Afternoon Paintings

Veteran abstractionist Stanley Whitney explores more intimately scaled canvases in this deluxe slipcased overview of recent works

New York–based painter Stanley Whitney (born 1946) is known for his vivid multicolored abstract paintings, with stacked irregular rectangles of color in a loose grid composition on square-format canvases.

In this new slipcased volume, featuring a unique design with 12 gatefolds, Whitney extends his trademark style to a smaller scale. He produces his smaller “afternoon paintings” with the leftover paint after completing a large painting. These works express Whitney’s dedication to the consistency of his painting, which he likens to athletic training or the “wood-shedding” that jazz musicians invoke when describing time spent honing their improvisatory skills behind closed doors.

Featuring an introductory essay by writer and critic Lynne Tillman, this book provides an intimate, expressive glimpse into the mind of a master when he is “more relaxed, more loose, more carefree.”