Provocatively titled “Sam Francis: Black + White,” this exhibition focuses on a hugely important and yet lesser-known aspect of Francis’ rarely seen graphic works in black and white.

Los Angeles’ most internationally known artist, Sam Francis created iconic abstract works employing splatters, stains and grids. Francis’ artistic vision was fueled by his study of Jung’s theories on dreams and memory, his love of literature and poetry, his fascination with Eastern religion and philosophy, and the surrealist and Dada-ist experiments with controlled accidents.

While best known for his often brightly colored works, the exhibition investigates what might be regarded as the purest aspect of Francis’ vision, through his investigation of the energy created by the tension of opposites; the yin and yang of black ink spattered and painted across the negative, open spaces and fields of white paper. These investigations are evident in this exhibition of rare original graphic works in etchings and lithography.