Lee and Me - An Intimate Portrait of Lee Krasner - Grand Format

From "defiant" to "courageous," the American Abstract Expressionist artist Lee Krasner (1908-1984) evoked intense and mixed responses. The subject of this very personal memoir inspired by Ruth Appelhof's 1974 summer living with her in East Hampton, Long Island, Krasner is best remembered by many as Jackson Pollock's widow. However, art-world insiders more often view her as the producer of major work that has influenced the evolution of contemporary art - in particular, that made by women in the 20th and 21st centuries.
As a scholar and a friend, Appelhof re-examines Krasner's contributions in light of the intellectual and emotional experiences that she so candidly shared with her over the course of weeks of interviews. In over one hundred interviews, Appelhof also explores the artist's rich and complicated relationships with friends, colleagues, art-world luminaries, and most revealingly, a lively and diverse group of so-called "summer sitters" - people she admitted into her private sanctuary.
These recollections open a window into the artist's intense and idiosyncratic personal life and explore her groundbreaking contributions produced over more than six decades. Appelhof's candid recollections touch on Krasner's work over a lifetime, paintings she claimed were all portraits of herself - that is, powerful translations of her psyche. From insights into her feelings of rejection by her family to the way she was able to support Pollock while also promoting herself, we witness her terror over the "monster" dream that haunted her throughout her life.
Much of this story provides a fresh look at the artist's struggle and eventual achievement of success. It also is a tragic tale about Krasner's fear of being alone and her resentment of her recognition coming "too late." Particularly fascinating are the personalities in her life who played vital roles in her evolution. The friendships with Arshile Gorky, John Graham, Willem de Kooning, Harold Rosenberg, Hans Hofmann and her knowledge of modern art that she shared with Jackson Pollock contributed to his creative development as well as to hers.
Throughout her tumultuous career, Krasner had many friends and perhaps even more enemies. The people who aligned themselves with her in later years, many of whom were women she inspired, helped foster her recognition. Of particular importance was the art historian Barbara Rose, who organized Krasner's retrospective, opening in Houston in 1982, traveling to other venues and finally opening at the Museum of Modern Art in 1984.
Tragically, Krasner's life-long wish to have a one-person exhibition at MoMA, did come about, but she did not live to witness it.