canvas

24 x 53 1/2 in; 61 x 135.9 cm

Inscribed, signed, and dated on verso

Laddie John Dill (b. 1943) Light Sentence (6), 197...

Laddie John Dill (b. 1943)

Light Sentence (6), 1971

Zenon and argon

67 x 1/2 x 1/2 in; 170.2 x 1.3 x 1.3 cm

Lorser Feitelson (1898-1978) Untitled, 1965 Oil on...

Lorser Feitelson (1898-1978)

Untitled, 1965

Oil on canvas

60 x 50 in; 152.4 x 127 cm

Joe Goode (b. 1937) Matchbook, 1962 Pencil on pape...

Joe Goode (b. 1937)

Matchbook, 1962

Pencil on paper

15 x 11 in; 38.1 x 27.9 cm | Framed: 22 1/4 x 18 1/4 in; 56.5 x 46.4 cm

Signed and dated lower right: Joe Goode '62

Joe Goode (b. 1937) Untitled (Black Photo Cloud Tr...

Joe Goode (b. 1937)

Untitled (Black Photo Cloud Triptych), 1969-70

Oil on canvas

Triptych: 36 x 108 in; 91.4 x 274.3 cm | Each panel: 36 x 36 in; 91.4 x 91.4 cm

Signed and dated on verso: Joe Goode 1969-70

Frederick Hammersley (1919-2009) Sea Saw, 1966 Oil...

Frederick Hammersley (1919-2009)

Sea Saw, 1966

Oil on linen

44 x 44 in; 111.8 x 111.8 cm

Signed and dated at bottom center: F Hammersley 1966

John McLaughlin (1898-1976) Untitled, c. 1962 Oil...

John McLaughlin (1898-1976)

Untitled, c. 1962

Oil on paper

22 1/8 x 30 in; 56.2 x 76.2 cm

De Wain Valentine (b. 1936) Circle, Blue Rose, 197...

De Wain Valentine (b. 1936)

Circle, Blue Rose, 1977

Cast resin

Diameter: 18 in; 45.7 cm

Artist Page

Press Release

Barbara Mathes Gallery is pleased to announce the opening of “California Dreaming,” an exhibition of work by postwar, Los Angeles-based artists.  Surveying its development from modernist abstraction through Minimalism, Pop, and Conceptual art, the exhibition highlights key episodes in the emergence of one of the great hubs of American modern art.

The exhibition’s chronology begins with the taut, contemplative abstract paintings of John McLaughlin and Frederick Hammersley, whose interest in geometric composition and meditative calm presaged themes explored by a subsequent generation of Californian artists.  These younger artists explored the perceptual nuances of novel synthetic materials, producing previously unseen effects with light and color—a trend exemplified here by works in cast resin by Peter Alexander and DeWain Valentine, and a glass microbead painting by Mary Corse.  A similar spirit motivates a work by Judy Chicago, in which she used the sprayed acrylic lacquer used by custom car hobbyists to create a luminous and atmospheric abstract painting.  A fascination with light permeates the exhibition, nowhere more than in neon works by Laddie John Dill and Ron Cooper, who used this commercial material to alter our perception of color and language respectively.  Lastly, a major painting by Joe Goode points to California’s contributions to Pop art.  Featuring imaginary Polaroids of blue skied clouds floating against a massive, nebulous black ground, the work plays with notions of illusion and materiality, creating the impression that the photographs are being blown across the work’s surface.  Collectively, these works draw on cultural reference points such as Eastern philosophy, surfing, Hollywood, and the aerospace industry—articulating a history of American art that unfolded worlds away from the well-rehearsed narrative centered on New York. 

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