Dreams and Destruction: Frank Moore at Grey Art Gallery
“Hold fast to dreams / For when they let go / Life is a barren field /
Frozen in snow”—Frank Moore
Fields littered with oversized pill bottles, buffalo grazing on cotton bedsheets, clouds in the shape of chemical compounds: these are the landscapes and images depicted by the late New York City artist Frank Moore (1953–2002). In his life and work, Moore fervently confronted issues of the day, from genetically modified food and pollution to the AIDS pandemic and human sexuality—his paintings, surreal and highly detailed, reveal the chaos and beauty inherent in each.
In early September, Grey Art Gallery opened the most comprehensive exhibition to date of Moore’s work. Toxic Beauty: The Art of Frank Moore chronicles the artist’s career and reveals his eloquent and inquisitive approach to life and art. The exhibition features more than thirty-five major paintings and fifty drawings, sketches, and gouches as well as Moore’s personal notebooks, source materials, and ephemera.
Marquand Books produced the exhibition catalogue, designed by Laura Lindgren. Essays by Gregg Bordowitz, Susan Harris, and Klaus Kertess study the connections between environmental, social, and personal health that Moore examined in his work. Excerpts from artist statements, essays, and interviews with Frank Moore are also included in the book, which features more than one hundred color illustrations.
To learn more about the exhibition Toxic Beauty: The Art of Frank Moore or to purchase a copy of the catalogue, visit the Grey Art Gallery.
Photography by Jeremy Linden
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