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Artwork

Naples Yellow Center + 2 Greens + Black

Josef Albers

1888-1976

Naples Yellow Center + 2 Greens + Black

Oil on board

19 5/8 in x 25 3/8 in

1948

Label:

An influential figure at Germany’s Bauhaus school, Josef Albers left his homeland when the Nazi regime closed the avant-garde center in 1933. Arriving at Black Mountain College later that year, he introduced the same innovative artistic concepts to a new audience. As BMC’s director, he led Bauhaus-inspired courses on drawing, design, and color. In this example, Albers juxtaposed rectangles in tones of yellow and green to challenge the viewer’s optical perception. For example, while some colors appear to occupy greater spatial zones, each hue intentionally covers an equal amount of surface area. As much an archival document as an art object, Naples Yellow Center + 2 Greens + Black retains Albers’ marginalia on color and composition, revealing the meticulous planning behind his geometric abstractions.

As Published In:

Southern/Modern: Rediscovering Southern Art from the First Half of the Twentieth Century, 2023

As Exhibited In:

Yellow, TJC Gallery, Spartanburg, SC, August 5–October 17, 2026

Southern/Modern: 1913-1955, Georgia Museum of Art, Athens, GA, July 1, 2023–February 1, 2025, Frist Art Museum, Nashville, TN, January 25–April 28, 2024, Dixon Gallery and Gardens, Memphis, TN, July 14–September 29, 2024, Mint Museum Uptown, Charlotte, NC, October 25, 2024–February 2, 2025

The Wide Reach of the Bauhaus, Huntington Museum of Art, Huntington, WV, October 10, 2020–January 10, 2021

We Speak of Exchange: Immigrant and Expatriate Artists in the Johnson Collection, TJC Gallery, Spartanburg, SC, September 15–December 10, 2021

The Art of Black Mountain College; AC Spartanburg, AC Hotel Spartanburg, Spartanburg, SC, December 14, 2017–Ongoing

A Process of Learning: Educating the Avant-Garde at Black Mountain College, TJC Gallery, Spartanburg, SC, February 4–May 27, 2016

Other Artworks by This Artist

Artist's Full Bio