
When Jackson Pollock and Willem de Kooning were transforming abstract expressionism in New York City in the '40s and '50s, they were not alone.
Several artists were showing their work in the same galleries, navigating the same circles. But they often were ignored by critics, and ended up at the margins of art history.
The paintings of two of them are now side by side at the Jewish Museum.
One is Lee Krasner, a Jewish woman, who was Pollock’s wife. The other is Norman Lewis, who was African American.
The exhibit, called "From the Margins: Lee Krasner and Norman Lewis," highlights how they experimented with abstract painting, according to Norman Kleeblatt, who curated the show. He explained they were both fascinated by culturally-specific references. “For Lee, Hebrew in particular; for Norman Lewis, it was also the locale of Harlem, African textiles — and jazz, as a kind of improvisational means of making abstraction,” he said.
Lee Rosenbaum, an art critic who writes for The Wall Street Journal and her Culture Grrl blog, said the work in the show contrasts with the sweeping statements of more famous abstract expressionists.
“These were more intimate works, more densely painted, and somehow seem to have some resonance with each other, so when I saw that they were going to do a whole show of these two artists I was very intrigued,” she said.
"From the Margins: Lee Krasner and Norman Lewis" will be on view until February.