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6 Part II-FRI., APR. 7, 1961
Los Angeles Times

IN THE GALLERIES

Shows Have a N.Y. Flavor

BY HENRY J. SELDIS

Two apostles and one major disciple of the New York School are being featured in current exhibitions: apostle De Kooning at Kantor Gallery and apostle Kline, together with Philip Guston, at the Dwan Gallery. 

Willem De Kooning, the greatest and most inventive of the abstract expressionists, is giving a most intelligent and impressive display that traces his art from his earliest departure from representational painting to his present, completely non-objective expressions.

Whatever style he explores, no matter how unorthodox and startling, the enormous skill and conviction of this artist comes through.

Franz Kline, whose imposing, stark and poetic exercises in monumental calligraphy are memorable in their directness and architectural strength, can also be persuasive in his smaller drawings. In contrast to De Kooning's dynamic use of color, Kline works entirely in black and white producing works that are close in spirit though not in style to the work of Zen masters.

Philip Guston's murky and muddy canvasses have won him international fame and devoted followers. While examination of his canvasses leads to the conclusion that Guston has both craftsmanship and inventiveness, this spectator finds them lacking poetry and excitement.