Poems

Joan Mitchell

1992

Color lithographs, letterpress, portfolio

Minneapolis Institute of Art

Abstract lines and scribbles in black, blue, gold, and teal are overlaid on a white background. Text appears below the abstract elements. Near the end of her life, Joan Mitchell was asked by legendary print publisher Ken Tyler to collaborate on a book project with the American poet and writer Nathan Kernan (born 1950). Enthusiastic about the idea, Mitchell responded with a series of eight brilliantly colored abstract illuminations. Her boldly gestural images are not literal illustrations of Kernan's poems, but instead complement the poet's vivid imagery. Gallery Not on View Anonymous Gift