James Howell - Gesamtkunstwerk
By Hannah Lebow
Published
The following article describes the practices of James Howell, whose artistry and the spaces in which he developed his paintings informed one another. Howell's career is recognised by his resolute dedication to the study of light and perception, which extended past his artistry and into his environment, most notably observed as we delve into the intricacies of his Perry Street Loft.
In between black and white is the whole of visual reality. 1James Howell, “Gray gets Maligned,” unpublished note, November 2003.
James Howell (1935, Kansas City - 2014, New York) defied black-and-white thinking and investigated the infinities between the two tones. In his career-defining paintings composing his portfolio titled Series 10, Howell precisely explored gradients between various shades of grey; he drew lines, or strata2, that uniformly divided canvases and, subsequently, his shades of grey. Howell meticulously developed formulas to mix increments of umber pigment into his paints to achieve a true grey, counteracting the overpowering blue hues often found in industrial black paint. In this process, Howell compiled spreadsheets detailing the most accurate percentages of pigments and viscosities. This feat required extensive knowledge of colour theory, attentiveness to chemistry, as well as incredible patience, a type of serenity that can be reflected in Howell’s lifestyle and work.
Image by Zeph Columbatto ©James Howell Foundation
Gray seemed to be an understated background, like water or clouds or winter. I fell in love with it.James Howell in an interview with Ellen Berkovitch, “Gray is the Tone that Diffuses All Colours,” The New Mexican, September 8-14, 2000.
Throughout his career, Howell lived on both coasts of the United States near bodies of water: along the Salish Sea and the Puget Sound in Washington State and right by the Hudson River in New York City. He also took frequent trips to Montauk on the Long Island coast. There Howell took photographs of nature scenes, observing how the foggy skies melted into the misty water. Subtleties in the resulting grey gradients became Howell’s study of light. In personal notes found in his studio, Howell took inspiration from many other prolific artists who studied light, including Seurat, Rothko, Reinhardt, Monet, Wols and Turner.
Image by Zeph Columbatto ©James Howell Foundation
The work became, at last, not a matter of paint and pigment, but light.James Howell on the Port Blakely Series, “Jim Howell Chronology.”
Much of Howell’s philosophy and work followed his passion for the study of light and fog. In 1980, he designed his home on San Juan Island to complement his artwork in collaboration with architects Christopher Morgan and Richard D. Lindstrom. Howell, a trained architect himself, commissioned and developed several workspaces and homes, culminating in 1998 in a collaboration with the New York Architects Deborah Berke, Maitland Jones and Marc Leff of TenBerke. The architects designed the loft around the painter, blending spaces of the private home, the artist’s studio and the viewing space.
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The Loft at Perry Street in Greenwich Village, Manhattan, is now the HQ for The Howell Foundation and continues to be the home of the late artist’s wife and collaborator Joy Howell.
Howell specified every detail of the Loft in his design, from layout to furnishing to each artwork he painted decorating his white walls. Rooms were filled with specially designed objects, such as a mantlepiece made of stainless steel, plus a matching coffee table and dining table bench modelled in the Fibonacci sequence. The work tables, whose legs stood upon wheels, were built to be rolled around the studio at Howell’s convenience. Made of pine with white fibreglass, the work tables had drawers to store tools like rope and countless paint brushes, all of which were also meticulously selected to Howell’s specifications. His easels, or scaffolding, were specially crafted so that Howell could slide a canvas sideways, further perfecting his method for painting. All of these items were chosen for the Loft with careful consideration for the minimalist aesthetic that Howell integrated into his lifestyle.
Image courtesy of TenBerke ©James Howell Foundation
Howell practised the German philosophy of Gesamtkunstwerk (literally translating to Total Artwork or Universal Artwork.) Popularised by composer Richard Wagner or artist and designer William Morris, the theory of Gesamtkunstwerk is the union of different expressive forms into one whole piece. Through his Gesamtkunstwerk, Howell integrated painting, interior design and architecture to achieve a practice inspired by grey gradients. These photographs, commissioned by Deborah Berke and The James Howell Foundation, showcase the meticulous working practices of James Howell and the artist’s vision for a Gesamtkunstwerk. Here, the home’s aesthetics and the paintings’ clarity meet to forge an extraordinary experience.
Any path pursued with integrity and intensity will bring one to wholeness in any field. James Howell in an interview with Simone Eymann, “James Howell – The Search for Infinity in Something Seemingly Finite,” vonbartha.com, February 2010.
Howell’s Loft at Perry Street was a unique abode—this physical space combined multiple environments. The sensibility with which the team of architects translated the purity of James Howell's paintings into a sequence of defined spaces is unparalleled. They allow for the ideal setting to view Howell’s paintings, evoking a sense of serenity we often strive for in our homes.
Emerging from the elevator, the entrance with its lowered ceiling-a reference to Frank Lloyd Wright's compressed architectural style-defines space between outside and inside, between home and studio. It allows for glimpses into both areas of the space. Ahead, the centrally located fireplace–a barrier between the two worlds–evokes a sense of homeliness; the classical living room arrangement is also the space the artist would move into first after completing a day’s work, inspiring a moment of reflection in glancing back at what had just been accomplished.
Image by Zeph Columbatto ©James Howell Foundation
Through a simple walk from one area to the next, Howell and his visitors traversed different attitudes and headspaces, such as experiencing the unique aura of the studio in tandem with a relaxed evening Scotch in the living room.
The adjacent screened-off kitchen complements the open-plan living and dining area; these spaces melt into each other, defined by their function.
Image by Alex Johnson ©James Howell Foundation
Looking back towards the elevator from the living room, the eye is guided down a narrow corridor which houses the library. At the end of the corridor, doors lead to the private quarters and bedroom. Opposite the library, the James Howell Foundationoffice runs alongside the corridor from where the studio, and now foundation, is operated.
Image by Zeph Columbatto ©James Howell Foundation
Peering out another exit of the private quarters, we are directly reimmersed into the studio, underlining Howell’s ethos; here, the circular architecture of the Loft and its naturally flowing union of spaces encapsulate Gesamtkunstwerk.
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This intertwining of Howell’s personal and artistic life facilitates a feedback loop in which Howell’s artistic practice encouraged his lifestyle, and said lifestyle embraced the space he occupied. In synthesising the studio, viewing space and home, Howell blurred lines and challenged a dichotomy of work and personal life, creating a new philosophical gradient reminiscent of his physical artwork during his eighteen years living at the Perry Street Loft.
To this end, Howell’s Gesamtkunstwerk permeates the boundaries of the loft-studio to the gallery. By taking a piece inextricably linked to its studio and thereafter placing it in the gallery, the spectator experiences an intimate and unprecedented immersion into the personal life of James Howell.
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1 All highlighted citations are pulled from Alistair Rider’s James Howell: Infinite Array (2021)
2 The term strata, used to describe Howell’s artistic process, was originally introduced by Alistair Rider in James Howell: Infinite Array (2021)