Kline’s arresting composition features vigorous black and white brushstrokes that capture the energy of the physical act of painting. The striking slashes of black coalesce into a calligraphic figure eight, while the white strokes, equally expressive, refuse to recede to the background. Despite the apparent spontaneity of the artist’s sweeping gestures, Kline made several small studies in preparation for this work.

Prior to the Andersons acquiring Figure 8, the work was in the personal collection of William Rubin, who was then Chief Curator of Painting and Sculpture at the Museum of Modern Art in New York.

-Sidney Simon, PhD ‘18