By: Paul Laster
Looking back at four artists who helped shape the contemporary art scene, three shows featuring masters of postwar art are currently on view within a five-block radius on New York’s Upper East Side. Michael Werner Gallery is presenting the pioneering paintings and works on paper of Markus Lüpertz in the sublime solo show “The grace of the twentieth century is rendered visible by the dithyramb I have invented. Paintings from 1963-1976” (through April 23); Mnuchin Gallery has paired colorful abstract canvases by Willem de Kooning and Kasuo Shiraga in the engaging exhibition “De Kooning / Shiraga” (through April 16); and Van Doren Waxter is highlighting Richard Diebenkorn’s figurative and abstract paintings and drawings on paper in its powerful presentation “Works on Paper 1946–1992” (through April 23).