“Thornton Willis: A Painting Survey, Six Decades, 1967–2017” at David Richard Gallery, Chelsea (through May 6) and Harlem (through May 13): A major survey of the paintings of Thornton Willis, now at David Richard Gallery across its two New York locations, makes a case for the inclusion of Willis in the pantheon of American abstract art. With over twenty major works on view from the artist’s collection, some of them not shown outside the studio for several decades, “Thornton Willis: A Painting Survey, Six Decades, 1967–2017” brings together highlights from each of Willis’s series of abstract compositions. Working across more than six decades, Willis has been consistent in his abstract exploration of the basic tensions between figure and ground, push and pull, color and contrast, and surface and depth—visiting and revisiting his visual language. David Richard’s Chelsea location includes a tight arrangement of these medium-size paintings, while the gallery’s Harlem venue gathers Willis’s largest works, topping out at over ten feet wide. Taken together, the full energy of these paintings is now ready to be felt and seen. —JP

Associated Artist

• Thornton Willis

Associated Exhibitions

• Thornton Willis A Painting Survey, Six Decades: 1967 – 2017
  
  526 West 26th Street, Suite 9E
  March 30, 2022 - May 19, 2022
  MORE INFO
• Thornton Willis A Painting Survey, Six Decades: 1967 – 2017
  
  UPTOWN LOCATION
  April 4, 2022 - May 13, 2022
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Associated News

• May 12, 2022
  Thornton Willis: A Painting Survey, Six Decades: 1967–2017
  The Brooklyn Rail
  By Tom McGlynn
  May 12, 2022
  


• May 1, 2022
  “Thornton Willis: A Painting Survey, Six Decades, 1967–2017”
  Gallery chronicle
  by James Panero
  May 2022
  
  


• April 28, 2022
  Thornton Willis’s Aversion to Perfection
  Hyperallergic
  John Yau
  April 28, 2022
  


• April 12, 2022
  The Critic’s Notebook
  by The Editors
  On the American Revolution, Thornton Willis, Charleston, Richard Strauss & more.
  Dispatch April 12, 2022 10:30 am
  
  


• April 10, 2022
  Thornton Willis, Illuminating the Future of Abstract Art
  New York Sun
  Dana Gordon
  April 10, 2022
  
  


• April 5, 2022
  Thornton Willis: A Painting Survey Six Decades: Works from 1967 - 2017
  GalleriesNow
  April 5, 2022
  
  


• March 30, 2022
  Thornton Willis: A Painting Survey Six Decades: Works from 1967 - 2017
  GalleriesNow
  April 5, 2022
  


• March 26, 2022
  Press Release - Thornton Willis A Painting Survey, Six Decades: Works from 1967 – 2017


• September 1, 2003
  An Interview with Artist Thornton Willis
  Julie Karabenick
  GeoForm
  September 2003