L to R: 1, 3, 5, 7, 8: Installation views, Christopher S. Bond Courthouse, Jefferson City, MO. Commissioned by the US General Services Administration. Photo © Aaron Dougherty | 2: “River View: Sunshine,” 2012, approx. 11 x 8.5 ft. Glazed earthenware, epoxy resin, lacquer, acrylic paint, canvas, wood | 4: “River View: Day Dreaming,” 2012, approx. 11 x 8.5 ft. Glazed earthenware, epoxy resin, lacquer, acrylic paint, canvas | 6: “River View: Vases at Dusk,” 2012, approx. 11 x 8.5 ft. Glazed earthenware, epoxy resin, lacquer, acrylic paint, canvas, wood | 9: Thomas Hart Benton painting “A Social History of the State of Missouri,” 1936. Commerce and Industrial Development Collection, Missouri State Archives. | 10: Betty Woodman’s site visit to the Christopher S. Bond Courthouse, Jefferson City, MO, 2012. Artworks by Betty Woodman © Woodman Family Foundation / Artists Rights Society (ARS), New York
Installation view, Christopher S. Bond Courthouse, Jefferson City, MO. Commissioned by the US General Services Administration. Photo © Aaron Dougherty. Artworks by Betty Woodman © Woodman Family Foundation / Artists Rights Society (ARS), New York
Betty Woodman's installation at the Christopher S. Bond Courthouse, Jefferson City, Missouri, 2012
In 2012, Betty Woodman was commissioned to create an artwork for the Christopher S. Bond courthouse in Jefferson City, Missouri, through the General Services Administration’s Art in Architecture program.
Installation view, "George Woodman: A Democracy of Parts, Paintings 1966-1978," DC Moore Gallery, New York, 2025
Exhibition Video for "George Woodman: A Democracy of Parts, Paintings 1966-1978," DC Moore Gallery, New York, 2025
Watch the video to listen to Rebecca Lowery, Curator of Exhibitions at the Wexner Center for the Arts at The Ohio State University, discusses George Woodman's geometric abstractions.
L to R: “Untitled,” c. 1977-78, 8 x 8 1/16 in. | “Untitled,” 1977, 5 5/16 x 5 3/8 in. | Installation view from ““Blur / Obscure / Distort: Photography and Perception,” Norton Museum of Art, West Palm Beach, Florida, 2025. Photo courtesy Norton Museum of Art. All gelatin silver prints. All artworks by Francesca Woodman © Woodman Family Foundation / Artists Rights Society (ARS), New York.
Francesca Woodman. “Untitled,” c. 1977-78, 8 x 8 1/16 in. Gelatin silver print © Woodman Family Foundation / Bildupphovsrätt i Sverige, Stockholm
NOW ON VIEW: Francesca Woodman in "The Subterranean Sky: Surrealism in the Moderna Museet Collection" and “Blur / Obscure / Distort: Photography and Perception”
Works by Francesca Woodman are currently on view in two museum exhibitions about Surrealism and photography's relationship with truth at the Moderna Museet and Norton Museum of Art, respectively.
L to R: 1-4: “Dreamers and Voyagers Come to Detroit,” 1987. Installation views, Renaissance Center Station, Detroit, MI, 1987 | 5: Students laying tiles on the floor, Renaissance Center station, Detroit, MI, 1987 | 6-7: Production and silkscreening of tiles, Franco Pecchioli SRL, Borgo San Lorenzo, Tuscany, Italy | 8-9: Notes and sketches on modules’ designs and colors, 1986 | 10: Bullock, Lorinda. “A creator starts over. Renaissance indeed: tile art reborn.” Detroit Free Press, 17 November 2004 | 11-13: “Path Games,” 2004. Installation views, Renaissance Center Station, Detroit, MI, 2004 | 14: Drawing of modules for “Path Games." All artworks, sketches, and notes by George Woodman © Woodman Family Foundation / Artists Rights Society (ARS), New York. Woodman Family Foundation Archive.
George Woodman. “Dreamers and Voyagers Come to Detroit,” 1987. Installation view, Renaissance Center Station, Detroit, MI, 1987 © Woodman Family Foundation / Artists Rights Society (ARS), New York. Woodman Family Foundation Archive.
George Woodman's tile installations at Detroit People Mover's Renaissance Center station, Detroit, Michigan, 1987/2004. FROM THE ARCHIVES
In 1987, three years after his first ceramic tile public commission for Buffalo Metro Rail, New York, George Woodman realized an installation for the Detroit People Mover’s Renaissance Center station. A firm believer in public art, he sought to create a work that does more than simply impress at first glance but rather brings life to being in the station for commuters using the system daily.
