{"id":30209,"date":"2026-07-12T10:22:14","date_gmt":"2026-07-12T08:22:14","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/www.femininemoments.dk\/blog\/?p=30209"},"modified":"2026-07-12T10:35:49","modified_gmt":"2026-07-12T08:35:49","slug":"betty-parsons-an-expanded-world","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/www.femininemoments.dk\/blog\/betty-parsons-an-expanded-world\/","title":{"rendered":"Betty Parsons: An Expanded World"},"content":{"rendered":"

Press Release courtesy of Alexander Gray Associates<\/em><\/p>\n

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Betty Parsons: An Expanded World<\/a>
\nHessel Museum of Art, Bard College, USA
\nJune 27 – October 18, 2026<\/p>\n

The exhibition is will be the artist\u2019s largest and most comprehensive survey to date. It features approximately 100 works spanning painting, sculpture, and works on paper, tracing Parsons\u2019 voluminous output as she evolved from a young academic painter to a mature abstractionist over a six-decade career. A newly commissioned, multi-channel film will bring to life the largely unknown history of the Betty Parsons Gallery. This exhibition centers Betty Parsons<\/a> (1900-1982) output as a painter and sculptor, while exploring the radical history of the Betty Parsons Gallery and its support of underrecognized, experimental artists.<\/p>\n

Press release<\/h2>\n

Betty Parsons: An Expanded World<\/em> is the first major retrospective to examine the intertwined legacies of Betty Parsons (1900 – 1982) as both pioneering abstract artist and trailblazing gallerist who shaped the trajectory of 20th century American art.<\/p>\n

Best known for ushering in the American avant-garde by establishing the careers of Barnett Newman, Mark Rothko, and Jackson Pollock, among others, Parsons also maintained a dedicated artistic practice throughout her life. This exhibition centers her output as a painter and sculptor, while exploring the radical history of the Betty Parsons Gallery and its support of underrecognized, experimental artists.<\/p>\n

Organized by Kelly Taxter (CCS \u201803) with artist Amy Sillman, Betty Parsons: An Expanded World<\/em><\/a> features approximately 80 works spanning painting, sculpture, and works on paper, tracing Parsons\u2019 voluminous output as she evolved from a young academic painter to a mature abstractionist over a six-decade career. A revelatory and newly commissioned, multi-channel film by G. Anthony Svatek and Kaija Siirala will bring to life the largely unknown history of the Betty Parsons Gallery.<\/p>\n

While Parsons exhibited her work years before opening her gallery in 1946, her artistic output has remained largely underrecognized. An Expanded World<\/em> charts the full range of Parsons\u2019 output from 1922 to 1982, looking at how early watercolors led to developments in abstractions; a prolific 1960s and 70s that expanded her practice to include prismatically hued sculptures; and an evolution into a mature, skillful painter who continued to explore oddball color combinations and compositions through the end of her life.<\/p>\n

The exhibition also revisits the significant history and lesser-known figures of the Betty Parsons Gallery, credited for nearly single-handedly ushering in the American avant-garde. Though Parsons launched the careers of many major Abstract Expressionists, including Adolph Gottlieb, Barnett Newman, Clyfford Still, Mark Rothko, and Jackson Pollock, many of these predominantly male artists left after growing frustrated by her minimal interest in the market and ceaseless search for the new and undiscovered. She remained devoted to artists who were excluded by galleries and major arts institutions at the time, including Agnes Martin, Forrest Bess, Robert Rauschenberg, Ellsworth Kelly, Leon Polk Smith, Sonja Sekula, and Barbara Chase-Riboud, all of whom went on to great acclaim. Parsons also made efforts to present Indigenous art during her lifetime, recognizing its foundational importance to the artists of her generation.<\/p>\n

Through the works on view\u2014presented in tandem with the new film, featuring firsthand recollections by Parsons herself and the artists she exhibited\u2014a deeply curious and restless woman is revealed. Betty Parsons: An Expanded World<\/em> considers how she was continually propelled towards what she called \u201cthe expanding world,\u201d a theme informed by her understanding of American modernism and reflected in her practices as both an artist and art dealer.<\/p>\n

More information on Betty Parsons<\/a> and Betty Parsons: An Expanded World<\/a><\/em><\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"

Betty Parsons: An Expanded World
\nHessel Museum of Art, Bard College; USA
\nJune 27 – October 18, 2026<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":1,"featured_media":30213,"comment_status":"closed","ping_status":"closed","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"footnotes":""},"categories":[449,1466,19],"tags":[1387],"class_list":["post-30209","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","hentry","category-lesbian-art-herstory","category-northeastern-united-states","category-painting","tag-betty-parsons"],"aioseo_notices":[],"aioseo_head":"\n\t\t\n\t\n\t\n\t\n\t\n\t\n\t\t\n\t\t\n\t\t\n\t\t\n\t\t\n\t\t\n\t\t\n\t\t\n\t\t\n\t\t\n\t\t\n\t\t