ARTISTS
Sven Lukin: Branches
In the 1960s, the artist Sven Lukin, a major figure of the New York avant-garde, became one of the fathers of the Shaped Canvas.
After immigrating from Latvia in 1949, Lukin received his BFA at the University of Pennsylvania in Philadelphia, where he was taught by the architect Louis Kahn, who remained one of his mentors. Lukin first exhibited at the Betty Parsons Gallery (1961), then at the Martha Jackson Gallery (1962), before being represented exclusively by Pace Gallery, where he had four solo exhibitions from 1963 until 1972, the year he decided to withdraw from the art scene. From that point on, he refused to exhibit his work at commercial galleries, all the while continuing a more intimate artistic practice.
Lukin鈥檚 best-known works date from the 1960s鈥攎inimalist paintings in relief, and abstract, colored canvases in three dimensions. These works go nearly to the point of invading space and architecture, like Lukin鈥檚 undulating wall, over 36 meters long, in green, pink, and orange鈥攁 permanent installation at the Empire State Plaza in Albany,
and still the artist鈥檚 most iconic piece.
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In the 1960s, the artist Sven Lukin, a major figure of the New York avant-garde, became one of the fathers of the Shaped Canvas.
After immigrating from Latvia in 1949, Lukin received his BFA at the University of Pennsylvania in Philadelphia, where he was taught by the architect Louis Kahn, who remained one of his mentors. Lukin first exhibited at the Betty Parsons Gallery (1961), then at the Martha Jackson Gallery (1962), before being represented exclusively by Pace Gallery, where he had four solo exhibitions from 1963 until 1972, the year he decided to withdraw from the art scene. From that point on, he refused to exhibit his work at commercial galleries, all the while continuing a more intimate artistic practice.
Lukin鈥檚 best-known works date from the 1960s鈥攎inimalist paintings in relief, and abstract, colored canvases in three dimensions. These works go nearly to the point of invading space and architecture, like Lukin鈥檚 undulating wall, over 36 meters long, in green, pink, and orange鈥攁 permanent installation at the Empire State Plaza in Albany,
and still the artist鈥檚 most iconic piece.
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