MILTON AVERY | PALE NUDE

The artist

Estate of the above

[with]Grace Borgenicht Gallery, New York

Gallery Gemini, Palm Beach, Florida, 1981

Private collection, by 1989

Arij Gasiunasen Fine Art of Palm Beach, Inc., Palm Beach, Florida

Probably acquired by the present owner from the above

Painted in 1963, Milton Avery's Pale Nude exemplifies the artist's mature interest in simplified compositional designs unified by form, color, and surface. In the present work, Avery's reclining nude is surrounded by distinct planar regions of blue and green. Avery delineates the figure with simple gray strokes that outline the form, which is evoked through a single plane of color. This work demonstrates the artist's mastery of the formal qualities of painting through his modulated use of color and flattened shapes, which suggest moods that attune to the viewer’s consciousness. Color is the vehicle of expression, organizing space and indicating depth. In Pale Nude, Avery proves that figurative painting can exist purely through harmonal tonalities and simplified form.