Sulfur Sails
1969
Image not available — this artwork is under copyright
View on museum website →Medium
color lithograph on Rives wove paper
Dimensions
sheet: 66.3 x 97.6 cm (26 1/8 x 38 7/16 in.)
Classification
Department
CG-W
Museum
National Gallery of Art, Washington, D.C.
Credit
Gift of Dorothy J. and Benjamin B. Smith
Accession Number
1983.18.489
Art Historical Context
**Sulfur Sails** (1969) is a vibrant color lithograph by Sam Francis, the renowned American Abstract Expressionist painter and printmaker (1923–1994). Created on luxurious Rives wove paper, this large sheet measures 66.3 x 97.6 cm, showcasing Francis's mastery of bold, luminous colors and fluid forms. Acquired as a gift from Dorothy J. and Benjamin B. Smith for the National Gallery of Art's modern prints collection, it exemplifies the gallery's commitment to postwar American abstraction. Francis, influenced by Action Painting and Color Field traditions, often evoked cosmic energy and natural ...
About the Artist
Sam Francis
Samuel Lewis Francis (1923–1994), one of the most innovative Abstract Expressionists of the post-World War II era, was born in San Mateo, California, to Samuel Augustus Francis Sr. and Katherine Lewis Francis, who died when he was twelve; he formed a close bond with his stepmother, Virginia Peterson Francis. A promising student at San Mateo High School, Francis initially pursued botany, medicine, ...