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Saturday, June 3, 2023

Beauford's Drip Abstractions

In scanning the Black Art Auction Website to prepare for the post that I published last week on their sale of one of Beauford's portraits of Mme du Closel, I came across the image below. 

Untitled
(1959) Gouache and watercolor on paper
25 x 18 inches / 63.5 x 45.7 cm
Pour mon cher amis / Harloff et [illegible] / Clamart 1959
© Estate of Beauford Delaney
by permission of Derek L. Spratley, Esquire,
Court Appointed Administrator

 
I was immediately captivated by the dominance of pink/rose in this work (currently held by the Michael Rosenfeld Gallery). It reminded me of the article I published in 2018 about Beauford's use of this color: "Beauford - 'La Vie en Rose'." 
 
I was also captivated by Beauford's use of the drip technique in this work. I've only seen images of a few additional paintings and works on paper for which he uses this technique.
 
Find images of them below.
 
Untitled (Green Drip Abstraction)
(1958) Gouache on wove paper
603x483 mm; 23.75x19 inches
Signed, dated, and inscribed "To Lucien, on his birthday
with affection from Beauford Delaney Paris 1958."
Image courtesy of Swann Auction Galleries
© Estate of Beauford Delaney
by permission of Derek L. Spratley, Esquire,
Court Appointed Administrator
 

 
Untitled
(1970) Oil on canvas
© Estate of Beauford Delaney
by permission of Derek L. Spratley, Esquire,
Court Appointed Administrator
 
I find it curious that Beauford created the oil painting over ten years after he did the two drip works on paper that are shown above.  It makes me wonder whether there are additional similar works that bridge the time gap between these works.
 
I wonder if the 1961 oil on paper shown below might be one of them.    

 Untitled (Abstract Composition)
(1961) Oil monotype on heavy wove paper
Photo courtesy of Swann Auction Galleries
© Estate of Beauford Delaney
by permission of Derek L. Spratley, Esquire,
Court Appointed Administrator
 
I'll definitely be on the lookout for more!

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