The Whale / Oil on canvas / 40 by 50 inches / 1989

OPENING SATURDAY JUNE 10TH 6-8PM

Nela Arias-Misson was born in Cuba and died in Miami just a few weeks before her 100th birthday (September 8, 1915 – July 17, 2015). She risked making art in the 1950s when men dominated the art scene in New York City. Nela studied with Hans Hoffman and adopted the belief that painting was an "arena" for action, immediacy, and rawness. Keyes is exhibiting a highly selected survey bringing together an outstanding selection of Arias-Misson's work, illustrating the progress and achievements that she realized both on a personal level and on the entire development of abstraction in the 20th century. 

Her masterpiece "The Whale" from 1989 underscores these quixotic associations and exemplifies the degree of her inventiveness. Defiantly, Arias-Misson challenges the conventions of her master Hans Hofmann, and her sense of adventure drives her to even greater extremes as she places her faith in authenticity and self-awareness.
Excerpt from essay
~George Negroponte, May 2023

Exhibition Dates: June 10 - June 30, 2023