Unlike a rainbow or a prismatic spectrum of colors, Kelly’s Spectrum I begins and ends with the same shade of yellow, a decision that reflects his interests in the sensory effects of color juxtapositions. The intervening sweep from green to golden orange makes it difficult to tell that the two yellows are, in fact, the same. Although Kelly always created his own subtle blends, spectral colors—the twelve primary, secondary, and tertiary hues of the color wheel—became central to his palette in the early 1950s. He made eight Spectrum paintings between 1953 and 2014, ranging from this easel-size work—the first in the series—to a monumental installation nearly fifty feet long.
Please note that artwork locations are subject to change, and not all works are on view at all times. If you are planning a visit to SFMOMA to see a specific work of art, we suggest you contact us at collections@sfmoma.org to confirm it will be on view.
Only a portion of SFMOMA's collection is currently online, and the information presented here is subject to revision. Please contact us at collections@sfmoma.org to verify collection holdings and artwork information. If you are interested in receiving a high resolution image of an artwork for educational, scholarly, or publication purposes, please contact us at copyright@sfmoma.org.
This resource is for educational use and its contents may not be reproduced without permission. Please review our Terms of Use for more information.
