American Abstract and Figurative Expressionism

Book excerpt: This survey (a follow¿up to the earlier volumes: New York School Abstract Expressionists: Artists Choice by Artists;7 American Abstract Expressionism of the 1950s An Illustrated Survey.8) intends to present a significantly different approach. Fifty eight American painters and sculptors of the post-World War II era, are represented, each by one abstract and one figurative work.The book intends to show that the most engaged mainstream creative work in New York and across the USA was not restricted to non-representational or representational expressionism but rather to the creative power of the individual expressionist artist. The artists are represented in alphabetical order. The usual convention of critical analysis is replaced by statements written by the artists themselves. The statements may serve to enlighten the readers as to the artists¿ relation to their creative process. The biographical information for each artist is presented in a standardized, uniform fashion. It is critical that a reference book of this sort would provide excellent, large format reproductions. The books were printed by the world renowned Dr. Cantz¿sche Druckerei in Ostfildern, Germany,