A couple of random art-world trajectories converged for me last week. I happened to be on a panel at Independent 20th Century with dealers Nick Olney and Martha Campbell, talking about female abstract expressionists. It was, of course, a timely topic due to the opening of Krasner and Pollock: Past Continuous at the Met last week. Nick represents the Krasner estate, and Martha, along with her gallery partner, Christine Berry, has played a central role in the greater visibility of many of the female abstract expressionists. Even though the Met’s new show has gone down a bomb, there’s still a huge gulf between the most recognizable names from that era—Joan Mitchell, Helen Frankenthaler, and Krasner—and painters who have achieved some passing name recognition, like Elaine de Kooning or Lynne Drexler, and those like Ethel Schwabacher, Perle Fine, and Mercedes Matter, who remain, for all intents and purposes, largely unknown.
Over in Chelsea, Martha and Christine’s gallery, Berry Campbell, is showing Perle Fine paintings from roughly the same period. Here, too, you can see a transition from surrealist shapes to the beginnings of color-field. Berry Campbell also has some nice recent works by Susan Vecsey, who also happens to have a show at the Pollock-Krasner House in East Hampton, somewhat completing the circle.
— Marion Maneker, PUCK
