Mary Heilmann

b. 1940, San Francisco, California, US

Known for her joyful approach to colour and form, Heilmann is among the most influential abstract painters of her generation. She is influenced by 1960s counterculture, the free speech movement and California’s surf ethos, overlaying minimalist geometries with spontaneous gestures. Her work often has a complexity that only gradually reveals itself to the viewer. She is currently working on an exhibition for the Manetti Shrem Museum of Art at UC Davis, which will examine the sculpture and ceramics she made as a graduate student at Berkeley while spending time with the likes of William Wiley and Bruce Nauman, as well as her time as a visiting artist at UC Davis in the 1970s.