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Photo: © Courtesy the Whitney Museum of American Art, New York
P339
Betrothal II
1947
Oil on canvas
50 3/4 x 38 in. (128.9 x 96.5 cm)
Front, lower left: A Gorky / 47 / [paraph]
Reverse, in pencil, upper stretcher bar [likely in artist's hand]: TOP; BETROTHAL II
Reverse, in pencil, upper stretcher bar [likely in artist's hand]: TOP; BETROTHAL II
Provenance
Exhibitions
Julien Levy Gallery, New York, Arshile Gorky, February 29–March 20, 1948, no. 2, as Betrothal II.
Kootz Gallery, New York, Selected Paintings by the Late Arshile Gorky, March 28–April 24, 1950. (Exhibition brochure: Gottlieb 1950), ill. in b/w, as "The Betrothal #2".
Whitney Museum of American Art, New York, Arshile Gorky Memorial Exhibition, January 5–February 18, 1951, no. 47, ill. in color, p. 4; p. 47, as "The Betrothal II". Traveled to: Walker Art Center, Minneapolis, March 4–April 22, 1951; San Francisco Museum of Art, California, May 9–July 9, 1951.
Wildenstein & Co, New York, Loan Exhibition of Seventy XX Century American Paintings (Chosen by the Art Critics of Art Digest, Art News, Life Magazine of Art, New York Herald Tribune; New York Times, and Time), February 21–March 22, 1952, no. 4, as "The Betrothal II".
Princeton University Art Museum, New Jersey, Arshile Gorky: A Loan Exhibition of Paintings and Drawings, October 6–26, 1952, no. 18, as "The Betrothal II".
Kootz Gallery, New York, A Decade Of Modern Painting And Sculpture: Tenth Anniversary Festival, April 11–May 7, 1955, as "the betrothal #2".
Sidney Janis Gallery, New York, 33 Paintings by Arshile Gorky, December 2–28, 1957. (Exhibition catalogue: Sidney Janis Gallery 1957), no. 32, ill. in b/w, as "The Betrothal II".
Bureau International des Expositions, International Palace of Fine Arts, Brussels, 1958 Brussels World's Fair (Expo 58): United States Pavilion, April 17–October 19, 1958.
Walker Art Center, Minneapolis, 60 American Painters, 1960: Abstract Expressionist Painting of the Fifties, April 3–May 8, 1960, no. 23, ill. in b/w, p. 24, as "The Betrothal II".
New School Art Center, New York, The Creative Process, May 16–June 10, 1961, no. 6, as "The Betrothal II".
XXXI Biennale di Venezia: Internazionale d'Arte, U.S. Pavilion, Venice, Italy, Arshile Gorky, June 16–October 7, 1962, no. 28, p. 114, as "Il fidanzamento II".
Museum of Modern Art, New York, Arshile Gorky, 1904–1948, December 19, 1962–February 12, 1963. (Exhibition catalogue: Seitz 1962), no. 106, ill. in b/w, p. 43; p. 56, as "The Betrothal II". Traveled to: Washington Gallery of Modern Art, D.C., March 12–April 14, 1963.
Whitney Museum of American Art, New York, Between the Fairs: 25 Years of American Art, 1939–1964, June 24–September 23, 1964, no. 40, ill. in color, p. 24, as "The Betrothal II".
Museum of Modern Art, New York, Department of Circulating Exhibitions (organizer), Dada, Surrealism, and Their Heritage, 1968. (Exhibition catalogue: Rubin 1967), no. 140, ill. in b/w, fig. 272, p. 175, as "The Betrothal II". Traveled to: Museum of Modern Art, New York, March 27–June 9, 1968; Los Angeles County Museum of Art, July 16–September 8, 1968; Art Institute of Chicago, October 19–December 8, 1968.
Metropolitan Museum of Art, New York, New York Painting and Sculpture: 1940–1970, October 18, 1969–February 8, 1970. (Exhibition catalogue: Geldzahler 1969), no. 95, as "The Betrothal, II".
Whitney Museum of American Art, New York, The Twentieth Century: 35 American Artists, An Exhibition of Works from the Permanent Collection, July 1–September 29, 1974, as "The Betrothal, II".
