Sam Francis
American, 1923–1994
Red No. 2
INV-8923
Sam Francis
American, 1923–19941954
Red No. 2
Sam Francis American, 1923–1994 →paintingmodern and contemporary art
Date
1954
Medium
Oil on linen
Dimensions
195.6 × 99.1 cm (77 × 39 in.)
Museum
Art Institute of Chicago
Location
Chicago, IL
Credit
Ada Turnbull Hertle and Wirt D. Walker funds; purchased with funds provided by Mr. and Mrs. James W. Alsdorf and Edward E. Ayer in memory of Charles L. Hutchinson; Maurice D. Galleher Endowment
Sam Francis’s early work was largely informed by the Abstract Expressionists’ lyricism and strong emphasis on color harmony. Living in Paris in the 1950s, the artist came under the influence of the Impressionist painters Claude Monet and Paul Cézanne, as well as their early 20th-century successors Pierre Bonnard and Henri Matisse. After viewing Monet’s Nympheas at L’Orangerie in 1953, Francis transformed his palette from pale grays and muted hues to an explosive mixture of primary colors. With its juxtaposition of cadmium red and deep blue, a combination that makes the surface seem to pulsate, Red No. 2 exemplifies the vibrancy of Francis’s paintings from this era.
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