Originally scheduled to open in June 2020 and postponed because of concerns about the subject matter of some of the paintings, this exhibition works by Philip Guston – organised by the MFA Boston, the Museum of Fine Arts, Houston, the National Gallery of Art, Washington, D.C and Tate Modern – opens in Boston this Sunday (1 May–11 September) . Gathering together 73 paintings and 27 drawings from across the artist’s 50-year career, the show emphasises that Guston’s work should be seen through the lens of his commitment to uncovering the histories of oppression and anti-Semitism. Highlights include Painting, Smoking, Eating (1973), a self-portrait of the artist lying in bed, smoking, with a plate of French fries balanced on his chest, and The Studio (1969) which notoriously depicts a hooded Klansman-like figure at an easel.
Preview below | View Apollo’s Art Diary here
Open Window (1969), Philip Guston. Private collection. Photo: Hauser & Wirth; © The Estate of Philip Guston
Tower (1970), Philip Guston. Private Collection. Photo: courtesy Hauser & Wirth; © The Estate of Philip Guston
Couple in Bed (1977), Philip Guston. The Art Institute of Chicago. Photo: Hauser & Wirth; © The Estate of Philip Guston
Painting, Smoking, Eating (detail; 1973), Philip Guston. Stedelijk Museum, Amsterdam. Photo: Hauser & Wirth; © The Estate of Philip Guston