Exhibition tour includes:

Museum of Contemporary Art, Los Angeles, California
February 12 – May 18, 1997

Tate Gallery, London, England
June 12 – September 7, 1997

Haus der Kunst, Munich, Germany
October 16, 1997 – January 18, 1998

On October 18, the Solomon R. Guggenheim Museum presents more than 250 works by Kelly in what senior curator Diane Waldman considers the most comprehensive show to date on the 73-year old artist.

This retrospective is both a recognition of Kelly’s past accomplishments and a tribute to the most current developments in his art. Whereas exhibitions of his work over the past several decades have addressed specific mediums (painting, sculpture, or works on paper) or time spans (such as his formative years in Paris), the Guggenheim’s presentation is the first in twenty-three years to survey his entire career in all its manifestations. By providing the critical reference points and fundamental insights into Kelly’s artistic vision and working methods, the exhibition-and the accompanying catalogue-reveal why his work has attained a prominent place within the canon of twentieth-century abstraction. Deputy Director and Senior Curator Diane Waldman, whose scholarship and acumen concerning Kelly’s work are longstanding, is to be thanked for organizing this historic retrospective.

– Thomas Krens, Director, The Solomon R. Guggenheim Foundation, Foreword to the catalogue of the exhibition