Shards III, 1982

Frank Stella is one of the most highly-regarded living post-war American artists. Moved by a deep rejection of the Abstract Expressionist movement, he set the basis for a new minimalist and post-painterly abstract aesthetic. Stella is mostly acclaimed for fiercely defending the picture as the object of interest in itself, rather than as a medium of representation of a literary or emotional narrative. His compositions are not meant to be more than flat surfaces with paint on it. Stella’s work features a wide range of colors, typically arranged in straight or curved lines forming geometrical patterns. In his latest works, the artist surpassed the flat canvas to introduce relief to his art, producing monumental free-standing sculptures.

Shards III is one of the five lithographs composing Stella’s Shards series. In these works, he uses leftovers or “shards” of his earlier Circuits and Polar Coordinates series to create new pieces with spectacular depth and sumptuous textures. The hypnotic grid systems and undulating lines echo the criss-cross of the deconstructed pantograph. Frank Stella is considered one of the most influential artists in the contemporary art world for his revolutionary approach to materials and to the printmaking medium.