Allan Stone Gallery Extends the Exhibition Alfred Leslie/John Chamberlain: Collage

NEW YORK, NY.- The Allan Stone Gallery extends the exhibition Alfred Leslie / John Chamberlain: Collage through January 22nd, 2011. The exhibition features 15 early works from both artists, spanning the ten years from 1951-1961.

Leslie is best known for his expansive abstract canvases, experimental films, and precisionist nude paintings. Chamberlain, the king of 60s and 70s sculpture, is famous for his polychromatic car part assemblage. Both artists are now considered giants of the post-war era, easily recognizable for their signature, disparate styles.

By returning to an earlier age, Collage provides a unique historical and visual context. In these works one sees the formation of two distinctive personalities, emerging from the crucible of abstract expressionism. Leslie’s collages serve as small but powerful counterparts to his larger canvases. Chamberlain’s, through his use of staples and cardboard, intimate his sculptures of the same era.

Chamberlain’s painterly experimentation is transformed by his discovery of found materials. Drawn and painted works from the late 50s utilize a range of medium to concussive effect, prefiguring his use of collaged paper. Similarly, his untitled collage from 1961 possesses the same formal quality of his metal assemblages, rendered intimate by scale and material. By viewing the compositional and material experimentation of both artists in tandem it is possible to see that which might not otherwise reveal itself. It is thusly that Collage functions as a parallel narrative, opening a dialogue that explores an extraordinary moment of early confluence between two of America’s major post-war artists.