LIFE BEYOND FIRST CLASS
ARTS & COLLECTIBLES
RECLAIMING
THE CANVAS
Abstract Expressionists: The Women reclaims the legacy of a generation of female visionaries who reshaped American art
and finally receive the recognition they always deserved.
The Bull, by Elaine de Kooning (1959). Acrylic and collage on masonite. © Elaine de Kooning Trust. Courtesy of the Levett Collection and FAMM.
Photo: Fraser Marr.
For decades, the story of Abstract Expressionism has been dominated by the mythos of its men—Pollock dripping paint in a Long Island barn, de Kooning slashing the canvas, Rothko brooding over color fields. But there has always been another story, one just beneath the surface, full of bold marks and brilliant minds. That story finally takes the spotlight in Abstract Expressionists: The Women, a landmark touring exhibition organized by the American Federation of Arts from the Christian Levett Collection and FAMM (Female Artists of the Mougins Museum), France.
Featuring 47 works by more than 30 women artists active from the 1940s through the 1970s, the exhibition explodes the outdated notion that women merely orbited the action. Instead, it presents them as the gravitational force they were—experimental, fearless, and deeply influential. Curated by Dr. Ellen G. Landau, one of the foremost scholars of the movement, the show draws on The Levett Collection to highlight names both celebrated and long overdue for critical reevaluation: Lee Krasner, Joan Mitchell, Elaine de Kooning, Helen Frankenthaler, Emiko Nakano, Pat Passlof, Mercedes Matter, Sonja Sekula, Michael (Corinne West), and many others.
This is not a companion show. It is a correction.
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When They Were Gone, by Joan Mitchell (1977). Oil on canvas. © Estate of Joan Mitchell.
Courtesy of the Levett Collection and FAMM.
Photo: Fraser Marr.
Dancing Figure, by Michael (Corinne) West (1962).
Oil and collage on canvas. Courtesy of the artist’s estate, Hollis Taggart, New York, and The Levett Collection. Photo: Fraser Marr/The Levett Collection.
“This exhibition upends the narrative,” notes AFA Director and CEO Pauline Forlenza, “asserting that women painters were critical contributors to the formulation of Abstract Expressionism from the very beginning.” These artists weren’t emulating their male peers. They were generating ideas, pushing boundaries, and forging distinct visual languages that expanded what painting could be.
Where to See the Exhibition:
Palm Springs Art Museum, CA
August 24, 2024 – January 5, 2025
The Kemper Museum of
Contemporary Art, Kansas City, MO
February 7 – May 11, 2025
The Phillips Collection,
Washington, DC
June 14 – September 14, 2025
Colby College Museum of Art,
Waterville, ME
October 16, 2025 – February 22, 2026
Stove, by Pat Passlof (1959). Oil on linen.
© The Milton Resnick and Pat Passlof Foundation. Courtesy of Eric Firestone Gallery, the Levett Collection, and FAMM. Photo: Fraser Marr.
From explosive gestural canvases to lyrical abstractions that seem to hover and breathe, the works on view reflect the movement’s full emotional spectrum. Whether shaped by the New York School, the Parisian avant-garde, or the West Coast’s quieter intensity, each painting pulses with intention—and a long overdue demand to be seen.
In bringing these works together, Abstract Expressionists: The Women doesn’t just rewrite art history. It liberates it.
For more information, visit amfedarts.org
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