Our new series ‘Icons’ presents extraordinary masterpieces from celebrated 20th-Century artists and groundbreaking creations direct from the studios of leading contemporary artists.
‘Ode to Andy: For Andy Warhol’ (1986) showcases Jack Whitten’s pioneering approach to painting and abstraction. The work is an outstanding example of Whitten’s famous memorial paintings and innovative ‘acrylic collage.’
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Jack Whitten
Ode To Andy: For Andy Warhol
- 1986
- Acrylic on canvas
- 243.8 x 208.3 x 5.1 cm / 96 x 82 x 2 in
The artist made multiple works in homage to his friends, colleagues, and his heroes, ranging from Miles Davis to Malcolm X. Here, he pays tribute to Andy Warhol, whom he met in New York during the 1960s.
‘I maintain that abstraction is a symbol. It’s very much like holding a camera. I can direct it toward any symbol that I choose. As a painter, I have to locate that symbol in the paint, as opposed to giving an illustrated narrative. The narrative content and the figure are still in there—they’re built into the paint.’
Jack Whitten
In ‘Ode to Andy: For Andy Warhol’ casts of chicken wire, bubble wrap and brickwork are layered and tessellated into a richly textured, ash-grey surface, surrounded by energetic strokes of color.
‘People are the catalysts,’ Jack Whitten in conversation with Richard Shiff and Mark Rappolt, Hauser & Wirth London, 2017
In March 2025, The Museum of Modern Art (MoMA) will open ‘Jack Whitten: The Messenger,’ the first comprehensive retrospective dedicated to the groundbreaking American artist.
About the artist
Born in Bessemer, Alabama in 1939, Jack Whitten is celebrated for his innovative processes of applying paint to the surface of his canvases and transfiguring their material terrains. Although Whitten initially aligned with the New York circle of abstract expressionists active in the 1960s, his work gradually distanced from the movement's aesthetic philosophy and formal concerns, focusing more intensely on the experimental aspects of process and technique that came to define his practice.
Opening soon in London
On view 7 October 2024, ‘Jack Whitten’ focuses on the artist’s paintings and works on paper from the 1970s, showcasing a juncture in Whitten’s painting career, which saw him reject the gestural brushstrokes of abstract expressionism in favor of experimental processes and materials.
[1] Jack Whitten, quoted in Richard Shiff, ‘Jack Whitten: Cosmic Soul,’ Zurich/CH: Hauser & Wirth Publishers, 2017, p. 48.
[2] Kathryn Kanjo, Robert Storr, Quincy Troupe, ‘Jack Whitten. Five Decades of Painting,’ San Diego CA: Museum of Contemporary Art San Diego, 2015, p. 23.
[3] Jack Whitten, quoted in Katy Siegel, ‘Odyssey: Jack Whitten Sculpture, 1963–2017,’ New York NY: Gregory R. Miller & Co, 2018, p. 168.
[4] Jack Whitten quoted in ‘Jack Whitten. More Dimensions Than You Know,’ https://www.hauserwirth.com/hauser-wirth-exhibitions/5876-more-dimensions-than-you-know-jack-whitten-1979-1989/ (accessed 22 July 2024).
[5] Jack Whitten, quoted in Katy Siegel, ‘Odyssey: Jack Whitten Sculpture, 1963–2017,’ New York NY: Gregory R. Miller & Co, 2018, p. 168.
Portraits: Jack Whitten in the studio with ‘Atopolis,’ 2014 © Jack Whitten Estate. Photo: John Berens;
Jack Whitten in his 40 Crosby Street Studio in New York NY with paintings from the following series: ‘The Annunciation,’ ‘Ascension’, ‘DNA’, ‘Formal Relay’, ‘Persian Echo,’ 1979 © Jack Whitten Estate