Whitney Museum of American Art, Downtown Branch, New York, Subjects of the Artists: New York Painting 1941–1947, April 22–May 28, 1975, as Betrothal II.
Milwaukee Art Center, From Foreign Shores: Three Centuries of Art by Foreign Born American Masters, October 15–November 28, 1976, no. 54, ill. in b/w, p. 121, as "The Betrothal II".
Herbert F. Johnson Museum of Art, Cornell University, Ithaca, New York (organized in collaboration with the Whitney Museum of American Art, New York), Abstract Expressionism: The Formative Years, March 30–May 14, 1978. (Exhibition catalogue: Hobbs and Levin 1978); (Exhibition catalogue: Levin 1978a); (Exhibition catalogue: Levin 1978b), as "The Betrothal II". Traveled to: Seibu Museum of Art, Tokyo, June 17–July 12, 1978; Whitney Museum of American Art, New York, October 5–December 3, 1978.
Whitney Museum of American Art, New York, Introduction to 20th Century American Art, October 10, 1978–September 23, 1979, ill. in b/w, as "The Betrothal II".
Solomon R. Guggenheim Museum, New York, Arshile Gorky 1904–1948: A Retrospective, April 24–July 19, 1981, no. 198, ill. in b/w, p. 221, as "The Betrothal II". Traveled to: Dallas Museum of Fine Arts, September 12–November 6, 1981; Los Angeles County Museum of Art, December 3, 1981–February 28, 1982.
Haus der Kunst, Munich, Amerikanische Malerei 1930–1980 / American Painting 1930–1980, November 14, 1981–January 31, 1982, fig. 49, ill. in b/w, p. 164, as "Die Verlobung," [not exhibited].
Sala de Exposiciones de la Fundación Caja de Pensiones, Madrid, Arshile Gorky, 1904–1948, October 17–December 23, 1989, no. 47, ill. in color, p. 127, as "The Betrothal II". Traveled to: Whitechapel Art Gallery, London, January 19–March 25, 1990.
Whitney Museum of American Art at Equitable Center, New York, American Masters: Six Artists from the Permanent Collection of the Whitney Museum of American Art, January 10–March 18, 1992, as "The Betrothal II". Traveled to: Whitney Museum of American Art at Champion, Stamford, Connecticut, April 17–June 17, 1992.
Whitney Museum of Art, New York, Collection in Context: Gorky's Betrothals, October 6, 1993–January 9, 1994, ill. in color, as "The Betrothal II". Traveled to: Yale University Art Gallery, New Haven, Connecticut, February 1–April 10, 1994; Museum of Contemporary Art, Los Angeles, April 24–June 19, 1994.
Modern Art Museum of Fort Worth and Albright-Knox Art Gallery, Buffalo (organizers), Arshile Gorky: The Breakthrough Years, 1995–96, no. 18, ill. in color, p. 125, as "The Betrothal II". Traveled to: National Gallery of Art, Washington, D.C., May 7–September 17, 1995; Albright-Knox Art Gallery, Buffalo, New York, October 13–December 31, 1995; Modern Art Museum of Fort Worth, Texas, January 13–March 17, 1996.
Philadelphia Museum of Art, Arshile Gorky: A Retrospective, October 15, 2009–January 10, 2010. (Exhibition catalogue: Taylor 2009a), pl. 174, ill. in color, p. 337; p. 392, as "The Betrothal II". Traveled to: Tate Modern, London, February 10–May 3, 2010 (Gale 2010); Museum of Contemporary Art, Los Angeles, June 6–September 20, 2010 (Gale 2010).
Brasini del Vittoriano, Rome, Pollock e la Scuola di New York, October 10, 2018–February 24, 2019, ill. in color, p. 93, as "The Betrothal, II (Il fidanzamento, II)".
Blanton Museum of Art, the University of Texas at Austin, In Creative Harmony: Three Artistic Partnerships, February 16–July 20, 2025.
Literature
Hunter, Sam. "Modernism by Four: Abstraction, Surrealism in Current Shows." New York Times, February 29, 1948, discussed, sec. 2, p. 8, as Betrothal II.
