In the Studio: Jack Whitten

Offering an inside look at Jack Whitten's studio process in an accessible, readable format

Born in Bessemer, Alabama, Jack Whitten (1939–2018) developed a revolutionary approach to painting as a medium that arguably reconfigured the discipline as a whole. His practice was defined by an intense, ceaseless experimentation with process and technique, drawing in unconventional tools and materials to create a profoundly original body of work. Though Whitten initially aligned with the New York circle of Abstract Expressionists active in the 1960s, he gradually distanced his work from the movement’s aesthetic philosophy and formal concerns, focusing more intensely on the experimental aspects of process and technique that came to define his practice, arriving at a nuanced language of painting that hovers between mechanical automation and deeply personal expression. Throughout his career, Whitten concerned himself with the materials of painting and the relationship of artworks to their inspirations. This richly illustrated guide to the artist’s studio practice reveals the development of Whitten’s pioneering work and the behind-the-scenes of his process.