Dan Flavin, Drawing

Not only did Flavin produce numerous sketches for his light installations, he also regularly drew in the open air, mostly riverscapes and beach scenes. He found drawing “an intensely concentrated personal form of artistic relief.” Flavin’s passion for drawing extended to collecting the works of other artists. From the 19th century, he was particularly attracted to the light and atmosphere of the drawings of the Hudson River school painters, and also Japanese drawings. His drawings by 20th century artists ranged from Piet Mondrian to Donald Judd. His late years are represented by a group of pastels of sails, a subject he turned to in the mid-1980s. Flavin rarely sold or gave away his drawings. Most of the works in the book remained in his studio until the end of his life. Many have never been shown publicly and are being published here for the first time.