1960, Lee Krasner, Polar Stampede -- San Francisco Museum of Modern Art
From the museum label: Polar Stampede roars with intensity. Though its title evokes nature's extremes, its surface reveals Krasner's painting process—we can imagine her flexing her brush to the point that it begins to snap back and spray white paint rather than sweeping across the canvas. This work is part of a series called the Umber Paintings, which features a distinctive palette of browns, blacks, and creamy whites. These canvases were painted at night during a long period of insomnia following the deaths of her mother and her husband, the artist Jackson Pollock. Working in relative darkness reduced Krasner's sensitivity to color, leading her to choose this somber range of hues.
1960, Lee Krasner, Polar Stampede -- San Francisco Museum of Modern Art
From the museum label: Polar Stampede roars with intensity. Though its title evokes nature's extremes, its surface reveals Krasner's painting process—we can imagine her flexing her brush to the point that it begins to snap back and spray white paint rather than sweeping across the canvas. This work is part of a series called the Umber Paintings, which features a distinctive palette of browns, blacks, and creamy whites. These canvases were painted at night during a long period of insomnia following the deaths of her mother and her husband, the artist Jackson Pollock. Working in relative darkness reduced Krasner's sensitivity to color, leading her to choose this somber range of hues.