The exhibition "Avery, Gottlieb & Rothko: By the Sea" at the Cape Ann Museum, which opened on June 30, 2026, focuses on the deep artistic and personal connection between Milton Avery, Adolph Gottlieb, and Mark Rothko. The show explores how their shared summers in Gloucester, Massachusetts, from the 1920s to the mid-1940s significantly impacted their artistic evolution and lifelong friendships.
Organized by Eliza Rathbone, chief curator emerita at The Phillips Collection, the exhibition features over 82 works, including paintings, drawings, and prints, from 26 institutions. Many of these pieces, dating from the 1920s to the 1960s, have never been publicly displayed before. The Cape Ann Museum’s director, Oliver Barker, emphasized the significance of this show, noting that it is the first exhibition originating at the museum to travel, with a subsequent display scheduled for The Phillips Collection from October 24, 2026, to January 24, 2027.
Avery, who was 18 years older than Rothko and Gottlieb, served as a mentor, setting an example for the younger artists who were still developing their styles. Their time together in Gloucester was crucial for defining their understanding of what painting could be. While Rothko's later large-scale abstract works are known for commanding multi-million dollar prices at auction, the exhibition aims to showcase his earlier works and the formative period he spent alongside Avery and Gottlieb, revealing a sweeter, more developmental side of his artistic journey.
The exhibition is accompanied by a 224-page catalog produced by Rizzoli Electa, featuring essays by Rathbone and other art scholars, further detailing the deep connections and mutual influence among the artists. This show marks the reopening of the Cape Ann Museum after a 20-month renovation, making it a significant event for both the museum and American art history. The exhibition runs through September 27, 2026, at the Cape Ann Museum.
While the article itself was not found at the WSJ URL, the information above summarizes the exhibition based on related news articles. Therefore, no direct financial figures or analyst reactions from a WSJ review are included as the specific article was not retrieved.
