Red Blue
Painting on canvas • Ellsworth Kelly
Style & Movement
Hard-edge abstraction; Minimalist / Color Field Painting
Medium & Technique
Oil on canvas, utilizing hard-edge painting techniques with flat, saturated color application and precise contours.
Creation Period
1963
Dimensions & Format
Approximately 90 x 65 inches; large-scale vertical rectangular portrait format.
Subject Description
A non-objective composition featuring a large, biomorphic red form set against a solid blue ground. The work explores the relationship between figure and ground, with the curving red mass appearing to push against or be contained within the rectangular blue field. There is no narrative content; the subject is the interaction of pure color and shape.
Condition & Value Assessment
Condition Assessment
Excellent; the surface appears stable, uniform, and free of visible mechanical damage or oxidation.
Estimated Market Value
$5,000,000 - $8,000,000 USD
Auction Estimate
$4,000,000 - $6,000,000 USD
Provenance History
Likely acquired from the artist or through Sidney Janis Gallery/Leo Castelli. Now held in a major institutional collection (widely associated with the San Francisco Museum of Modern Art).
Art Historical Significance
Kelly is a seminal figure in Post-Painterly Abstraction. This work is highly significant for its rejection of the gestural brushwork of Abstract Expressionism in favor of an impersonal, clear-cut geometry. It represents a pivotal moment in the 1960s where American abstraction moved toward minimalism and the objecthood of the painting.
Notable Features
The 'tension' at the edges where the red shape nearly meets the corner of the canvas; the lack of visible brushstrokes (flatness); the use of complementary colors to create a 'vibration' at the boundary of the shapes.
Condition Issues
None visible; potential concerns for any hard-edge work include corner abrasions, surface scuffing to the matte pigment, or minor craquelure if the canvas tension fluctuates.
Conservation Recommendations
Maintain strict climate control (50% RH and 70°F). Lighting should be kept at low levels to prevent pigment fading. Avoid touching the surface, as oils from hands can permanently mark the flat matte finish.