More than Gorky’s Muse – Michael (Corinne) West @ Art Resource Group

Hi everyone,  I am back from my travels (it's great to be back in the OC) and have lots to share. Some of you probably know what a huge supporter I am of female artists, so in honor of supporting my peeps I suggest you put this one in your calendar. . .   see you there!

 Michael Corinne West

Iguana, 1964 Painting, oil on canvas 50"x35" 

Michael
Corinne West: More than Gorky's Muse

Art
Resource Group presents premiere exhibition of Michael (Corrine) West, Gorky's fellow artist and
confidante, to coincide with 'Arshile Gorky: A Retrospective' at Museum of
Contemporary Art Los Angeles

On view
from June 5- September 30, 2010 

Opening
Reception : Friday June 4, 2010   5-8pm

A new
look at the courageous innovations of one of Abstract Expressionism's unsung
talents

Newport
Beach, CA – Art Resource Group is pleased to present Michael Corinne West:
More than Gorky's Muse from June 5 through September 30,
2010.  This will be the first West Coast solo exhibition of works of art
by Michael Corinne West, a mid-20^th
century American artist who was a participant in the onset of Abstract
Expressionism, but whose contributions to art history have been largely
overlooked.

Art
Resource Group has assembled a comprehensive selection of West's paintings,
drawings and poetry to exhibit in retrospective format, accompanied by an
illustrated catalogue.  The exhibition will run concurrently with Arshile
Gorky: A Retrospective, a major summer art event at the Museum of
Contemporary Art, Los Angeles.

Michael
West (1908-1991) was an active figure in the avant-garde New York School,
instrumental in the development of Abstract Expressionism. She made an
exceptional contribution as one of the early proponents of Abstract
Expressionism or Action Painting through her artwork, poetry, and friendships
with the many other early members of the New York School. 

The
Abstract Expressionist movement was decidedly dominated by males. It was with Arshile Gorky's (Armenian-born American Abstract Expressionist Painter, 1904-1948) encouragement that Corinne West changed her name to Michael in 1941,
hoping to find more opportunities in the art world under a masculine name, as
did her contemporaries Grace (George) Hartigan and Lenore (Lee)
Krasner.  West also turned down Gorky's repeated marriage proposals: she
knew that such a union would mean forgoing her own artistic career, a
sacrifice she could not make. 

Give Miriam Smith a call if you have any questions (949) 640-1972

-Joanna