Frank Stella
Minimalist of shaped canvases and 'what you see is what you see'.
Most quoted
"The problem with painting is that it's always been about something else. It's always been about telling a story or representing something."
— from Working Space, 1986
"I wanted to make paintings that were as good as anybody else's paintings, and I wanted to make them in a way that was new."
— from Interview with Frank Stella by Gene Swenson, 'What is Pop Art?', 1964
"I'm not interested in making art that's easy to understand. I'm interested in making art that's challenging."
— from Working Space, 1986
All quotes by Frank Stella (97)
Art is not about ideas, it's about form.
I want the painting to be the environment.
Minimal art is about the object itself.
The work should stand on its own without explanation.
Painting is dead, long live painting.
I don't paint narratives.
The artist's job is to make something that works.
Space is the final frontier in painting.
I believe in the power of abstraction.
The canvas is a field, not a window.
Art should be experienced, not explained.
Form follows function in art too.
I paint what I see, nothing more.
The minimal is the essential.
Color defines space.
Art is a physical thing.
I don't follow trends; I make them.
The work is the message.
Painting is about pushing boundaries.
Simplicity is the ultimate sophistication.
Contemporaries of Frank Stella
Other Visual Artss born within 50 years of Frank Stella (1936).