{"id":148128,"date":"2020-10-06T12:01:29","date_gmt":"2020-10-06T16:01:29","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/www.theparisreview.org\/blog\/?p=148128"},"modified":"2020-10-15T15:21:58","modified_gmt":"2020-10-15T19:21:58","slug":"painting-with-a-moths-wing","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/www.theparisreview.org\/blog\/2020\/10\/06\/painting-with-a-moths-wing\/","title":{"rendered":"Painting with a Moth\u2019s Wing"},"content":{"rendered":"

Agnes Pelton was overlooked during her lifetime, but her paintings are eternal. Deeply abstract and yet grounded in shape and line\u2014she has a predilection for looming landmasses, jellyfish-like veils, rings of light, and the alignment of planets and stars\u2014her work lays bare the workings of the universe. She once described her process as \u201cpainting with a moth\u2019s wing and with music instead of paint.\u201d These are cosmic visions projected from the sleeping desert floor. The first retrospective of her work in more than two decades, \u201cAgnes Pelton: Desert Transcendentalist<\/a>,\u201d is on view through November 1 at the recently reopened Whitney Museum of American Art. A selection of images from the show appears below.<\/em><\/em><\/p>\n

\"\"<\/a>

Agnes Pelton, Future<\/em>, 1941, oil on canvas, 30 \u00d7 26″. Collection of Palm Springs Art Museum, seventy-fifth anniversary gift of Gerald E. Buck in memory of Bente Buck, best friend and life companion.<\/p><\/div>\n

 <\/p>\n

\"\"<\/a>

Agnes Pelton, Messengers<\/em>, 1932, oil on canvas, 28 \u00d7 20″. Collection of Phoenix Art Museum; gift of The Melody S. Robidoux Foundation.<\/p><\/div>\n

<\/p>\n

 <\/p>\n

\"\"<\/a>

Agnes Pelton, Orbits<\/em>, 1934, oil on canvas, 36 1\/4 x 30″. Oakland Museum of California; gift of Concours d\u2019Antiques, the Art Guild of the Oakland Museum of California.<\/p><\/div>\n

 <\/p>\n

\"\"<\/a>

Agnes Pelton, Day<\/em>, 1935, oil on canvas, 25 1\/4 \u00d7 23 1\/2″. Collection of Phoenix Art Museum; gift of The Melody S. Robidoux Foundation.<\/p><\/div>\n

 <\/p>\n

\"\"<\/a>

Agnes Pelton, Departure<\/em>, 1952, oil on canvas, 24 x 18″. Collection of Mike Stoller and Corky Hale Stoller. Photo: Paul Salveson.<\/p><\/div>\n

 <\/p>\n

\"\"<\/a>

Agnes Pelton, The Blest<\/em>, 1941, oil on canvas, 37 1\/2 x 28 1\/4″. Collection of Georgia and Michael de Havenon. Photo: Martin Seck.<\/p><\/div>\n

 <\/p>\n

\u201cAgnes Pelton: Desert Transcendentalist<\/a>\u201d will be on view at the Whitney Museum of American Art through November 1.<\/em><\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"

The first survey of the painter Agnes Pelton\u2019s work in more than two decades spotlights her cosmic visions on canvas.<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":3,"featured_media":0,"comment_status":"closed","ping_status":"closed","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"_acf_changed":false,"footnotes":""},"categories":[2384],"tags":[],"class_list":["post-148128","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","hentry","category-look"],"acf":[],"yoast_head":"\nPainting with a Moth\u2019s Wing by The Paris Review<\/title>\n<meta name=\"description\" content=\"The first survey of the painter Agnes Pelton\u2019s work in more than two decades spotlights her cosmic visions on canvas.\" \/>\n<meta name=\"robots\" content=\"index, follow, max-snippet:-1, max-image-preview:large, max-video-preview:-1\" \/>\n<link rel=\"canonical\" href=\"https:\/\/www.theparisreview.org\/blog\/2020\/10\/06\/painting-with-a-moths-wing\/\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:locale\" content=\"en_US\" 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