Betty Woodman. “Pillow Pitcher,” c. 1983, 17 1/4 x 20 1/2 x 14 1/2 in. Glazed earthenware. Promised Gift of David and Julianne Armstrong. Installation views from “Hot! & Ready to Serve: Celebrating Functional Ceramics,” American Museum of Ceramic Art, Pomona, California, 2025.
NOW ON VIEW: Betty Woodman in "Hot! & Ready to Serve: Celebrating Functional Ceramics," American Museum of Ceramic Art, Pomona, California, 2025
In honor of International Museum Day this past week, our Collections Coordinator Celia Lê visited AMOCA, where Betty Woodman’s "Pillow Pitcher" is on view alongside works by Ron Nagle, Paul Soldner, Peter Voulkos, among others in "Hot! & Ready to Serve."
L to R: Betty Woodman with “Roman Windows” and totebag made at the Fabric Workshop and Museum, Philadelphia, PA, 2006. Woodman Family Foundation Archives. | Betty Woodman. "Roman Windows," 2006, 35 1/4 x 87 x 8 1/2 in. Glazed earthenware, epoxy resin, lacquer and paint. Betty Woodman's studio, New York, New York, c. 2006. Artworks by Betty Woodman © Woodman Family Foundation / Artists Rights Society (ARS), New York
Betty Woodman with “Roman Windows” and totebag made at the Fabric Workshop and Museum, Philadelphia, PA, 2006. Woodman Family Foundation Archives. Artworks by Betty Woodman © Woodman Family Foundation / Artists Rights Society (ARS), New York
Happy birthday to Betty Woodman
Happy birthday to Betty Woodman, born on this day in 1930. Known for her bold and exuberant colors in both art and self presentation, she is pictured here playfully dressed like her own sculpture “Roman Windows,” draped in a vivid yellow that echoes her sunlit New York City studio.
L to R: 2: “Self Portrait,” 1976, 4 13/16 x 4 14/16 in. | 3: “From Polka Dots” or “Polka Dots,” 1976, from the “Polka Dots” series, 5 1/4 x 5 1/4 in. | 4: “Untitled,” 1979, 5 13/16 x 5 13/16 in. | 5: “Untitled,” c. 1975-76, 4 1/4 x 4 1/4 in. | 6: “Untitled,” 1978, 37 3/8 x 35 3/4 in. | 7: “Untitled,” 1980, 79 1/2 x 36 1/4 in. Lifetime diazotype | 8: “Some Disordered Interior Geometries,” c. 1980-81, 9 x 6 1/2 in. Found notebook with artist’s 16 lifetime gelatin silver print. 24 pages plus cover. All lifetime gelatin silver prints. All artworks by Francesca Woodman © Woodman Family Foundation / Artists Rights Society (ARS), New York
Group, artworks by Francesca Woodman © Woodman Family Foundation / Artists Rights Society (ARS), New York
Major acquisition by the Art Institute of Chicago
Thrilled to announce that the Art Institute of Chicago has acquired 30 important lifetime works by Francesca Woodman from the Foundation’s holdings. With the breadth and depth of this acquisition, the Art Institute now owns the largest institutional collection of the artist’s lifetime works and has become a major center for its preservation and public display.
Installation views, "George Woodman: A Democracy of Parts, Paintings 1966-1978," DC Moore Gallery, New York, New York, 2025
CLOSING Saturday, May 3: "George Woodman: A Democracy of Parts, Paintings 1966-1978," DC Moore Gallery, 2025
This week is your last chance to see George Woodman: A Democracy of Parts, Paintings 1966-1978, an exhibition tracing the development of Woodman’s singular approach to pattern and color over a series of paintings rarely shown in New York in more than 40 years.
L to R: 1, 15: George Woodman, installation view of "George Woodman: Paintings 1962-1963," Henderson Gallery, University of Colorado, Boulder, Colorado | 2, 6, 10, 12-13: Installation view of "George Woodman: Paintings 1962-1963," Henderson Gallery, University of Colorado, Boulder, Colorado | 3: “End of the Alphabet,” c. 1963, 52 x 52 in. | 4: “The Magic Box,” c. 1963, 55 x 45 in. | 5: “Landscape (After the Death of Adonis),” 1963, 72 x 72 in. | 7: “Untitled,” c. 1962-63, dimensions unknown. | 8: “Cleopatra (With Asp),” c. 1963, 48 x 51 in. | 9: “April Cool” or “Buddhist Shrine” or “Diamond Gestalt,” 1963, 70 x 70 in. | 11: “Love is a Bridge,” c. 1963, 52 x 52 in. | 14: “Mid-West Landscape (With Fallout)," 1963, 48 x 80 in. All oil on canvas. All artworks by George Woodman © Woodman Family Foundation / Artists Rights Society (ARS), New York. Woodman Family Foundation Archives.
