Joan Mitchell (American, 1925-1992) Sunflowers IV, 1992 Color lithograph (diptych) on paper Miami University Art Museum purchase through the Commemorative Fund, made possible by generous donations from the John D. Sommer Family and others in memory of Nancy Wilson Sommer (1930-2011) 2012.1
American-born artist, Joan Mitchell, was a graduate of the Art
Institute of Chicago. Disillusioned with the exclusion of women
during the Abstract Expressionist movement, she frequently
worked in Paris beginning in the 1950s. She continued working
in the Abstract Expressionist style where she gave attention to
the gestural approach of mark making, as seen in this work.
Mitchell’s paintings reflect her internal emotional state and her
relationship with and response to nature. She chose a
combination of red, black, and yellow in homage to the titular
sunflowers, a common theme in her work. Despite the vibrant
and energetic colors, Mitchell reflected on death by stating that
she wanted to “convey the feeling of a wilting sunflower.”