Thaw III
Artist
Theodoros Stamos
American, 1922–1997
Date1950
MediumOil on pressed wood board
Dimensions20 x 24 in. (50.8 x 61 cm)
Frame: 25 3/4 x 29 3/4 in. (65.4 x 75.6 cm)
Frame: 25 3/4 x 29 3/4 in. (65.4 x 75.6 cm)
ClassificationsPaintings
Credit LineBequest of Fannie and Alan Leslie
Object number2006.21.18
On View
On viewThrough the study of Chinese painting and Taoist philosophy, Theodoros Stamos arrived at a contemplative mode of abstract painting in which colors are muted and objects less distinct, almost veiled. In paintings such as Thaw III, the urgent, unchecked emotions that animate so much of abstract expressionist painting are calmed. Though modest in size, this painting evokes a cosmos in which light and dark revolve in equilibrium around a vortex.ProvenanceGump's Gallery, San Francisco, CA, 1957; Russel Padget, Beverly Hills, CA; Darryl Turner, Los Angeles, CA; Heritage Gallery, Los Angeles, CA; sold to Fannie and Alan Leslie, Palm Springs, CA, 1986; bequeathed to NCMA, 2006.Exhibition HistoryPossibly New York, NY, Betty Parsons Gallery, one-man exhibition, 1950 or 1951.
San Francisco, CA, Gump's Gallery, March 4-30, 1957.
Los Angeles, CA, Heritage Gallery, n.d.
Raleigh, NC, North Carolina Museum of Art, “Modern American Paintings from the Bequest of Fannie and Alan Leslie,” November 25, 2007–September 6, 2009.
Laurel, MS, Lauren Rogers Museum of Art, “What Lies Beneath: Masonite and American Art of the 20th Century,” August 13–November 17, 2019.
Raleigh, NC, North Carolina Museum of Art, "The People's Collection, Reimagined," April 11, 2023–present. Object Rights Statement
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Eastman Johnson
