
Frank Stella (American, born 1936). Jill, 1959. Enamel on canvas, 90 3/8 x 78 3/4 inches (229.6 x 200 cm). Collection Albright-Knox Art Gallery, Buffalo, New York; Gift of Seymour H. Knox, Jr., 1962 (K1962:1). © Frank Stella / Artists Rights Society (ARS), New York
© Frank Stella / Artists Rights Society (ARS), New York
Image downloads are for educational use only. For all other purposes, please see our Obtaining and Using Images page.

© Frank Stella / Artists Rights Society (ARS), New York
Image downloads are for educational use only. For all other purposes, please see our Obtaining and Using Images page.

© Frank Stella / Artists Rights Society (ARS), New York
Image downloads are for educational use only. For all other purposes, please see our Obtaining and Using Images page.



Frank Stella
American, born 1936
Jill, 1959
enamel on canvas
support: 90 3/8 x 78 3/4 inches (229.55 x 200.03 cm); framed: 91 1/2 x 80 x 2 inches (232.41 x 203.2 x 5.08 cm)
Collection Albright-Knox Art Gallery, Buffalo, New York
Gift of Seymour H. Knox, Jr., 1962
K1962:1
More Details
Inscriptions
Provenance
Leo Castelli Inc., New York, by 1962;sold to the Albright-Knox Art Gallery, Buffalo, with funds provided by Seymour H. Knox, Jr., February 2, 1962
Class
Work Type
This information may change due to ongoing research. Glossary of Terms
Frank Stella first came to the attention of the art world around 1960 with a series of austere geometric canvases known as the Black Paintings. When Stella first exhibited them, they were received as rather mute, inert, and even nihilistic. The compositions of these nearly two-dozen works fall into two general formats: the earlier paintings are rectilinear, while the later ones, such as Jill, are based on diamond patterns. Stella began this series by drawing lines with a pencil and ruler. The black stripes were then painted freehand using enamel and a two and a half inch wide housepainter’s brush. The off-white stripes between the black are simply the raw canvas breathing through. With these works, Stella aimed to reject the past and create something altogether new. Although this particular painting is named after a girl that Stella knew, its composition demonstrates his desire to move away from any representational illusion as well as the emotional content found in works by the preceding generation of Abstract Expressionist painters. Stella’s goal was to treat the work’s imagery as no more or less than the sum of its physical components—in this case, paint and canvas.
Related Content
-
-
exhibition
Abstraction, Geometry, Painting: Selected Geometric Abstract Painting in America Since 1945
Learn MoreLearn More -
exhibition
The Long Curve: 150 Years of Visionary Collecting at the Albright-Knox Art Gallery
Learn MoreLearn More -
-
-
publication
Contemporary Art 1942-72: Collection of the Albright-Knox Art Gallery
Learn MoreLearn More -
publication
Abstraction, Geometry, Painting: Selected Geometric Abstract Painting in America Since 1945
Learn MoreLearn More -
publication
The Long Curve: 150 Years of Visionary Collecting at the Albright-Knox Art Gallery
Learn MoreLearn More -
publication
125 Masterpieces from the Collection of the Albright-Knox Art Gallery
Learn MoreLearn More -
Other Works by This Artist
- Lac Laronge III ,
- Fez ,
- Aluminum Series ,
- Copper Series ,
Ten Works X Ten Painters
,- Ten Works X Ten Painters ,
Olyka (III) from the series Paper Reliefs
,- Untitled (Rabat) from the portfolio Ten Works X Ten Painters ,
- Untitled (Rabat) from the portfolio Ten Works X Ten Painters ,
Newstead Abbey from the Aluminum Series
,Ophir from the Copper Series
,Ouray from the Copper Series
,Pagosa Springs from the Copper Series
,Telluride from the Copper Series
,Kingsbury Run from the Aluminum Series
,Casa Cornu from the Aluminum Series
,Avicenna from the Aluminum Series
,Luis Miguel Dominguin from the Aluminum Series
,Averroes from the Aluminum Series
,Six Mile Bottom from the Aluminum Series
,Union Pacific from the Aluminum Series
,Lake City from the Copper Series
,Creede I from the Copper Series
,Creede II from the Copper Series
,Marquis de Portago from the Aluminum Series
,- Talladega Three II from the series Circuits ,
Pastel Stack
,- Jill from Black Series II ,
- Bonin Night Heron II ,
No image available,
but we're working on itEmpress of India II from the V Series
,No image available,
but we're working on itPalmito Ranch from the Benjamin Moore Series
,No image available,
but we're working on itIsland No. 10 from the Benjamin Moore Series
,No image available,
but we're working on itEskimo Curlew
,No image available,
but we're working on itHampton Roads from the Benjamin Moore Series
,No image available,
but we're working on itTalladega Five I from the series Circuits ,No image available,
but we're working on itBenjamin Moore Series ,No image available,
but we're working on itDelaware Crossing from the Benjamin Moore Series
,No image available,
but we're working on itNew Madrid from the Benjamin Moore Series
,No image available,
but we're working on itSabine Pass from the Benjamin Moore Series
,No image available,
but we're working on itBlack Adder from the V Series
,