Sam Francis Basel Mural II on view at the Stedelijk Museum Amsterdam

"Basel Mural II" by Sam Francis will be on view at the Stedelijk Museum in Amsterdam through September 15, 2013, sharing a gallery with Ellworth Kelly's 1963 freestanding aluminum sculpture "Blue Red Rocker."  The Stedelijk Museum re-opened in September of 2012 -- under the direction of former MOCA curator Anne Goldstein -- after being closed for eight years of renovation and expansion.  For that reason, Basel Mural II has not been on public display for over a decade.

The mural on display in Amsterdam was originally part of a trio that has been separated since 1964, when they last hung in the Basel Kunsthalle. In 1967 "Basel Mural I" was donated by Francis to the Pasadena Art Museum, which later became the Norton Simon Museum. It now shares a room at the Simon with two vertical fragments of "Basel Mural III" at the Simon. 

In a blog written about "Basel Mural I" for the Huffington Post, John Seed noted:

"Gorgeous, seemingly alive, and resolutely abstract, "Basel Mural I," and the two other murals that once accompanied it, have their aesthetic roots in the vast, horizonless Monet "Nymphéas" installed on the lower floor of the Musée de l'Orangerie in Paris."

"Free Floating Clouds" by Lorenzo Pagliei: a Musical Homage to Painter Sam Francis

Lorenzo Pagliei, a composer, electronic musician, pianist and conductor, is the creator of "Free Floating Clouds" a 14 minute 18 second long composition created as an homage to Sam Francis. Recorded in 2004 the composition requires 13 musicians, and was conducted by Andrea Panieri, and recorded and released by Edizioni Suvini-Zerboni of Milan.

Lornezo Pagliei

Portions of "Free Floating Clouds" -- and other compositions by Pagliei -- can be heard on SoundCloud.com. Click  here to listen. 

Sam Francis "Symphony" on Paper Sets Auction Record

 

Sam Francis, "Symphony in Blue," 1958

Gouache and watercolor on paper

27 x 39.4 inches

Sold for $1,145,000 US at Sotheby's, New York, May 15, 2013

A new auction record for a Sam Francis work on paper.

Sam Francis: Five Decades of Abstract Expressionism from California Collections

August 11, 2013–January 5, 2014

Pasadena, CA – The Pasadena Museum of California Art (PMCA), is proud to present Sam Francis: Five Decades of Abstract Expressionism from California Collections, the first major museum exhibition of Francis’s work in over a decade. Known as one of the twentieth century’s most influential painters of light and color, Sam Francis maintained studios in New York, France, Switzerland, and Japan, but continually returned to his native California, finishing his last series of paintings in Santa Monica just before his death in November 1994. The exhibition brings together Francis’s paintings and unique works on paper from extraordinary public and private California collections, including many paintings on view to the public for the first time.

Born in June 1923 in San Mateo, near San Francisco, Francis started his career in California. He moved to France in 1950, and by 1956 he was described by Time magazine as “the hottest American painter in Paris these days,” signaling his arrival as one of the first post-World War II American painters to develop a truly international reputation. Having stated, “Painting is about the beauty of space and the power of containment,” Francis spent his career investigating that belief through his use of color, understanding of light, and lyrical rhythmic compositions. His works not only contributed to the range of styles and influences in the world of painting, he also referenced and responded to the California Bay Area Modernists with his early paintings from the 1940s to early 1950s; French Impressionism, Abstract Expressionism, and Chinese and Japanese scroll paintings with his works from the 1950s; and Color Field Painting with paintings in the 1960s. Although his oeuvre can be loosely associated within these broad artistic styles, his life and art were complex and varied, defying any specific characterization or interpretation.

Spanning fifty years, the works included in the exhibition explore Francis’s use of saturated tones (blues, reds, or yellows) and pigments ranging in hue from light to dark representing a kind of duality in the universe both understood and imagined. The exhibition includes some of his smallest works, which measure three by two inches, as well as monumental murals that are over ten feet long, each with a distinctive power and presence regardless of size or material. This exhibition includes some of the artist’s loosely defined series including the “Cellular” paintings from the 1950s, the “Blue Balls” and “Edge” paintings of the 1960s, and the “Fresh Air” and “Grids” from the 1970s. Other works include mandalas, late self-portraits, and Francis’s alchemically inspired works of the 1980s and early 1990s.

