Larry Poons

Larry Poons (b. 1937, Tokyo) is a major figure in postwar American painting whose six-decade career has been defined by continual experimentation. Initially trained in music at the New England Conservatory, he turned to painting after encountering the work of Barnett Newman in 1959 and soon became part of New York’s vibrant avant-garde. His first solo exhibition was held at the Green Gallery in 1963. Poons first gained attention in the early 1960s with his “dot” paintings, composed of carefully arranged, floating ellipses organized through mathematical systems, aligning him with the Op Art movement and artists such as Frank Stella. By the late 1960s, he had shifted away from precise geometry and toward a more physical technique, pouring and splashing paint, and later overlaying it with additional materials to create highly textured, immersive surfaces.