An Opening of the Field is an exhibition featuring the artists Jess, Robert Duncan and their circle. That alone is fantastic as far as my “I love collaborations” mind goes. This is the first exhibition to focus on the artistic production and relationship between the artists and their friends. It makes me wonder what kind of show my friends and I would have. I would love to see what kind of brilliant exhibit curators Christopher Wagstaff and Michael Duncan would put together. What they would do with forensic scientists, writers, photographers and bloggers remains to be unknown but An Opening of the Field: Jess, Robert Duncan, and Their Circle, has already been honored by the International Associations of Art Critics-United States with an award in Excellence in Art Criticism and Curatorial Achievement for Best Thematic Show Nationally (Currently on view at the Pasadena Museum of California Art).

Jess and Robert Duncan were one of the most captivating artistic couples of the 20th century. The artists shared a romantic and professional partnership that can be seen in many of their pieces. The mutual appreciation for mythologies, transformative narrative and the appropriation of image is evident in Jess’s paintings and Duncan’s colorful abstract drawings.

The exhibition also includes works by members of their circle – R. B. Kitaj, Edward Corbett, Wallace Berman, Lawrence Jordan, George Herms, Jack Spicer, Robin Blaser, and Michael McClure. I mean, that’s a quite a group of friends. Makes me think of the saying my grandfather used to tell me dime con quién andas, y te diré quién eres. The show alone is a remarkable collection of people inspired by one another.

You can learn more about Jess and Robert Ducan at