An illustrated catalogue accompanies the exhibition featuring a recent dialogue on Francis and his work between the exhibition’s co-curators: art historian Peter Selz, Ph.D., former curator at the Museum of Modern Art, New York and author of the first monograph on the artist, and Debra Burchett-Lere, the executive director and interim president of the Sam Francis Foundation. Burchett-Lere is also the author of the recently published Sam Francis Catalogue Raisonné of Canvas and Panel Paintings: 1946–1994, published by the University of California Press.

Sam Francis: Five Decades of Abstract Expressionism from California Collections is organized by the Sam Francis Foundation in collaboration with the Pasadena Museum of California Art and the Crocker Art Museum. The exhibition will travel to the Crocker Art Museum in Sacramento, CA, where it will be on view from January 26 – April 20, 2014.

OPENING RECEPTION
Saturday, August 10, 2013 | 7–9pm
$5 admission | Free for PMCA members

Mission
The mission of the Pasadena Museum of California Art (PMCA) is to present the breadth of California art and design through exhibitions that explore the cultural dynamics and influences that are unique to California.

HOURS
Open Wednesday–Sunday, 12–5pm; third Thursdays of the month, 5–8pm; closed Mondays, Tuesdays, July 4th, Thanksgiving
Day, Christmas, and New Year’s Day.

Admission
$7 for adults, $5 for seniors and students; free for PMCA members and children under 12; free the first Friday of the month (all day); free the third Thursday of the month (5–8pm). Access for people with disabilities is provided.

PLAN YOUR VISIT
The Museum is located at 490 East Union Street. From the 210 Freeway, take the Lake Avenue exit. Go south and take a right on Union Street. From the 110 Freeway/Downtown Los Angeles, follow the freeway until its end, then take Arroyo Parkway and turn right at Colorado, then left at Oakland to get to Union Street. Parking is available at the Museum.

DOCENT TOURS AND GROUP RATES
At this time, the museum does not offer regularly scheduled docent tours. However, docent tours are available Wednesday–Friday to private groups for a fee of $75. A non-refundable deposit of $40 is due two weeks prior to the scheduled date.

Docent-led group tours and self-guided tours for K-12 students are offered for free. We regret that we are unable to accommodate tours for groups larger than 35 people. Before requesting a tour, please check the exhibition calendar to see which exhibitions will be available during your visit.

A discounted group rate of $3 per person is available for groups of 20 or more (K-12 student groups are free). Please call to notify us at least one week in advance for these special admission rates.

For any questions or to make reservations for a tour or group rate, please call Alexis Kaneshiro, 626.568.3665 x13 or email
akaneshiro@pmcaonline.org

INFORMATION
For more information, please call 626.568.3665 or visit pmcaonline.org.

Sotheby's S2 Exhibition Space and Sam Francis in Art+Auction Magazine

A recent article by Judd Tully, "The Auction House 2.0: How New Strategies, and Growth, May Shift and Old Duopoly," published in the March 2013 issue of Art+Auction magazine, mentions that the first "selling exhibition" of Sotheby's new S2 exhibition space featured works by Sam Francis:

In September 2011 Sotheby’s launched S2, a Richard Gluckman–designed gallery space in the company’s York Avenue headquarters. Devoted to independently curated selling shows, S2 has called upon Debra Burchett-Lere, director of the Sam Francis Foundation; the private dealer Josh Baer; and, in a concerted effort to draw a younger crowd, the ultrahip independent curator Vladimir Restoin Roitfeld.

You can read more about the exhibition, "Sam Francis: The Exploration of Color, A Selling Exhibition." on the Sotheby's website.

The S2 exhibition didn't just inaugurate Sotheby's new Richard Gluckman designed space: it coincided with the publication of the "Sam Francis Catalogue Raisonné of Canvas and Panel Paintings, 1946 – 1994."

Sam Francis Painting Appears on "Giuliana and Bill"

During a recent episode of Giuliana and Bill on the Style Network, Bill Rancic stopped by Martin Katz, Ltd. in Beverly Hills to replace Giuliana's wedding band. Hanging in the foyer is a beautiful Sam Francis acrylic on paper from the early 70's which Martin acquired from Jonathan Novak Contemporary Art.

Here is an image Francis painting from Martin's collection:

Sam Francis
Untitled (SF71-1006), 1971
Acrylic on paper
29-1/2" x 40-1/8"

Sam Francis Featured in "The Lure of Paris"

Sam Francis and others of his generation who left the U.S. to paint and study in Paris are featured in "The Lure of Paris" at the Loretta Howard Gallery in New York, September 6 through November 3, 2012.

