Bill Jensen Stillness
Spontaneity, Allusions and Accidents Flow
Bill Jensen: Stillness/Flowing is the newest exhibition at Cheim & Read gallery in New York. The show, which opened on January 20 and is on view at its Chelsea location on 547 West 25th Street, showcases new stunning paintings by the artist from 2017 to 2021.
American Abstract painter Bill Jensen was born in 1945 in Minneapolis, MN, and began to make a name for himself in the 1970s in New York City. He studied at the University of Minnesota, where he earned both his BFA and MFA, and moved to New York in 1971. Since then, his work has been exhibited in some of the most prominent art institutions, including the New Museum, the Brooklyn Museum, the Whitney Museum of American Art ( where he was also included in the 1981 Whitney Biennial), the New Bedford Whaling Museum, the Museum of Modern Art, and MoMa PS1. His works are also in collections of the Metropolitan Museum of Art (NY), the Phillips Collection (Washington D. C.), the Art Institute of Chicago, the Tate (London), and the Los Angeles County Museum of Art, among several others. He currently lives and works in Brooklyn, New York.
Jensen is known for his unique compositions and sense of color (one will be instantly amazed by the stunning variety of hues in his works). He aims to create a world through abstraction that indirectly references feelings from the physical world. About his practice, he has stated that “What abstract art can do is put people in touch with areas of their psyche they’re not normally aware of. This world is where prejudice and wars do not exist. The I, the Me, the You, do not exist there. If you can bring people in touch with that for just a second, then you have a different way of looking at the world.” Cheim & Read states that, for Jensen, a painting is successful only when the artist’s initial impulse and his material’s properties harmoniously converge, which can sometimes take several years to achieve. “Defined by an amorphous, ever-changing search for resolution, Jensen’s results are ultimately determined by the act of painting itself.”
The collection presented in this new show continues this exploration of what is possible to achieve through painting, and the size of these pieces surpasses what he usually makes. For example, Stillness/Flowing (2021) and Blue Cupola (2020-21) are the largest works he has ever created. In addition, a double yin-yang invented by Jensen is a recurring motif in several pieces, a shape that also serves as the basis of his Wheel Rim Compass series. Themes explored in his work include Eastern religions, philosophy, poetry, the history of Italian art, and an exploration of family ties.
Bill Jensen: Stillness/Flowing opened on January 20 and runs through April 2, 2022. Jensen is a genius, and the works are some of the most breathtaking abstracts I have seen in a while. This is the perfect show for all fans of abstract art. You don’t want to miss it!
