John Altoon, Untitled, 1964, from the Hyperion Series, pastel and ink on illustration board, 56 × 40 inches, Dr. David and Arline Edelbaum. © 2014 Estate of John Altoon, photo © 2014 Museum Associates/LACMA.

Los Angeles County Museum of Art (LACMA) will present the retrospective of John Altoon. John Altoon is the first major retrospective devoted to this little-known yet important artist whose brief but significant career unfolded in southern California from the 1950s until his untimely death in 1969 at age 43.

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The exhibition includes approximately 70 paintings and drawings from public and private collections across the United States.

Trained as a commercial illustrator as well as a fine artist, Altoon developed both an abstract vocabulary influenced by Abstract Expressionism and a figurative style (often erotically charged and with socio-political content) that reflected his commercial background. He also developed a hybrid style combining abstraction with figuration.

A post-modernist before his time, Altoon had a facility with line, color, and subject matter that resonated with his peers and continues to resonate with artists today.

John Altoon Exhibition
Date: June 8th – September 14th, 2014
Open: 11:00 – 17:00 (Friday till 20:00, Saturday Sunday 10:00 – 19:00)
Closed on Wednesday
Place: Los Angeles County Museum of Art (LACMA)
Address: 5905 Wilshire Blvd., Los Angeles
Tel: +1 323 857 6000
https://www.lacma.org