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Alex Katz: Quick Things Passing

Location

Space

Dates

A vertical composition featuring a light-grey and white tree trunk positioned slightly off-center. The trunk is surrounded by a lush canopy of vibrant green leaves, rendered in flat, rhythmic dabs of light and dark green paint. The perspective looks slightly upward into the bright foliage.

Selected Works

Alex Katz

A painting of a single figure doubled in a symmetrical composition: a man seated in a bright yellow folding chair on opposite sides of the canvas. He wears a rust-colored button-down shirt and white trousers, looking directly at the viewer from both positions. The background consists of sparse tan walls and two large windows, framing the repeated figure.

Alex Katz

A graphic painting featuring a single seagull soaring on the right side of the composition. The bird is rendered in shades of white and soft grey with a dark beak. The majority of the canvas is a flat, uniform expanse of bright blue.

Alex Katz

A large-scale preparatory line drawing on paper featuring a portrait of a woman set against a forest background. The woman, positioned in the lower center, wears a wide-brimmed hat and a coat with a scarf. The background is filled with the gestural, linear silhouettes of bare tree branches. A faint, light-blue grid is visible across the entire composition, and some of the lines are accented with blue charcoal or pastel.

Alex Katz

A stark, nocturnal painting of building windows glowing against a pitch-black background.

Alex Katz

A graphic painting of a dense forest in autumn or winter, dominated by brown and tan tones with thin, bare branches crisscrossing the frame.

Alex Katz

A flat, graphic style portrait of two figures. They are turned in opposite directions, the female figure in the foreground looks away from from the viewer and the figure in the background has closed eyes. Their faces are rendered with pale tones, with mint green highlights and an orange-red paint is used for their lips and shading around their eyes. The figure in the background wears a black shirt and they are set against a vibrant purple backdrop.

Installation Views

  • An exhibition entryway featuring a large white wall with vinyl text that reads "Quick Things Passing ALEX KATZ" in vibrant orange and red lettering, accompanied by an introductory wall text paragraph. To the right, a large grid window overlooks an outdoor brick wall and a patch of green grass. A long, black tufted leather bench sits on a dark grey tiled floor, and an open doorway on the left labeled "Schupf Wing" reveals an adjoining gallery room.
  • A wide angled view of a gallery corner with dark grey floor tiles and white walls. A black tufted leather bench rests on the floor in the foreground. The left wall features a large vertical painting of bare, dark tree branches against a muted gray sky. The right wall displays a large, vibrant vertical painting of a tree trunk surrounded by lush green summer foliage.
  • A straight-on view of a large vertical painting centered on a textured, light beige gallery wall above a light hardwood floor. The painting features a solid, minimalist field of muted sage green with three small, horizontal orange rectangular dashes arranged in a neat line near the lower center.
  • A spacious view of a well-lit gallery room under an open white metal truss ceiling with skylights. The light hardwood floor reflects the overhead light. The far wall displays two large paintings side by side: one depicts an abstract shoreline with soft turquoise water and beige sand, and the other shows a single white seagull soaring through a solid bright blue sky. A portion of a brown forest painting is visible on the far left.
  • A straight-on view of a textured cream-colored wall showing two paintings. On the left is a very small, horizontally framed landscape painting. To its right is a large, horizontal painting depicting two figures playing frisbee on a vibrant yellow and green lawn, with a figure in a white shirt seen from behind in the foreground throwing a orange disc toward a figure standing in the distance.
  • A wide-angle view of an expansive gallery room with a light hardwood floor. On the far left wall hangs a large horizontal portrait painting of a man and a woman in cool blue-green skin tones against a dark purple background. In the center of the room, a large freestanding wooden cutout sculpture of a stylized face with flowing hair is cordoned off by a low stanchion wire. To the right, a smaller square painting shows a close-up of a smiling woman's face on a yellow background.
  • An alternate view of the gallery room featuring the freestanding wooden cutout sculpture of a face from behind, secured by low stanchions. In the background on the left wall, a horizontal painting features a close-up portrait of a bald man against a bright orange backdrop. On the right wall, a large vertical painting shows a close-up profile of a woman looking toward a man's shadowed figure against a deep purple background.
  • A wide shot of a gallery corner featuring a light wooden reading table surrounded by six black chairs in the center of a polished light hardwood floor. The textured walls display three large, loosely sketched charcoal portraits in simple light wood frames: one on the left showing a figure against abstract trees, one in the center depicting a standing woman, and a vertical one on the right showing a close-up face.
  • A straight-on view of a textured gray gallery wall displaying two large sketches in light wood frames above a hardwood floor. On the left, a wide horizontal sketch rendered in brown lines depicts a full-body figure of a woman holding a cup. On the right, a narrow vertical frame contains a large close-up portrait sketch of a person's face sipping from a straw.
  • A corner view of a gallery space with a light wood floor. The wall on the left, under the text "MARLBOROUGH GALLERY," features two small, white-framed vertical portrait drawings. The wall on the right features a large, colorful horizontal painting of a man with gray hair in a striped shirt and a woman with brown hair in a pink shirt facing each other indoors, with green trees visible through a window behind them.

Installation view of Alex Katz: Quick Things Passing, Colby College Museum of Art, Waterville, Maine, 2026. Photo: Art Index

Installation view of Alex Katz: Quick Things Passing, Colby College Museum of Art, Waterville, Maine, 2026. Photo: Art Index

Installation view of Alex Katz: Quick Things Passing, Colby College Museum of Art, Waterville, Maine, 2026. Photo: Art Index

Installation view of Alex Katz: Quick Things Passing, Colby College Museum of Art, Waterville, Maine, 2026. Photo: Art Index

Installation view of Alex Katz: Quick Things Passing, Colby College Museum of Art, Waterville, Maine, 2026. Photo: Art Index

Installation view of Alex Katz: Quick Things Passing, Colby College Museum of Art, Waterville, Maine, 2026. Photo: Art Index

Installation view of Alex Katz: Quick Things Passing, Colby College Museum of Art, Waterville, Maine, 2026. Photo: Art Index

Installation view of Alex Katz: Quick Things Passing, Colby College Museum of Art, Waterville, Maine, 2026. Photo: Art Index

Installation view of Alex Katz: Quick Things Passing, Colby College Museum of Art, Waterville, Maine, 2026. Photo: Art Index

Installation view of Alex Katz: Quick Things Passing, Colby College Museum of Art, Waterville, Maine, 2026. Photo: Art Index