Other featured artists in the exhibition include: Biala, Norman Bluhm, Ed Clark, Harold Cousins, Beauford Delaney, Shirley Goldfarb, Cleve Gray, Al Held, Shirley Jaffe, Conrad Marca-Relli, Joan Mitchell, Jules Olitski, Milton Resnick, Jean-Paul Riopelle, and George Sugarman Jack Youngerman
On View: Loretta Howard Gallery | Group Show | The Lure of Paris from GalleryLOG on Vimeo.

"A Portrait of the Self," A Film by Mark Whitney of Sam Francis Painting

In the late1960s, Mark Whitney, then a student at UC Santa Cruz, took a course in Cultural Anthropology with the noted anthropologist Gregory Bateson.  In Bateson’s seminars Whitney was exposed to cybernetics systems theory, a boundary crossing approach to exploring regulatory systems. Cybernetic theories can be applied to many kinds of systems – including mechanical, biological and cognitive systems – and Whitney found Bateson’s lectures “eye-opening.”

A few years later, when Whitney saw a show of abstract paintings at the Nicholas Wilder Gallery, he felt an immediate sense of connection between Francis’ approach to painting and cybernetic theory, which he felt “resonated and was made manifest” in Sam’s work. After a visit to Francis’ home and studio on West Channel Road in Santa Monica a unique friendship between Mark Whitney and Sam Francis developed which would ultimately result in Whitney being given the rare opportunity to film the artist at work.

Taking an interest in Whitney's personal projects, Francis helped sponsor some experimental film projects Whitney had become involved in, including filming the movement of water. By 1974 Francis was also allowing Whitney to shoot footage in his studio.

 Mark Whitney filming Sam Francis at work. Photo Meibao D. Nee

In the spring of 1975 Francis, who was connected with the C.G. Jung Institute of Los Angeles, offered to put money into a film project that would involve interviewing Jung’s surviving colleagues, students and family members. He did so with one condition: that Mark Whitney would be the primary filmmaker for the project.  The film “A Matter of Heart,” which features a score by composer John Adams, was not completed until 1985.

In 1978 Whitney was given the opportunity to film Sam at work: the idea was that he would document the creation of a single painting. Because he knew that Francis disliked the idea of the “cult of personality” Whitney knew that the film had to be focused mainly on Francis’ creative process. Using methods he had developed to film water – including the use of cameras that allowed filming at variable speeds – Whitney set out to capture Francis’ painting methods. 

Filming Francis, who painted in an almost trancelike state wasn’t easy. “When he was in the act of painting Sam was in a creative sacred space,” Whitney recalls. “He wasn’t going to wait for me…he would never stop.” Shifting between filming speeds and changing film quickly when he ran out, Whitney managed to gather all the footage he could of Francis at work on an untitled painting. It wasn’t until 2007 that a grant from the Sam Francis Foundation allowed Whitney to finally assemble and edit the raw footage into his 19 minute film “A Portrait of the Self.”

A riveting glimpse into the private world of Francis’ studio, “A Portrait of the Self” documents a man who --  in Mark Whitney’s words --“totally gave himself over to painting.” Francis himself believed strongly that the creative act was motivated by the artist’s connection to his inner life. “Love and the creative are one,” he wrote, “and reflect the ego’s indwelling urge to know the self.”

For information about ordering "A Portrait of the Self," please contact the Sam Francis Foundation: 

samfrancisfoundation@me.com

Below: A 2 1/2 minute clip from the opening of "A Portrait of the Self"

A Sam Francis Photo Album (Video)

Sam Francis: A Dave Brubeck Album Cover

What do Sam Francis, Franz Kline and Joan Miró have in common?

The answer is that all three of them had their paintings feature on album covers for the Dave Brubeck Quartet. Here is Sam's cover for the 1963 album "Time Changes."

"Time Changes" Cover art by Sam Francis

"Time Further Out" Cover art by Joan Miró

"Countdown Time in Outer Space" Cover art by Franz Kline

Would you like to listen to samples of "Time Changes" or order a CD of the album? Click here to find it on Amazon.com.

Sam Francis: California Zen, a film by Eric Minh Swenson

A beautiful short film by Eric Minh Swenson, documenting a Sam Francis exhibition at Leslie Sacks Fine Art

SAM FRANCIS : CALIFORNIA ZEN from ERIC MINH SWENSON on Vimeo.

Have a look in inside The Sam Francis Catalogue Raisonné of Paintings: