Influenced by Franz Kline and Willem de Kooning, Mitchell turned to abstraction in the early 1950s. She became one of the few women, alongside Helen Frankenthaler and Lee Krasner, to achieve recognition as Abstract Expressionism became the dominant genre in post-war art.
Of all the young, or second generation, Abstract Expressionist painters, she remained the most faithful to the original ideals of spontaneity, individuality, and gesture.
Her artworks are distinguished by vigorous, varied brushwork and a daring sense of color. There is frequently an unresolved tension between figure and ground. While these qualities aligned her with the New York School, her work’s lingering connection to the external world—its evocation of natural sensations like light and movement—set it apart. Mitchell moved permanently to France in 1959, and European values or approaches to art-making certainly influenced her output.
Mitchell's lithographs extend her painting practice, the works highlighting the medium itself: the greasiness, grittiness, and oiliness of lithographic crayon and the fluidity of tusche are as much a “subject” as the loaded brushstroke is in her paintings.
"Brush" is a particularly appealing and impactful print from her vast oeuvre. With complementary hues of denim, midnight blue and cinnabar, Mitchell creates an electric composition dripping with passion and energy. It is part of the Bedford Series, a portfolio of ten lithographs completed in March, 1981.
Joan Mitchell is one of the most valuable artists from the 20th century. Her auction record stands at $29.2 million USD. Paintings regularly achieve upwards of $15 million. Today, Mitchell’s work is held in leading museums worldwide. A major retrospective of her work was co-organized by SFMOMA and the Baltimore Museum of Art in 2021, followed by a joint exhibition with Claude Monet at the Fondation Louis Vuitton in 2022–23. We were particularly moved by the 2018 exhibition and catalog: Mitchell/Riopelle: Nothing in Moderation organized by the Art Gallery of Ontario.
Impressions of "Brush" are held in the permanent collections of The MET, New York, and the Walker Art Center, Minneapolis.
Questions about this piece? Contact us, call +1.416.704.1720, or visit our Toronto gallery.
