LOUISVILLE, Ky. (WAVE) – Abstract Expressionists: The Women opens May 16, at the Speed Art Museum, marking Kentucky’s first exhibition devoted to Abstract Expressionism.
The show spotlights the bold, innovative women who helped define the movement that reshaped American art in the mid-20th century. These are artists whose stories have often been overshadowed by better-known names like Jackson Pollock and Willem de Kooning.
On view through August 30, the exhibition features work by 30+ major artists, including Helen Frankenthaler, Joan Mitchell, Vivian Springford, Grace Hartigan, and Lee Krasner. Visitors will experience these up close, emphasizing the movement’s energy, emotion, and physicality.
Building on the museum’s recent women-focused exhibitions, the show examines post-World War II America through the 1970s, a period of experimentation that produced the first truly avant-garde art movement born in the United States. Highlights range from Frankenthaler’s Circus Landscape (1951) to Springford’s Scuba Series (1972–1984/5), alongside archival photos, historical documents, and a timeline of women’s artistic achievement to add context.
Organized by the American Federation of Arts from the Christian Levett Collection and FAMM (Female Artists of the Mougins Museum), France, the exhibition is curated by Dr. Ellen G. Landau. The Speed’s presentation is organized by Tyler Blackwell, Curator of Contemporary Art, and is accompanied by Abstraction, Continued: Recent Paintings from the Speed Art Museum Collection. Tickets will be available soon. Visit the Speed Art Museum website here.
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