Cathedral #16 1968

Leon Berkowitz made this "Cathedral #16" painting with vibrant colors on canvas sometime during the 20th century. The simple lines and bright hues of the work might remind you of stained glass. Berkowitz was active in the Washington Color School, a movement that emerged in the mid-20th century. The paintings made in the School were characterized by large fields of solid color, and the work was mostly abstract. You might wonder about the role of abstraction in the Cold War era when American values were supposedly threatened by the Soviet Union. The paintings of the Washington Color School can be seen as a progressive artistic movement. They break away from traditional art and reflect the changing social landscape of the time, even critiquing the institutions of art. To understand Berkowitz better, it would be useful to delve into archives of the Washington Color School to find the manifestos, read reviews of their exhibitions, and follow the money. Through this research, we can see art as contingent on social and institutional contexts.