Helen Frankenthaler
Color field pioneer of soak-stain technique.
Most quoted
"There are no rules. That is how art is born, how breakthroughs happen. Go against the rules or ignore the rules. That is what invention is about."
— from Interview/Statement
"A really good picture looks as if it was meant to be that way. But that's the difficulty: to make a picture that looks effortlessly right."
— from Interview, 1980
"I didn't think the paintings looked like landscapes, but they were landscapes. The landscapes were in my arms as I did it."
— from Interview, 1953
All quotes by Helen Frankenthaler (100)
There are no rules. That is how art is born, how breakthroughs happen. Go against the rules or ignore the rules. That is what invention is about.
A really good picture looks as if it's happened at once.
I don't think in terms of 'abstract' or 'figurative' — I just think in terms of 'good' or 'bad.'
You have to be willing to make a mess to make a masterpiece.
I'd rather have a painting that's alive and has mistakes than one that's dead and perfect.
The great thing about art is that you can do anything you want. It's a free world.
I don't have a formula. I just paint.
Color is a very personal thing. It's like music. You either feel it or you don't.
I want to make something that's beautiful and strong and has a life of its own.
Every painting is a new adventure.
I think of myself as a painter, not a woman painter.
Art is a way of life, not just a profession.
I'm always trying to push the boundaries of what paint can do.
The act of painting is a very physical thing.
I don't plan my paintings. They just happen.
I'm interested in the emotional impact of color.
A painting should have a pulse.
I want my paintings to breathe.
The canvas is a battlefield.
I'm always learning something new with every painting.
Contemporaries of Helen Frankenthaler
Other Visual Artss born within 50 years of Helen Frankenthaler (1928–2011).