Guided tours for universities - Helen Frankenthaler: Painting Without Rules

The exhibition Helen Frankenthaler: Painting Without Rules represents an opportunity to get in touch with the art of one of the American artists of the second half of the 20th century who was instrumental in the transition from Abstract Expressionism to Colour Field painting. Frankenthaler’s painting expanded the boundaries of art in search of a new freedom of expression. Famous for her innovative soak-stain technique, Frankenthaler applied diluted paint on unprepared canvases, creating watercolour-like effects, but on a large scale. This approach allowed her to explore new relationships between colour, space and form, expanding the possibilities of abstract painting in a unique way, and still inspiring new generations of artists today.

The tour dedicated to students at universities and art academies is divided into a journey through the various decades of Frankenthaler’s artistic production: the 1950s with her fascination for Jackson Pollock’s action painting and the development of the new soak-stain technique, the 1960s in which affinities and influences emerged with artists of her circle including Robert Motherwell, Mark Rothko, David Smith and Anne Truitt, up to the 1990s marked by a continuous evolution of technique that led her to develop increasingly atmospheric images.

The exhibition itinerary will make it possible to explore, also through the reading of excerpts from letters and interviews, the thinking of this artist who, with great energy and constant experimentation, never stopped devoting herself to the medium of painting.

Costs and duration

The cost of the visit is € 80
Free admission for accompanying teachers.
Duration of the activity 90 minutes.
The maximum number of participants for each group is 20 people.
Groups with a larger number of students will be divided in order to facilitate the smooth running of the visit.
All activities can be conducted in different foreign languages.

The costs of the visits do not include the entrance fee (€5) and pre-sale fee (€1 per person).

The use of a sound system with earphones is compulsory: the group can use its own or request it free of charge when booking. Groups visiting the exhibition independently also need to book in advance the date and time slot for admission.

For teachers

Teachers interested in exhibition presentations and all Palazzo Strozzi activities dedicated to academies and universities can register on this form or contact the Education Department at edu@palazzostrozzi.org.