Jack Bush
Curated by Karen Wilkin
Jack Bush
Red and Blue, 1961
watercolor, 26 x 31 inches
Mrs. Goldie Konopny
Jack Bush
Late Summer #1, 1961
gouache, 591⁄2 x 391⁄2 inches
Collection of Audrey and David Mirvish,
Toronto, Canada
Jack Bush
On the Way Back from Washington, 1962
gouache, 35 x 23 inches
Private Collection, Toronto, Canada
Jack Bush
Spindle, 1962
gouache, 35 x 23 inches
Private Collection, Toronto, Canada
Jack Bush
Red Sash with Black, 1962
gouache, 35 x 23 inches
Private Collection, Toronto, Canada
Jack Bush
Memory of Paris, 1962
gouache, 23 x 35 inches
Private Collection, Toronto, Canada
Jack Bush
Stripes to the Right, 1965
gouache, 29 x 23 inches
Private Collection, Toronto, Canada
Jack Bush
Nice Pink, 1965
gouache, 30 x 22 inches
Private Collection, Toronto, Canada
Jack Bush
Bitter Pink, 1965
gouache, 29-3/4 x 22 inches
Collection of Aaron Milrad
Jack Bush
Untitled, 1965
gouache, 26-1/2 x 22-1/2 inches
Robert McLaughlin Gallery, Oshawa, Canada.
Gift of the estate of Alkis Klonaridis, 1993
Jack Bush
Green, Blue Plus Some Red, 1966
gouache, 301⁄4 x 221⁄2 inches
Collection of William A. Thorsell
Jack Bush
Awkward Action, 1970
gouache, 30 x 221⁄2 inches
Private Collection, Toronto, Canada
Jack Bush
Three Off Blue, 1970
gouache, 30 x 221⁄2 inches
Private Collection, Toronto, Canada
Jack Bush
Low Red, 1970
gouache, 221⁄2 x 30 inches
Collection of Audrey and David Mirvish,
Toronto, Canada
Jack Bush
Fast Break, 1970
gouache, 221⁄2 x 30 inches
Private Collection, Toronto, Canada
Jack Bush
Blue to Three, 1970
gouache, 30 x 221⁄2 inches
Private Collection, Toronto, Canada
Jack Bush
3 Across, 3 Up, 1970
gouache, 30 x 221⁄2 inches
Private Collection, Toronto, Canada
Jack Bush
Border with Red Square, 1970
gouache, 30 x 221⁄2 inches
Private Collection, Toronto, Canada
Jack Bush
Test, 1970(plate 12)
gouache, 291⁄2 x 223⁄4 inches
Collection of Marla Milrad
Jack Bush
Apple Blossom Burst, 1971
gouache, 221⁄2 x 30 inches
Collection of Audrey and David Mirvish,
Toronto, Canada
Jack Bush
Forsythia, 1971
gouache, 30” x 221⁄2 inches
Private Collection, Toronto, Canada
Jack Bush
Falling Blossoms, 1971
gouache, 30 x 22 inches
Private Collection, Toronto, Canada
The Canadian painter Jack Bush (1909-1977) is best known for idiosyncratic abstract canvases distinguished by unpredictable orchestrations of radiant hues. These exuberant works placed him in the front ranks of the Color Field painters, along with Helen Frankenthaler, Morris Louis, Kenneth Noland, and Jules Olitski, with whom he was included in the seminal Post-Painterly Abstraction exhibition at the LA County Museum in 1964. Bush represented Canada at the São Paulo Biennal and had solo shows at the Boston Museum of Fine Arts, the Edinburgh Festival, and many other places in the U.S. and Canada.
What set Bush apart was his use of often improbable sources within his everyday experience as points of departure, translating them into an individual language of playful, energetic shapes. “What I’d really like to do,” Bush said to his friend Noland, “is hit Matisse’s ball out of the park.” “Go ahead,” Noland told him. “Matisse won’t mind at all.”
Throughout his career, Bush worked on paper for extended periods, not as a secondary activity, but anticipating, paralleling, and extending developments on canvas. Bush’s paper works are closely related to his major paintings, but they are also independent, accomplished works of art in their own right. This exhibition surveys the evolution of some of Bush’s principal themes, through a selection of his watercolors and gouaches. They allow an intimate view of his extraordinary sense of color, his generous drawing, and his odd, engaging approach to structure.
Essay »
Jack Bush on Paper: A Selection JACK BUSH(1909-1977) is best known for his large, exuberant abstract paintings on canvas: idiosyncratic com- positions distinguished by surprising shapes and unpre- dictable orchestrations of radiant hues. Works such as these assured the Toronto-based Canadian artist’s place in the front ranks of the loosely ...
Round Table »
Panelists, left to right, Joe Fyfe, Jennifer Riley, Joan Waltemath and Craig Fisher with works by Jack Bush. The panel is introduced by Gallery Director David Cohen; comments from the floor are from Karen Wilkin, guest curator of the exhibition, and others, including painters Leah Durner and Stephen Westfall. ...
Checklist »
Nice Pink, 1965, gouache, 30 x 22 inches Red and Blue, 1960, watercolor, 26 x 31 inches Late Summer #1, 1961, gouache, 591⁄2 x 391⁄2 inches On the Way Back from Washington, 1962, gouache, 35 x 23 inches Spindle, 1962, gouache, 35 x 23 inches Red Sash with Black, 1962, ...