Orange and Blue Over Yellow
27 x 38.5 in (68.6 x 97.8 cm) including frame
This lithograph is part of the landmark Suite of Twenty-Seven Color Lithographs published by Maeght Éditeur in Paris in 1964. This series is historically significant as it marked Kelly’s first major venture into printmaking, a collaboration that allowed him to translate the scale and clarity of his Hard-edge paintings into a graphic medium. Maeght was one of the most prestigious print publishers in Europe, and this project helped cement Kelly's international reputation during his transition from his years living in France back to the United States.
In Orange and Blue Over Yellow, Kelly utilizes the flat, saturated ink of the lithographic process to explore the interaction between primary geometric forms. The tension between the rigid rectangle and the organic oval—set against a solid field of yellow—demonstrates his interest in how color can define space without the need for perspective or shading. As an artist, Kelly's importance lies in this radical simplification; he treated the shapes themselves as the "subject" of the work.
Ellsworth Kelly
1923 - 2015
Ellsworth Kelly was a significant American painter, sculptor, and printmaker, recognized for his foundational contributions to hard-edge painting, Color Field painting, and Minimalism. Born on May 31, 1923, in Newburgh, New York, Kelly served in the United States Army during World War II from 1943 to 1945. Following his military service, he pursued formal art education at the School of the Museum of Fine Arts in Boston, where he studied from 1946 to 1948.
In 1948, Kelly moved to Paris under the G.I. Bill. During his six years in France, he engaged with the European avant-garde and studied the works of artists such as Jean Arp, Constantin Brancusi, and Henri Matisse. This period proved formative, as he began to transition away from figurative art toward an emphasis on pure form, line, and color. It was during this time that he began experimenting with the multi-panel and shaped canvases that would define much of his later practice.
Kelly returned to the United States in 1954, settling in New York City. He became associated with a generation of artists who moved away from the gestural techniques of Abstract Expressionism in favor of structured, objective abstraction. His work focused on the relationship between color and the physical space occupied by the artwork. He explored the use of monochrome panels and the reduction of subject matter to essential geometric shapes, often inspired by his observations of both the built and natural environments.
Throughout his career, Kelly maintained an extensive exhibition history at major public institutions. His work is included in the permanent collections of numerous international museums, including the National Gallery of Canada, the Museum of Modern Art in New York, and the Tate in London. He was elected a member of the American Academy of Arts and Letters in 1996. Kelly continued to produce work until his death on December 27, 2015, in Spencertown, New York.