Wall Stripes No. 3

Gene Davis, Wall Stripes No. 3, 1962, acrylic on canvas, Smithsonian American Art Museum, Gift of the artist, 1966.88.1A-G
Copied Gene Davis, Wall Stripes No. 3, 1962, acrylic on canvas, overall (7 panels): 87 1⁄2 x 108 in. (222.3 x 274.3 cm), Smithsonian American Art Museum, Gift of the artist, 1966.88.1A-G

Artwork Details

Title
Wall Stripes No. 3
Artist
Date
1962
Location
Not on view
Dimensions
overall (7 panels): 87 1⁄2 x 108 in. (222.3 x 274.3 cm)
Credit Line
Gift of the artist
Mediums
Mediums Description
acrylic on canvas
Classifications
Subjects
  • Abstract — geometric
Object Number
1966.88.1A-G
Linked Open Data
https://edan.si.edu/saam/id/object/1966.88.1A-G

Artwork Description

Davis described his modular works as architectural because they incorporated the wall on which they were hung. These works, known as "planks," may have influenced minimalist sculptor Donald Judd, who reviewed and admired them in Davis's 1963 New York gallery show.

Gene Davis: Hot Beat, 2016
Gallery Label
In Wall Stripes No. 3, slices of empty wall interrupt seven bright canvases. The arrangement sets up a staccato rhythm among the stripes and transforms the painting into a work of architecture. By the late 1950s, Davis was convinced that the splashy canvases of the abstract expressionists had become a cliché. He chose instead to make his signature stripe paintings, a motif that allowed him to concentrate on color so intense that it "almost hurt."