24.44 × 24.38 in
 in
 cm
Price: $15,000 USD
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MMA-1 is a part of Albers’ iconic series Homage to the Square, which he began in the 1960s. Highlighting the artist’s dedication to colour theory and his investigations into geometric and mathematical arrangements, this screenprint depicts squares within squares in various yellow tones and hues that grow brighter and lighter as they appear to approach the foreground. Viewing this piece, it is clear to see Albers’ fascination with how flat planes of colour and pure forms interact and create perception.
Initialed in pencil, dated, numbered, and titled.
| Medium | Prints |
| Signature | Signed |
| Frame | Unframed |
| Condition | Excellent |
| Seller | Private |
| Location | USA |
| Provenance | Private Collection, USA |
In 1920, Josef Albers, a young artist, enrolled at the Bauhaus in Weimar, Germany, a newly established school dedicated to art, architecture, and design. The Bauhaus emphasized a balance between technical skill and artistic creativity, with its curriculum centred on the “preliminary course.” This foundational program prepared students for advanced study in the school’s workshops, focusing on “contrasting effects” in form, texture, and, most notably for Albers, colour.
Albers completed his studies at the Bauhaus and, in 1925, joined its faculty as a teacher. He worked alongside prominent artists such as Oskar Schlemmer, Wassily Kandinsky, and Paul Klee. Albers remained at the Bauhaus until its closure in 1933, forced by political pressure from the Nazi party.
After leaving Germany, Albers emigrated to the United States, where architect Philip Johnson, then a curator at the Museum of Modern Art, facilitated his appointment as the head of a new art school, Black Mountain College in North Carolina. Albers joined Black Mountain in November 1933 and led the painting program until 1949. Among his students were influential artists such as Ray Johnson, Robert Rauschenberg, Cy Twombly, and Susan Weil. He also invited renowned figures, including Willem de Kooning, to teach summer sessions. Weil famously described Albers as “his own academy,” underscoring his profound impact as an educator.
In 1950, Albers moved on to Yale University in New Haven, Connecticut, where he chaired the department of design until his retirement in 1958. While at Yale, he mentored notable students, including Richard Anuszkiewicz and Eva Hesse.
It was also in 1950 that Albers began his iconic Homage to the Square series, a collection that spanned 25 years and included over a thousand works in various media, such as paintings, drawings, prints, and tapestries. This series employed a precise, mathematical arrangement of overlapping or nested squares, allowing Albers to investigate the subjective experience of colour and how adjacent colours interact. Through these works, he explored the illusion of flat planes of colour advancing or receding in space.
Albers’ art bridged traditional European and emerging American styles. Influenced by European Constructivism and the Bauhaus movement, his work retained an intensity and small-scale precision characteristic of European art. However, his impact was especially significant on American artists of the late 1950s and 1960s. His patterns and vibrant colours inspired the “hard-edge” abstractionists, while Op and Conceptual artists expanded on his investigations into perception.
Through his innovative teaching and art, Albers laid the groundwork for some of the most influential and far-reaching art education programs of the 20th century, leaving an enduring legacy on the global art world.
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