Frank Stella b. 1936
Frank Stella is a key figure in postwar American modernism. Born in 1936 in a suburb of Boston, he attended the Phillips Academy where he was introduced to the work of Josef Albers and Hans Hoffman. In 1958, after graduating from Princeton with a degree in history, he moved to New York and worked as a house painter without intent to become an artist–his interest was solely in creation.
Shortly thereafter, while operating from a rented studio shared with artist Carl Andre, Stella was introduced to and later represented by dealer Leo Castelli. Inspired by the Abstract Expressionist movement, but in a departure from the period, he produced the Black Paintings series. His work emphasized a two-dimensional, flat application of monochromatic paint. At age 25, he exhibited at the Museum of Modern Art in New York, and his work during this time gave way to the Minimalist movement that followed.
Auction Results Frank Stella
Frank Stella
Double Gray Scramble
estimate: $20,000–30,000
result: $50,000
Frank Stella
Polar Co-Ordinate
estimate: $30,000–40,000
result: $37,500
Frank Stella
Conway
estimate: $30,000–40,000
result: $37,500
Frank Stella
untitled
estimate: $10,000–15,000
result: $15,600
Frank Stella
Shards V
estimate: $5,000–7,000
result: $10,625
Frank Stella
Sinjerli Variation II
estimate: $10,000–15,000
result: $10,000
Frank Stella
Sinjerli Variation II
estimate: $4,000–6,000
result: $9,000
Frank Stella
Swan Engraving Blue, Green Grey
estimate: $7,000–9,000
result: $8,255
Frank Stella
Spectralia (from Imaginary Places series)
estimate: $7,000–9,000
result: $7,813
Frank Stella
Empress of India I (from the V Series)
estimate: $2,000–3,000
result: $7,040
Frank Stella
Ifafa I (from the V Series)
estimate: $2,000–3,000
result: $5,440
Frank Stella
Egyplosis (from Imaginary Places II)
estimate: $3,000–5,000
result: $5,398
Frank Stella
Shards V
estimate: $5,000–7,000
result: $5,313
Frank Stella
Quathlamba II (from the V Series)
estimate: $2,000–3,000
result: $5,313
Frank Stella
Itata (from the V Series)
estimate: $2,000–3,000
result: $5,000
Frank Stella
Ifafa II (from the V Series)
estimate: $2,000–3,000
result: $4,688
Frank Stella
Wolfeboro (from the Eccentric Polygons series)
estimate: $700–900
result: $4,375
Frank Stella
Fortín de las Flores (from Ten from Leo Castelli)
estimate: $1,000–1,500
result: $3,250
Frank Stella
Shards
estimate: $3,000–5,000
result: $3,125
Frank Stella
Bilbimtesirol from the Imaginary Places II series
estimate: $3,000–5,000
result: $3,048
Frank Stella
Quathlamba I (from the V Series)
estimate: $2,000–3,000
result: $3,048
Frank Stella
Egyplosis (from Imaginary Places II)
estimate: $2,000–3,000
result: $3,000
Frank Stella
Quathlamba II (from the V Series)
estimate: $1,000–1,500
result: $3,000
Frank Stella
Conway (from the Eccentric Polygons series)
estimate: $1,500–2,000
result: $2,750