Two masterworks. Two radically different visions of abstraction.
Kenneth Noland’s Circle (1958) and Joan Mitchell’s Loom II emerge from the same postwar artistic language, yet move in entirely opposite directions. Noland creates a tightly controlled “one shot” painting — concentric bands of color radiating outward with hypnotic precision and centrifugal force. Mitchell, by contrast, builds a boundless field of gesture and sensation, translating landscape, light and memory into sweeping strokes of color that pulse with movement and life.
Offered from the collection of Jennifer Gilbert to benefit Lumina, her forthcoming foundation in Detroit’s Little Village, these works reflect a pivotal moment in postwar abstraction — and a belief in supporting the next generation of artists. Circle and Loom II will be offered in Sotheby’s Contemporary Evening Auction, presented by CELINE, live in New York on 14 May 2026.
