Skip to main content

Fatal Plunge

Date
1963
Classification
Paintings
Current Location
Not on view
Dimensions
97 x 68 in. (246.4 x 172.7 cm)
Credit Line
Gift of Mr. and Mrs. Richard T. Fisher
Rights
© Jules Olitski/Licensed by ARS, New York, NY
Object Number
628:1979
NOTES
In this asymmetrical composition, an expanse of cobalt blue is balanced by a small red curve and purple dot. Jules Olitski modeled this arrangement after the shape of a woman’s breast. Olitski applied thinned acrylic paint onto a large unprimed canvas; this staining technique resulted in soft-edged shapes. Influential art critic Clement Greenberg admired Olitski’s work for its openness and flat planes of color, referring to him in 1987 as “the best painter alive.”

We regularly update records, which may be incomplete. If you have additional information, please contact us at provenance@slam.org.