Green/Black (1972)

Ellsworth Kelly

Ellsworth Kelly was a leading artist in the Hard Edge movement, a reaction against the Abstract Expressionist movement of the 1950’s. His paintings are very concise and simple, often consisting of several panels, each of a different color. Kelly was also one of the first artists to use a shaped canvas. Kelly abstracts the forms in his work from observations of the real world, such as shadows cast by trees or the spaces between architectural elements.