Sunday, March 18, 2007

Still

The New York Times today has a lengthy look at the Clyfford Still estate, which art historian David Anfam calls "the last great estate of Abstract Expressionism." The story begins with these facts:

"He left behind a one-page will, nearly 95 percent of the work he ever made (he sold or gave away only 150 pieces in his lifetime) and a widow determined to follow his final testament to the letter. The demands were these: His estate could be bequeathed only to an American city, one that would build a museum to serve as a temple to his art and to nothing else. No works could ever be sold. No other artist could ever show a single piece alongside his. All Clyfford Still, all the time."

The Clyfford Still Museum is expected to open in Denver in early 2010.