Best summed up by American painter Frank Stella, "What you see is what you see," Minimalism emerged in the late 1950s as a response to the then-dominant style of Abstract Expressionism. Minimalists weren't interested in creating works that expressed their innermost feelings, nor did they have any desire to leave behind brush strokes or drips or any other evidence of their presence. Artists like Carl Andre, Donald Judd and Robert Morris wanted viewers to experience their works without the distractions of composition, theme and other elements of traditional art, instead focusing on creating an object that could be appreciated at face value.
Minimal to the Max: The Brownstone Collection explores the impact of Minimalism via paintings, drawings, prints and sculpture created between 1962 and 1990, and collected by Gilbert and Catherine Brownstone over a 20-year period that culminated in a significant gift to the Norton Museum of Art in West Palm Beach. This exhibit, on loan from Norton, features highlights from that gift at Tampa Museum of Art. Through Dec. 17, 600 N. Ashley Drive, downtown Tampa, $8 adults/$6 seniors/$3 students, children and military personnel, 813-271-8130.
This article appears in Oct 18-24, 2006.