"MY PAINTING IS WORKING WITHIN TENSIONS OF PARADOX, AMBIGUITY, DUALITY AND CONTRADICTION. IT IS NOT ON ONE SIDE OR THE OTHER, IT IS THOSE POLARITIES UNITED. THIS IS THE TOTALITY AND THE FULLNESS. THE MEANING CANNOT BE EXPRESSED IN WORDS ALONE: IT IS A FEELING, A SENSE, AN EXPERIENCE, A JOY, AN IDEA."
Ann Purcell is a distinguished abstract artist whose work is widely represented in museums across the United States. Known for her exploration of paradox, ambiguity, and duality, Purcell's approach merges gestural and analytical techniques in painting, collage, and works on paper. Her art, influenced by dance, music, and European and American Expressionist traditions, has been praised for its "fluidity with a vast range of idioms" by Jane Livingston, Chief Curator at the Corcoran Gallery.
Purcell studied independently in Mexico and earned her B.A. from Corcoran College of Art and Design and George Washington University in 1973, followed by an M.A. from New York University in 1995. Her career was shaped by influential figures such as Gene Davis and Jacob Kainen, and she drew inspiration from Robert Motherwell and other modernists.
Purcell's most notable series—Caravan, inspired by the landscape and culture of Provincetown; White Space, which explores the interplay of absence and presence; Lagniappe, drawing on the concept of small, unexpected gifts; and Kali Poem, influenced by May Sarton's poem to the Hindu goddess—showcase how an innovative use of color and form can give way to thematic depth.
Exhibited widely, Purcell's work has been featured in solo shows at venues like Tibor de Nagy Gallery and group exhibitions at Albright-Knox Art Gallery in Buffalo, New York and the National Museum of Women in the Arts in Washington, D.C. Her work has been recognized with grants from prestigious foundations such as the Pollock-Krasner Foundation and the Joan Mitchell Foundation. Her work is held in prominent collections, including the National Gallery of Art and the Phillips Collection, both in Washington, D.C.