Lee Krasner

Charcoal Studies presents a series of figurative charcoals made by Lee Krasner (1908-84) from 1937 to 1940 under the tutelage of Hans Hofmann that would become seminal to the artist's career. In 1977, Krasner demonstrated the relevance of these charcoal works in a brilliant late series of collage paintings in which she repurposed a large number of her Hofmann School drawings. Fortunately, Krasner did not destroy all the drawings. Fifty of these are included in her 1995 catalogue raisonné; another portfolio with 20 more (including four previously unknown still lifes) has recently come to light. Charcoals includes the never-before-published works as well as updated research and text to serve as a complete listing of all surviving Hofmann School charcoal sketches and as a definitive reference on this pivotal period within Krasner's oeuvre.