Unwrapping Briggs

July 2, 2022 - November 27, 2022

curated by:

Matthew Cohen

The Anita Shapolsky Art Foundation is proud to present Unwrapping Briggs,  a retrospective of Ernest Briggs work between the 1950s and 80s and featuring pieces unwrapped, unframed, and unseen for well over three decades.

Born in San Francisco in 1923, Briggs studied under Clyfford Still and Mark Rothko at the California School of Fine Arts in San Francisco. The faculty, assembled by Douglas MacAgy, also included Ad Reinhardt and David Park. After moving to New York in 1953, Briggs began exhibiting at Stable Gallery and participated in several Whitney Museum Annuals. In 1956 he was included in the Museum of Modern Art’s exhibition “12 Americans” curated by Dorothy Miller.

Described as a second-generation Abstract Expressionist, Briggs’ oeuvre calls attention to the act of painting itself. His work shows both dynamism and discord within his use of strong, thick brush strokes, lyrical colors, as well as wild displays of emotion. Later works found balance within the use of linear and geometric forms.