Arshile Gorky: Beyond The Limit

"In 1946, the painter Arshile Gorky spent the summer at Crooked Run Farm, a country estate in Lincoln, Virginia. In this time, he drew feverishly, producing almost 300 drawings. These drawings included a study for what is now considered one of his most remarkable paintings, 'The Limit' (1947), a work that he described as the outcome of being ""so lonely, exasperated, and how to paint such empty space—so empty it's the limit."" Also among Gorky’s artistic yield from the summer of 1946 were a group of related pieces that came to be referred to as the Virginia Summer drawings. During a 2020 conservation treatment on 'The Limit,' conservators discovered that nested behind it was another work—an expressively painted canvas immediately recognizable by its relationship to the Virginia Summer drawings. 'Beyond The Limit' reveals this newly discovered painting, referred to as 'Untitled (Virginia Summer),' and its place in Gorky’s oeuvre. Essays by Parker Field, Managing Director of the Arshile Gorky Foundation, and Pepe Karmel, Associate Professor Of Art History at New York University, are complemented by an illustrated chronology that piece together the hidden story of 'Untitled (Virginia Summer)' and what it signified for Gorky during this time of incredible creative output. The book’s design encourages readers to unwrap 'The Limit' to discover 'Untitled (Virginia Summer),' and a series of brushstroke details positions readers close to the canvases of both works. Together with a plate section that presents both paintings, select drawings from the Virginia Summer series, and reference works, readers will have their own experience of discovering Arshile Gorky.