Larry Poons began painting hard-edge dots at the outset. Later, he developed a genuinely immersive Color Field approach. His current show at Yares Art, One for Baby, takes a different approach, but these are some of his best works in decades. This series of paintings holds together intensely gestural, color-based collisions made by throwing and pouring paint. Even so, Poons’s subtle brushwork finds its way into a place where maintenance of color depicts stillness in a place of perfection. At the same time, some of the paintings reveal vigorous markings that see their order regained while openly awakened from one to another.
This show offers a profound exploration of Poons’s enduring painterly prowess. The artist, now eighty-six, stands as one of the most significant—indeed legendary—painters of our time. The Yares exhibition showcases large-scale, never-before-seen works that underscore his status as a Color Field pioneer, revealing that he is producing some of the most exceptional work of his six-decade career. Poons, who Frank Stella described as “Mr. Natural” in an essay from 1999, is coming down the fast lane riding high, allowing transparent openings to stipple his painterly surface without ever sacrificing pictorial leverage until he finally lets go and allows speed to take over. In recent years, Poons has garnered attention from well-known museums, a testament to the lasting impact of his artistic vision. Poons has always been at the forefront of contemporary art, continually pushing boundaries and redefining the possibilities of abstraction.
As viewers immerse themselves in his latest exhibition, they will understand the culmination of a lifetime dedicated to the pursuit of artistic excellence. Each stroke of his brush speaks volumes, inviting both contemplation and introspection. Poons’s work transcends mere paint on canvas, offering a glimpse into the depths of human experience and emotion. Through his unwavering commitment to his work, he inspires awe and admiration.
Larry Poons’s acrylic masterpieces, such as Farm House (2023) and Grand Waltz Two Nine (2024), often initially bewilder with their intricate interplay of colors and brushstrokes. A closer examination of Poons’s artistic investment, however, unveils a narrative intertwined with his retreat to a countryside sanctuary, detached from the urban hustle of New York City. In his secluded studio amidst the natural environment, accompanied by assorted music, Poons finds solace and inspiration. Here, the colors in his works come alive, converging and diverging like streams of consciousness. The complexity of hues forms a cohesive whole akin to a gathering of vibrant energies. Yet, amidst this complexity, there exists always a unifying force—a singular color that cleanses the chaos and restores balance to the composition. In Farm House, the regal presence of purple speaks volumes, hinting at the depth of the artist’s emotions and intentions. Similarly, the tranquil blue of Grand Waltz Two Nine serves as a kind of emotional guide, leading the viewer through the artist’s innermost thoughts, where every brushstroke tells a story and every color evokes a feeling.
Poons’s paintings Dante (2023), Four Walls Around Me (2023), and Sparky George (2024) are excellent examples of the exhibition’s complexity and the unique perspective it offers. In these pieces, the technique is as dynamic as ever, as he employs fervent clusters of purposeful markings to create intricate compositions. His use of narrow brushes and his own fingers adds a tactile dimension to the works that operates on a visceral level. A work of art may not have a single point of view, but it has the power to bring to life a way of seeing things that have never been explored before. The obvious might not always be the best way to present a work of art; many paintings offer the viewer a depth that goes beyond even the painter’s thoughts and feelings. A work of art can provide the viewer with a dense experience that transcends mere understanding of the subject matter. This is Poons’s approach to abstraction, a quality that offers multiple ways of understanding the essential artistic character of painting.
One of the most lyrical works on view at Yares is The Water Calmed—The Ducks Take a Swim, Crying Dark Shadow Ducks (2023). This work evokes the image of a duck swimming at its leisure on the water, reflecting the water flow and blue sky. To an old master like Poons, it is perhaps the most natural thing for painting to flow like a song containing the lyricism of nature. This work captivates me as if I were looking at an Asian ink painting. For Poons, capturing the essence of nature’s beauty is like composing a symphony—an ode to the lyrical rhythms of the natural world. Through his mastery of color and form, he invites viewers to immerse themselves in the scene’s timeless tranquility.
Just as poetry is what brings us toward one another, we discover One for Baby in the way we come to love one another. This is how we think and feel in relation to art. For Poons, love is intensely given in painting, a gift of feeling as we come to its artistic truth, as we are again given the feeling of who we are.