George Woodman, installation view of "George Woodman: Paintings 1962-1963," Henderson Gallery, University of Colorado, Boulder, Colorado. Woodman Family Foundation Archives.
George Woodman in "George Woodman: Paintings 1962-1963," Henderson Gallery, University of Colorado, Boulder, Colorado
In December of 1963, George Woodman opened an exhibition of his recent paintings at the Henderson Gallery at University of Colorado, Boulder, where he also taught painting and philosophy of art. These paintings—made in 1962 and 1963—moved away from the loose abstraction he had previously applied to painting the landscape and towards an approach that recalled maps and aerial views.
L to R: 1: “Untitled,” c. 1970s, 72 x 108 in. Medium unknown | 2: Spread from “Criss-Cross Art Communications,” No. 6, published by Criss Cross Foundation, 1978 | 3: Various issues of “Criss-Cross Art Communications” | 4: “Untitled,” c. 1970s, dimensions and medium unknown | 5: “285” or “Bari” or “Winterreise,” 1975, 65 x 65 in. Acrylic on canvas | 6: “Tessellation Sky,” 1975, 54 1/2 x 54 1/2 in. Acrylic on canvas | 7: Spread from the exhibition catalogue for “19 Artists—Emergent Americans,” published by Solomon R. Guggenheim Museum, 1981 | 8-9: Installation views, “19 Artists—Emergent Americans,” Solomon R. Guggenheim Museum, New York, 1981 | 10: “Double Reflection,” 1970, 66 x 66 in. Oil on canvas. All artworks by George Woodman © Woodman Family Foundation / Artists Rights Society (ARS), New York. Woodman Family Foundation Archives.
George Woodman. “Untitled,” c. 1970s, 72 x 108 in. Medium unknown © Woodman Family Foundation / Artists Rights Society (ARS), New York
The Criss-Cross and Pattern & Decoration Movements. "George Woodman: A Democracy of Parts, Paintings 1966-1978"
By the mid-70s, George Woodman’s singular approach to pattern painting—as harmony between color and form—was well established and recognized among artists and critics alike. Woodman’s canvases were part of the larger zeitgeist around pattern in the art of this period.
1: “Magic Mountain,” c. 1970, 66 x 54 in. Oil on canvas | 2: “Untitled,” 1969, 48 1/4 x 48 1/4 in. Acrylic on canvas | 3: “Cascade,” 1974, 36 x 36 in. Acrylic on canvas | 4: “Untitled,” 1974, 66 x 66 in. Acrylic and oil on canvas | 5: “Cloud,” 1969, 68 3/4 x 58 1/2 in. Oil on canvas | 6: “Untitled,” 1970, 54 1/4 x 54 1/4 in. Acrylic on canvas | 7: “Untitled,” c. 1974-76, 59 x 59 in. Acrylic on canvas | 8: “Color Octagon,” 1975, 83 x 83 in. Acrylic on canvas | 9: “Winterreise,” 1975, 85 x 85 in. Acrylic on canvas. All artworks by George Woodman © Woodman Family Foundation / Artists Rights Society (ARS), New York.
George Woodman. “Magic Mountain,” c. 1970, 66 x 54 in. Oil on canvas © Woodman Family Foundation / Artists Rights Society (ARS), New York
Idiosyncratic use of color. "George Woodman: A Democracy of Parts, Paintings 1966-1978"
Pattern paintings made up of repeating forms can tend towards uniformity or sameness, but not so for George Woodman. Instead, he integrated color into his pattern systems as an equal to form rather than a subordinate, constructing compositions in which color steers and complicates the viewer’s perception.
L to R: 1, 3, 5: “Untitled,” c. 1973-74 | 2: George Woodman with sculpture, Antella, Italy, c. 1970s | 4: “Untitled,” 1975, 60 x 60 in. Acrylic on canvas | 6: “5 Sided Column,” c. 1973 | 7: “Untitled,” c. 1973 | 8: “Untitled,” c. 1974 | 9-10: Photographed sketches and notes, undated | 11: “Untitled,” c. 1964. Pyramid-shaped painting suspended from a tree in Woodman’s backyard, Boulder, Colorado. All sketches and artworks by George Woodman © Woodman Family Foundation / Artists Rights Society (ARS), New York. Woodman Family Foundation Archives.
George Woodman. “Untitled,” c. 1973-74 © Woodman Family Foundation / Artists Rights Society (ARS), New York. Woodman Family Foundation Archives
George Woodman's geometric sculptures. "George Woodman: A Democracy of Parts, Paintings 1966-1978"
George Woodman’s tessellated pattern paintings built upon observations made in the three-dimensional realm of architecture, specifically in the tiled surfaces that covered walls and floors as they emerged from and receded into space.