Al Held: Epic Abstraction

James Fuentes, Los Angeles Los Angeles · Hollywood

Exhibition on view: May 2, 2026 - Jun 27, 2026

Epic Abstraction presents a historic survey of Al Held's pivotal works from 1959 to 1965, charting his dramatic progression from gestural abstraction to hard-edged geometric forms. The exhibition features his Collage Paintings and monumental Alphabet series, which crystallize Held's central concerns of scale, structure, and the tension between illusion and surface. Marking the first solo presentation of Held's work in Los Angeles in five decades, this exhibition demonstrates how the artist systematically stripped away expressionist brushwork to achieve increasingly potent elemental forms that toggle between graphic signs and dimensional objects.

Artist

Al Held

Al Held (1928-2005) was a leading American abstract painter whose work transformed geometric abstraction in the postwar era. Born in Brooklyn, New York, he studied at the Art Students League and later in Paris, where he developed a lifelong commitment to abstraction. Held first gained recognition in the 1950s with expressive Abstract Expressionist paintings before shifting toward bold geometric forms and large-scale compositions. By the 1960s and 1970s, he became known for monumental canvases that explored space, perspective, and visual perception through vibrant color and complex structures. A longtime professor at Yale University, Held influenced generations of artists. His work is held in major museum collections worldwide and remains a landmark in modern American art.

Works

Artworks in this exhibition