Sale 2449 - Graphic Design, May 25, 2017

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FRANK STELLA (1936- )
317 ● MERCE CUNNINGHAM &
DANCE COMPANY / LATIN AMERICAN
TOUR. 1968.
261/4x471/2 inches, 663/4x1203/4 cm.
Condition B+: creases in margins; minor staining
in margins and image. Mounted to board. Framed.
Stella’s “playful geometry” (The Poster p. 356)
had appeared in 1967 on a poster for the Lincoln
Center Festival, and was popular enough for him
to be commissioned the following year to design
this poster for a Latin American tour of the
renowned dance company. “The design clearly
corresponds to images from Stella’s Protractor
series dated 1967-70. The half-circle form is
divided visually by bands of bright color into
quarter circles. Thick bands of color alternate
as in his other works from the same time.
Stella incorporates words from the adver-
tisement seamlessly into his piece; the curved
lines fill in outer band and repeat inwardly so
that some symmetry is retained. Even before
designing the poster Stella created the set and
costumes for a performance by Merce
Cunningham in 1967”
en/artwork/22609-merce-cunningham-dance-
company-latin-american-tour-1968). Images
of an Era 96. [600/900]
317
318