Abstract color field painting with blue, green, and earthy tones flowing like a wash
Flood (detail), 1967, Helen Frankenthaler. Courtesy of the Helen Frankenthaler Foundation.
Lee Krasner standing in her East Hampton studio surrounded by paintings and tools
Lee Krasner in her studio, 1962. Photo by Hans Namuth, courtesy of the Guggenheim Museum Library and Archives.
Black and white portrait of Elaine de Kooning taken in 1960 by Rudy Burckhardt
Elaine de Kooning, 1960. Photo by Rudy Burckhardt, courtesy of Hyperallergic.
Helen Frankenthaler painting on the floor in her studio using thinned pigment and wide brushstrokes
Helen Frankenthaler in her studio, 1969. Photo by Ernst Haas, courtesy of the Ernst Haas Estate.
Joan Mitchell seated on the floor in her Paris studio surrounded by large abstract canvases
Joan Mitchell in her studio, 1956. Photo by Loomis Dean / The LIFE Picture Collection, courtesy of the Joan Mitchell Foundation.
CategoryMuse, Maker, Master
FocusWomen of AbEx
Period/MovementAbstract Expressionism
Image CreditSee Image Use & Legal Notice

Brushstrokes with Backbone: Women of Abstract Expressionism

Four women. One seismic shift.
Lee Krasner, Elaine de Kooning, Helen Frankenthaler, and Joan Mitchell didn’t just join the movement. They pushed it forward.

Bold women. Abstract art. No apologies.