Franz Kline: A critical study of the mature work, 1950--1962.
Item
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Title
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Franz Kline: A critical study of the mature work, 1950--1962.
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Identifier
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AAI9959194
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identifier
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9959194
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Creator
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Kingsley, April.
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Contributor
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Adviser: Mona Hadler
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Date
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2000
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Language
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English
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Publisher
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City University of New York.
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Subject
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Art History | Biography
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Abstract
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This thesis posits defining characteristics of Abstract Expressionist Franz Kline's mature style and pictorial methodology in an effort to broaden the base of understanding of his work and establish a framework for future use. The visual analysis of this large a sample of unquestionably authentic Kline works permits the delineation of his formworld's infrastructure and how it evolved over the years.;Baseline characteristics are established in a close study of the works in his first solo exhibition in 1950. Certain devices, spatial ploys, and collage effects recur throughout his subsequent work, while some aspects (curves, for instance) are phased out and others (such as color) are increasingly brought in. With this intense formal scrutiny it has been possible to define the many image clusters he invented over the years and to see how his paint handling differed considerably from one period to the next making his development discernible.;Kline's mature commitment to abstraction was total and even though his means were quite severely restricted, he was able to produce a seemingly inexhaustible variety of imagery. Some explanations for why this was possible are posited in introductory chapters that provide background for the mature work in the following areas: biographical sources for recurrent images and formal tactics; formal sources in Zen art and Constructivism; and stylistic sources in caricature. The combined effect of these sources served to set him apart from the other Abstract Expressionists with his own distinctive style.;Volume II of this dissertation contains a catalogue of 339 Kline works relevant to the thesis. The complete catalogue raisonne is still a work in progress.
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Type
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dissertation
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Source
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PQT Legacy CUNY.xlsx
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degree
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Ph.D.
