Bidspirit auction | Frank Stella ”Polar Co-Ordinates I”

Frank Stella ”Polar Co-Ordinates I” Lithograph - Frank Stella (1936-2024). Lithograph and screenprint in colors on Arches Cover paper titled ”Polar Co-Ordinates I, ” from the ”Polar Co-Ordinates for Ronnie Peterson” series, 1980. Published by Petersburg Press. Pencil signed, dated, and editioned 40/100 along the lower left. Lot Essay: By the age of 25, Stella was already being recognized for his talents, being included in ”Three Young Americans” at the Allen Memorial Art Museum at Oberlin College as well as ”Sixteen Americans” at the Museum of Modern Art in New York, all before 1960. By 1961, he had moved on from illusionistic space to flat and often irregular shapes, which would become his artistic signature. His works became increasingly minimalistic during this time, though he would extend into three-dimensional space in the 1970s and 80s, which he would self-describe as maximalist. In addition to numerous solo and group exhibitions throughout the world, his works are held in the collections of prestigious institutions such as the Hirshhorn Museum, the Whitney, the Toledo Museum of Art, LACMA, the Guggenheim, MoMA, and many others. In 2009, he was awarded the National Medal of Arts by President Barack Obama. The 1980 ”Polar Co-ordinates for Ronnie Peterson” series is comprised of eight lithographs and two variants. The series illuminates dynamic intersecting lines creating complex quatrefoil geometric forms. The title of the series honors Stella's close friend Ronnie Peterson, a Swedish racing driver who tragically succumbed to injuries he sustained in a crash during the 1978 Italian Grand Prix. Sight; height: 37 1/2 in x width: 38 1/2 in. Framed; height: 50 3/4 in x width: 49 3/4 in x depth: 1 1/4 in. Condition: The colors are bold and bright. There are no visible tears or losses. Floated in frame atop a non-acidic mat. Framed under plexiglass. Light wear to the frame. Not inspected out of frame.