Franz Kline is a renowned American abstract expressionist. His artwork stands out in part due to its bold black strokes on a white background. His paintings are iconic examples of Abstract Expressionism and his career began as a figurative painter. However, in the late 1940s Kline began to create art on a much larger scale and he was known for using large black and white abstract paintings, such as “New York, NY”, which he created in 1953. It is believed that Kline used a projector to enlarge images onto the wall which led to this style of painting.
Kline’s artwork has been inspiring modern day artists for decades, offering insight into how Abstract Expressionism can be old fashioned yet reinvented in today’s age. By using different colors and textures, modern day artists are able to express their individualism in the same way that Franz Kline did. An example of this is the Gustav Klimt painting, Serpents I from 1904-07 which uses gold background with various colors creating an ornamental effect. This painting demonstrates how each artist can explore their own creativity by doing something innovative with traditional methodologies.
These two iconic examples of Abstract Expressionism highlight just how powerful works of art connected to this genre are and why they continue to evoke emotion even many decades later. It is through understanding the past and drawing inspiration from it that modern day pieces have come forth and resonated with both audiences as well as other future generations of creatives.
