Alice Baber

An Artist's Triumph Over Tragedy

Gail Levin

The definitive biography of abstract artist Alice Baber, whose luminous and beloved works took the world by storm.

From one of the most acclaimed art biographers writing today comes the surprising life of Alice Baber, who produced exquisite abstract paintings of vibrantly colored shapes that created an illusion of floating light. Heralded as an “artist of lyrical abstractions,” Baber’s paintings had already entered the permanent collections of the Museum of Modern Art, the Metropolitan, the Guggenheim, and the Whitney at the time of her premature death at just fifty-four. How could such an accomplished and visionary artist then fall into near obscurity?

In Alice Baber, Baber's fascinaitng story is finally revealed, despite efforts to consign her to oblivion by her competitive ex-husband, his surviving widow, and by major male art historians and curators who conspired to promote his art and at her expense. Her ex-husband’s widow sold the late Baber’s work to a gallery only if it agreed not to give her a show.

Alice Baber is a vital corrective to the history of American art and a thrilling opportunity for the next generation experience Baber anew. Vividly written and richly detailed, we journey through her rural upbringing as a childhood prodigy to her years exhibiting around the world and experience the heady mid-century art world in all it’s glory.

Levin’s dynamic prose brings to life this synesthetic artist who links color to both movement and sound. We witness Baber's talent and ambition, her tenacity, charm, and her generosity of spirit. Her early feminist activism and her work as a curator helped other artists, and her deep connection to literature and poetry. Alice Baber: An Artist's Triumph Over Tragedy is an insightful and stunning portrait that resurrects a central figure in modern art.

Gail Levin is the author of Edward Hopper: An Intimate Biography, Becoming Judy Chicago, Lee Krasner: A Biography and many other books on twentieth-century and contemporary art. She is Distinguished Professor of Art History, American Studies, and Women's Studies at the Graduate Center and Baruch College of the City University of New York.

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Endorsements & Reviews

Praise for Gail Levin

“Ms. Levin’s perceptive, judicious book reveals Krasner as a fine, important painter. This is an insightful, sharply drawn portrait of 20th-century America from the vantage point of a creative woman swept up in a realm of remarkable artistic productivity.” The Wall Street Journal

"A quintuple whammy of a biography?the story of a major artist; a description of a notorious marriage; an education in 20th-century art; a gossipy immersion into Bohemian New York; and a settling of scores against those who practiced gender bias.” O, The Oprah Magazine

“Compelling. Art historian Gail Levin has drawn on her close association with Lee Krasner and extensive research to produce a biography that rings fair and true." Los Angeles Tims

“For the love of art....Art historian Gail Levin frames the extremely colorful life of Lee Krasner, major ass-kicking Abstract Expressionist and formidable genius in her own right, better known for boosting the career of her splashier-than-life husband, Jackson Pollock.” Vanity Fair

"Gail Levin’s stunning new biography finally proves Krasner’s relationship with Jackson Pollock was only a sliver of an enormously colorful life. Levin’s biography ensures that Lee Krasner will never again be known merely as 'Mrs. Jackson Pollock.'" Minneapolis Star Tribune 

"Gail Levin sets the record straight: Krasner was a fierce, fascinating and gifted artist... Lee Krasner adds more luster, meticulously tracing the artist’s life.” Cleveland Plain Dealer

“Levin is now the first to tell Krasner’s captivating story, writing with equal insight into her teperament, experiences, and art. A consummate scholar, marvelously lucid writer, and gracefully responsible biographer, Levin redresses glaring omissions in the history of abstract art in this imperative portrait of a formidable artist.” Booklist (starred review)

“Gail Levin’s biography of Lee Krasner beautifully evokes a period in American art that laid the groundwork for the women artists of today. Lee... contributed wonderful work but also encouraged a whole new generation of artists. She grew into true generativity. Bless her and her biographer!” Erica Jong