Fraternal Light: Poems for Beauford Delaney

 On September 27, 2023, Professor Arlene Keizer spoke about her new book, Fraternal Light: On Painting While Black, at the New York Studio School of Drawing, Painting, and Sculpture.

Fraternal Light book cover
Cover art by Nell Painter

After writing the two-part blog post* that presents Keizer and Fraternal Light to Les Amis readers, I wanted to hear what she would say to the audience in this space, which is located at the former address of the Whitney Studio Galleries where Beauford's work was shown in 1930.

I learned that Keizer was inspired to select Beauford as a subject when she saw his Portrait of a Young Musician.

Portrait of a Young Musician  (1970) Acrylic on canvas © Estate of Beauford Delaney by permission of Derek L. Spratley, Esquire, Court Appointed Administrator

She noted that Beauford did not provide the young man with an instrument and said she believes this is because he wanted to portray the musician as a fellow creator, as an equal.

She said she was continually "stopped in her tracks" as she encountered Beauford's work. This statement reminded me of my reaction to Composition 16, the Abstract Expressionnist painting that "stopped my heart" when I saw an image of it online.

Composition 16
(1954-1956) Oil on canvas
© Estate of Beauford Delaney
by permission of Derek L. Spratley, Esquire,
Court Appointed Administrator

After sharing the background for the research that went into her book, Keizer read several of the poems in it.  Five were from the section called In Country, which references Beauford's life in the U.S., and the other eight were from the section called Elsewhere.  These latter poems were inspired by Beauford's life in Paris. 

For me, Keizer's two most memorable statements (paraphrased) during the event were the following: 

"Beauford Delaney led a 'compartmentalized, but not closeted life'."

"Abstraction and figurative painting were not binary" for Beauford. 

Fraternal Light: On Painting While Black was released in August 2023 and is now available for purchase.

Professor Arlene Keizer at the Schomburg Center
Image courtesy of Dr. Keizer 

*Fraternal Light: On Painting While Black - Part 1
Fraternal Light: On Painting While Black - Part 2

Quotes about Beauford

In perusing the catalog for Be Your Wonderful Self: The Portraits of Beauford Delaney, the exhibition that the Michael Rosenfeld Gallery and the Ogden Museum of Southern Art presented in 2021 and 2022, respectively, readers will be captivated by several quotes about Beauford that were written by his personal friends and contemporary admirers.

Be Your Wonderful Self: The Portraits of Beauford Delaney
Catalog cover

Among the former, readers might expect to read the words of James Baldwin, Henry Miller, and Richard Long. 

But they may be surprised to find simple, yet poignant quotes by James Jones:

"Beauford, you are the complete artist, not just in the medium of paint but in the medium of life, which is more important."

and Georgia O'Keeffe:

"...He was a very special person—impossible to define. I often think of him as a special event and always with the feeling that it is good to know that he exists..."

Quotes by contemporary admirers also pay tribute to Beauford's life and artistic practice.

Glenn Ligon wrote that for Beauford, yellow is "not just a color to paint but a philosophy to live by."

Julie Mehretu stated that "Delaney's immense, incessantly exuberant persistence on liberation and possibility in marks, light, color, and form through and out of abstraction and blackness is his triumph, no matter what."

And Amy Sherald shared that when she first encountered Beauford's work, "there was immediately something indelible about it that kept me looking."

Alongside the Wells International Foundation, Les Amis de Beauford Delaney continues the work of finding examples of Beauford's influence on contemporary scholars and creators.  Visit the links below for more articles that present such influence.

Fraternal Light: On Painting While Black - Part 1

Fraternal Light: On Painting While Black - Part 2  

Rachel's Musings:  Three Articles About Beauford

Beauford Delaney - A Musical Interlude 

Musing with a Master Abstract Expressionist - Part 1

Musing with a Master Abstract Expressionist - Part 2

Beauford Potpourri 2

By receiving Google Alerts about Beauford and messages from persons interested in his life and work, I am able to collect tidbits of information and references to him that add to the growing data base about him. For the second time, I am publishing links to some of these references.

Beauford at Harvard University's Fogg Art Museum

Untitled
(1964) Watercolor on white wove paper mounted to canvas mounted to a stretcher
© Estate of Beauford Delaney
by permission of Derek L. Spratley, Esquire,
Court Appointed Administrator

This summer, a single Beauford Delaney watercolor was displayed at the Fogg Museum at Harvard in an exhibition entitled American Watercolors, 1880-1990: Into the Light. This show was described by Harvard Art Museums as presenting "100 compelling and rarely seen watercolors by well-known and historically underrepresented American artists selected from the Harvard Art Museums’ deep and diverse holdings." It describes watercolor as a medium with a "unique ability to capture light."

The museum's Web page for this work mentions a white sticker on top of the stretcher that says, "jean-paul ledeur a Paris, 61 rue Raymond Losserand." Jean-Paul Ledeur was a court-appointed expert in art restoration whose workspace was located a few blocks from Beauford's rue Vercingétorix studio.

