Jasper Johns

In 1954, 24-year-old Jasper Johns destroyed all his artwork still in his possession and made a crucial decision: “Before, whenever anybody asked me what I did, I said I was going to become an artist. Finally, I decided to stop becoming an artist and to be an artist.” From his studio in New York City, Johns set about creating a body of work that used familiar imagery: flags, targets, numerals. This imagery flew in the face of the Abstract Expressionist movement that was ruling the New York art world at the time. Johns took his images and worked and reworked them, pushing his ideas. Three years of intensive studio work led to his first solo exhibit at the Leo Castelli Gallery. The show of paintings and sculpture was a sensation, with the Museum of Modern Art taking three pieces. By 1959, Time magazine was calling Johns “the brand-new darling of the art world's bright, brittle avant-garde.”

In 1960, Tatyana Grosman of Universal Limited Art Editions (ULAE) invited Johns to work at her studio in Long Island. Johns met with Grosman, and she sent two lithograph stones to his studio in the city. Johns ignored his friend Robert Rauschenberg, who advised him that the mid-twentieth century was not the best time for an artist to be writing on rocks. The first print to be published was “Target” (1960). The other stone was used to produce the series “0-9” (1960-63). By the end of the 1960’s, Johns had produced more than 120 prints and was regarded as a master of printmaking. Rauschenberg also eventually found his way into the printmaking world with much success.

Master Printer Bill Goldston of ULAE dedicated himself to advancing technical expertise in print. He made it possible to make printed images in new ways, methods that merged seamlessly with Johns’ experimentation. Through collaborations with Goldston and others, Johns’ work advanced the whole process of printmaking.

At times, Johns has done prints based on paintings, and other times the print has come first. He has never stopped experimenting with ideas and has never been bothered by the critical tides that have favored or not favored him. In 2006, the art world was reminded again of Johns’ stature when his 1959 painting “False Start” sold for 80 million dollars, an astonishing amount for the work of a living artist.

The Belger Collection includes nearly 70 titles, which represent more than 90 works on paper (some suites of multiple prints are displayed under one title). In addition to Jasper Johns, the BelgerCollection also features extensive holdings of artwork by Renée Stout, William Christenberry, Terry Winters, Terry Allen, Robert Stackhouse, and William T. Wiley. Artwork from the Collection is available for loan to museums, universities, and art centers.