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The Kenneth E. Tyler Collection

Ellsworth Kelly’s ‘Colored paper images’

Ellsworth Kelly holding a semicircular mold for use in his ‘Coloured paper image’ series

Ellsworth Kelly holding a semicircular mold for use in his ‘Coloured paper image’ series, Tyler Graphics Ltd., Bedford Village, New York, 1976. Photograph by Betty Fiske


27 February 2013
In The Kenneth Tyler Collection

The National Gallery of Art in Washington DC is currently showing Ellsworth Kelly’s Colored paper images, created with Kenneth Tyler at the Tyler Graphics workshop in Bedford Village in 1976. We thought this was an excellent reason to take a look at the series ourselves and to bring you some images from the candid photography collection. You can find out more about the National Gallery of Art’s exhibition here.

The Colored paper images project spanned eight months and resulted in 23 works made from coloured paper pulp, shaped using metal molds. The coloured shapes on white grounds are typical of Kelly’s abstract works; however the nature of paper pulp has created a blurring that is quite different to the sharp outlines seen in his paintings and other prints. The images below illustrate the investigative process involved in creating the series.

Ellsworth Kelly and Kenneth Tyler applying coloured pulp through an image mold for a work from the ‘Coloured paper image’ series

Ellsworth Kelly and Kenneth Tyler applying coloured pulp through an image mold for a work from the ‘Coloured paper image’ series, Tyler Graphics Ltd., Bedford Village, New York, 1976. Photograph: Betty Fiske

Ellsworth Kelly spooning coloured pulp through a plastic image mold for ‘Blue/Green/Yellow/Orange/Red

Ellsworth Kelly spooning coloured pulp through a plastic image mold for ‘Blue/Green/Yellow/Orange/Red’, Tyler Graphics Ltd., Bedford Village, New York, 1976. Photograph: Betty Fiske

John Koller removing newly pressed Ellsworth Kelly ‘Coloured paper image XIII’ from felt

John Koller removing newly pressed Ellsworth Kelly ‘Coloured paper image XIII’ from felt, Tyler Graphics Ltd., Bedford Village, New York, 1976. Photographer: Betty Fiske

Tyler and Kelly worked with John and Kathleen Koller at the HMP paper mill to create over 50 different colours of paper pulp using numerous methods including powdered pigments, vinyl paint and water-based dyes. Kelly was interested in varying the colour fields in the final works and so deliberately adjusted the amount of colour bleeding and the consistency of pigment in several of the images. He also experimented with the development of the molds for his shapes using pliable metal. The resultant Colored paper images are sophisticated studies in colour and form; their mottled colour fields and blurred edges epitomise the subtleties of paper pulp.

Ellsworth Kelly and Kenneth Tyler spoon coloured pulp through a plastic image mould for ‘Colored paper image XXI’

Ellsworth Kelly and Kenneth Tyler spoon coloured pulp through a plastic image mould for ‘Colored paper image XXI’, Tyler Graphics Ltd, Bedford Village, New York, 1976. Photograph Betty Fiske

Ellsworth Kelly studying newly pressed ‘Coloured paper image XIX’

Ellsworth Kelly studying newly pressed ‘Coloured paper image XIX’, Tyler Graphics Ltd, Bedford Village, New York, 1976. Photographer: Betty Fiske

Ellsworth Kelly, Kenneth Tyler and workshop assistant spoon coloured pulp through an image mold for ‘Colored paper image’ series

Ellsworth Kelly, Kenneth Tyler and workshop assistant spoon coloured pulp through an image mold for ‘Colored paper image’ series, Tyler Graphics Ltd, Bedford Village, New York, 1976. Photograph by Betty Fiske

To learn more visit the Kenneth E. Tyler Collection website or Ellsworth Kelly's artist page.

Related


Founding of the Collection

Two men in an art workshop rolling ink onto a large rectangular stone

What happens when a talented artist experiences the creative environment of a Kenneth Tyler print workshop?

The Workshops

Close up of two male hands gesturing to artwork on a table

Tyler Biography

Man wearing sunglasses sitting in the driver's side of a red van

Kenneth E Tyler was born in East Chicago, Indiana in 1931. His family was one of the many who emigrated from Europe.

Exhibition

The Big Americans
The Art of Collaboration

A multi-colour painting of four semi-circular arcs arranged in a floral geometric pattern

4 Oct 2002—27 Jan 2003

The Kenneth E. Tyler Collection

Ellsworth Kelly, 1923–2015

Ellsworth Kelly and Kenneth Tyler spoon coloured pulp through a plastic image mould for ‘Colored paper image XXI’

Assistant Curator Julia Greenstreet discusses Ellsworth Kelly's Colored paper image series in light of his passing.

Artists

A woman in a room looking at artwork on a wall

Kenneth Tyler collaborated with leading artists working in America in the post Second World War era. He also mentored emerging artists.

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