The 100 Greatest New York City Artworks, Ranked

Can Fire in the Park
(1946) Oil on canvas
© Estate of Beauford Delaney
by permission of Derek L. Spratley, Esquire,
Court Appointed Administrator

Beauford's Can Fire in the Park is ranked 49th in a list of 100 paintings, sculptures, photographs, films, and performances published in an article by ARTnews on August 29, 2023. The article indicates that these works come up with many different answers to the question: "What really makes a city?"

Beauford Delaney Procreate Brushes

Image from Art Station Marketplace
Fair Use Claim

Maria, a freelance photographer who owns a company called Digi Life, leads a team of graphic designers and illustrators that creates products based on their professional needs. The team has assembled a set of brushes, color swatches, and color palettes inspired by Beauford's work that is being offered for sale on the Art Station Website. 

Digi Life encourages customers to explore how listening to music influences their creative and has included a Spotify playlist in their package. 

High Museum #ArtHIGHlight: Portrait of Richard A. Long

Screenshot from High Museum of Art Instagram page

The High Museum in Atlanta posted this image of Beauford's portrait of Richard A. Long on Instagram, along with commentary about the work.

Frye Art Museum Lecture Series with Rebecca Albani

Auto-portrait
(1965) Oil on canvas
© Estate of Beauford Delaney
by permission of Derek L. Spratley, Esquire,
Court Appointed Administrator

Beauford will be the topic of discussion during an upcoming session for a lecture series that is being hosted by the Frye Art Museum in Seattle, Washington.  The one-hour session will begin at 11 AM Pacific Time on November 9, 2023.

To find links published in the first Beauford Potpourri article, which was published in 2018, click HERE.

Beauford's Blues - Part 2

In Part 1 of this post, I published several images of Beauford Delaney abstracts in which pale blues dominate. 

This week, I'm featuring abstracts in which the blues are richer, more vibrant, more electric...

Abstract in Turquoise
Gouache on wove paper, 1961
© Estate of Beauford Delaney,
by permission of Derek L. Spratley,
Esquire, Court Appointed Administrator
Image courtesy of Levis Fine Art

 

Untitled, Paris 1953
Watercolor on paper
Mark Borghi Fine Arts
© Estate of Beauford Delaney
by permission of Derek L. Spratley, Esquire,
Court Appointed Administrator

 

Cobalt Blue
shown at UTKnoxville Downtown Gallery
© Estate of Beauford Delaney,
by permission of Derek L. Spratley, Esquire,
Court Appointed Administrator

 

Untitled
(1963) Watercolor and gouache on paper
© Estate of Beauford Delaney,
by permission of Derek L. Spratley, Esquire,
Court Appointed Administrator

To see articles about Beauford Delaney works where other hues are dominant, click on the links below:

Beauford's Greens

Beauford - La Vie en Rose

In Search of Purple

Beauford's Blues - Part 1

In a recent post, I talked about Beauford's love of blues music.

Beauford also loved painting with blue.

In Part 1 of this two-part post, I'm sharing images of several works in which pale(r) blues predominate.

Untitled
(1959) Gouache on paper
© Estate of Beauford Delaney

by permission of Derek L. Spratley, Esquire,
Court Appointed Administrator
Image courtesy of Michael Rosenfeld Gallery LLC

Untitled (Composition in Blue)
(1963) Watercolor on wove paper
© Estate of Beauford Delaney
by permission of Derek L. Spratley, Esquire,
Court Appointed Administrator

Image courtesy of Swann Auction Galleries

Grèce
(1967) Oil on canvas
© Estate of Beauford Delaney
by permission of Derek L. Spratley, Esquire,
Court Appointed Administrator

Untitled
(Undated) Oil on canvas
© Estate of Beauford Delaney,
by permission of Derek L. Spratley, Esquire,
Court Appointed Administrator

Untitled
(1961) Oil on canvas
© Estate of Beauford Delaney
by permission of Derek L. Spratley, Esquire,
Court Appointed Administrator

 

Untitled
(1960) Gouache on paper
© Estate of Beauford Delaney
by permission of Derek L. Spratley, Esquire,
Court Appointed Administrator
Image courtesy of Michael Rosenfeld Gallery LLC

Untitled (Composition in Blue)
(1961) Gouache on wove paper
© Estate of Beauford Delaney,
by permission of Derek L. Spratley, Esquire,
Court Appointed Administrator

Blue Wind
(1963) Gouache on paper
© Estate of Beauford Delaney,
by permission of Derek L. Spratley, Esquire,
Court Appointed Administrator
Image courtesy of George N'Namdi Gallery

Blue Wind was sold by Black Art Auction (Lot 129) during its recent Summer Timed Auction. The estimated sale price was $40,000-$60,000. The actual sale price was $47,500.

Next week, I'll share images of works with blues that are more vibrant and intense.