Experience Abstract Expressionists: The Women at Grinnell College Museum of Art
Campus and community members are invited to explore nearly 50 works by women who helped shape a landmark American art movement.
A major exhibition celebrating the women of Abstract Expressionism is now open at the Grinnell College Museum of Art (GCMoA), and everyone is invited to experience it.
Abstract Expressionists: The Women brings together nearly 50 paintings by 32 women artists whose work helped shape one of the most influential movements in American art. On view through Jan. 2, 2027, the exhibition offers students, faculty, staff, area residents, and visitors an opportunity to encounter these works right here in Grinnell.
The exhibition opened Sept. 17, drawing more than 180 people to GCMoA for an evening celebrating the artists and their work. See scenes from the opening in this photo essay.
An exhibition for everyone
Visitors do not need to be art experts to experience Abstract Expressionists: The Women. The exhibition offers an opportunity to spend time with bold, expressive works while discovering the stories of artists whose contributions have often received less attention than those of their male contemporaries.
The exhibition spans more than four decades, from 1936 to 1977, and features artists working in New York, California, Paris, and beyond. Among the 32 artists represented are Lee Krasner, Elaine de Kooning, Grace Hartigan, Helen Frankenthaler, Joan Mitchell, Mercedes Matter, Sonja Sekula, and Ethel Schwabacher.
Together, their works offer a broader look at Abstract Expressionism and the women who experimented with gesture, scale, color, spontaneity, and process to help define and expand the movement.
Visitors interested in learning more about the artists, history, and significance of the exhibition can read the story behind Abstract Expressionists: The Women.
More ways to experience the exhibition
Throughout the fall, the exhibition will extend beyond the gallery through opportunities for both the campus and broader community to learn more and engage with the work.
On Oct. 27, exhibition curator and art historian Ellen G. Landau will visit Grinnell to give a public talk and meet with students. Contemporary artist Carrie Moyer will visit in November to discuss her own abstract work and its relationship to Abstract Expressionism.
The exhibition is also becoming part of teaching and learning across campus, with more than 35 class visits scheduled. Students will have opportunities to encounter the works through courses and conversations that connect the exhibition with ideas and questions across their Grinnell education.
Visitors can also explore the museum’s new digital guide through Bloomberg Connects. Available through QR codes and the Bloomberg Connects app, the guide provides additional information about selected works in the exhibition and pieces from the College’s collection.
Plan a visit
Abstract Expressionists: The Women is on view at the Grinnell College Museum of Art through Jan. 2, 2027.
GCMoA is located in the Bucksbaum Center for the Arts at 1108 Park St. in Grinnell. The museum is free and open to all.
Whether you are visiting between classes, making a trip from elsewhere in the community, or returning for another look, Abstract Expressionists: The Women offers a chance to experience an important chapter of American art history—and the artists who helped create it.
Abstract Expressionists: The Women is organized by the American Federation of Arts from the Christian Levett Collection and FAMM (Female Artists of the Mougins Museum), France. The exhibition is generously supported by Berry Campbell Gallery, Betsy Shack Barbanell, Monique Schoen Warshaw, and Clare McKeon and the Clare McKeon Charitable Trust. Additional support has been provided by the Pollock-Krasner Foundation and the Every Page Foundation. Bloomberg Connects digital experience is made possible through the support of Bloomberg Philanthropies. The presentation at GCMoA is made possible by Timothy O. Benson ’72 and Susan E. Annett ’74; and Karen and Stephen Clark, parents of John Clark ’19.