Alex Katz‘s meticulous compositions portray modern life in fluid lines and vibrant planes of colour.

The phenomenal Alex Katz opened his retrospective at the Solomon R. Guggenheim Museum last week, to hordes of spectators gathered along the iconic spiral ramp that lines the museum’s Frank Lloyd Wright rotunda.

A celebration of the born-and-bred New Yorker in his hometown, Alex Katz: Gathering features everything from the artist’s paintings and oil sketches, to his collages, prints, and freestanding works in what is a comprehensive career survey.

Gathering features works from the late 1940s to present day. A pioneer of contemporary painting, Katz expertly transforms fleeting moments from everyday life into radiant painterly wonders, whether portraits, landscapes, or still lifes.

In Yellow Tree 1 (2020), Katz depicts a magnificent golden tree, illuminated in an autumnal palette. Hovering between abstraction and representation, the large-scale painting evokes a sense of rumination on seasonal change and the passage of time.

Katz’s spectacular retrospective is a compelling drawcard for New York‘s art scene. It closes 20 February 2023.

Main image: Alex Katz, 4 PM (1959). Oil on linen. 146.1 × 127 cm. Collection of Vincent Katz. © 2022 Alex Katz / Licensed by VAGA at Artists Rights Society (ARS), New York. Photo: Courtesy the artist and Gladstone Gallery.