Greenberg, Clement. "Art." The Nation (New York) 166 (March 20, 1948), discussed, p. 332, as Betrothal II.
M.B. [Margaret Breuning]. "Fifty-Seventh Street in Review: A Memorial for Arshile Gorky." Art Digest (New York) 24, no. 13 (April 1, 1950), ill. in b/w, p. 19, as "The Betrothal".
Coates, Robert M. "The Art Galleries: Moderns—Past and Present." The New Yorker 26, no. 48 (January 20, 1951), discussed, p. 62, as "The Betrothal II".
de Kooning, Elaine. "Gorky: Painter of his Own Legend." Artnews (New York) 49, no. 9 (January 1951), ill. in color, p. 38, as "The Betrothal II".
Hess, Thomas B. Abstract Painting: Background and American Phase. New York: Viking Press, 1951, ill. in b/w (details), front and back endpapers; pl. a, ill. in color, p. 5, as "The Betrothal II".
Loftus, John. "Arshile Gorky: A Monograph." M.A. Thesis, Columbia University, New York, 1952, pl. XXXVIII, ill. in b/w, as Betrothal II.
Reinhardt, Ad. "Our Favorites: Homage to the New York Art Critics Circle." Artnews (New York) 51, no. 1 (March 1952), p. 29, as Betrothal II.
Seitz, William C. "A Gorky Exhibit." The Daily Princetonian (Princeton, NJ), October 14, 1952, discussed, p. 2, as "The Betrothal II".
Coates, Robert M. "The Art Galleries." The New Yorker 29, no. 2 (February 28, 1953), discussed, p. 83, as "The Betrothal II".
Mooradian, Karlen. "Arshile Gorky." Armenian Review (Watertown, MA) 8, no. 2 (Summer 1955), discussed, p. 57, as "The Betrothal II".
Devree, Howard. "About Art and Artists." New York Times, April 12, 1955, discussed, p. 24, as "The Betrothal".
"Special issue on Gorky in Italian and English with text by Toti Scialoja and excerpts from Schwabacher 1957." Arti Visive 6–7 (Summer 1957), no. 14, ill. in b/w, as "The Betrothal II".
Goodrich, Lloyd. "Arshile Gorky." In New Art in America, edited by John I.H. Baur. Greenwich, CT: New York Graphic Society, 1957, ill. in b/w, p. 191, as "The Betrothal II".
Schwabacher, Ethel. Arshile Gorky. Introduction by Meyer Schapiro. New York: The Macmillan Company for the Whitney Museum of American Art, 1957. Monograph, pl. V, ill. in color, as "The Betrothal, II".
Adlow, Dorothy. Twentieth Century Highlights of American Painting. Washington, D.C.: United States Information Agency, 1958, no. 26, ill. in color, p. 60; discussed pp. 61, 90, as "Betrothal, II".
Rudikoff, Sonya. "Gorky and Tomlin." Review of Arshile Gorky, by Ethel Schwabacher. Partisan Review (New York) 25, no. 1 (Winter 1958), discussed, p. 160, as "The Betrothal II".
Late Drawings by Gorky. New York: Sidney Janis Gallery, 1959. Exhibition catalogue (1959b New York), no. 39, ill. in b/w (in situ), as "Betrothal," in "Gallery View, Gorky Exhibition, December 1957".
Goldwater, Robert. "Reflections on the New York School." Quadrum (Brussels) 8 (1960), ill. in color, p. 19, as "The Betrothal II".
Whitney Museum of American Art. Whitney Museum of American Art: Catalogue of the Collection. New York: Whitney Museum of American Art, 1960, discussed, p. 278, as "The Betrothal II".
Barilli, Renato. "La Pittura di Arshile Gorky." La Biennale 43 (April–June 1961), ill. in b/w, p. 14, as "The Betrothal II".
Reiff, Robert F. "A Stylistic Analysis of Arshile Gorky's Art from 1943–1948." Ph.D. diss., Columbia University, New York, 1961, fig. 19, ill. in b/w, p. 297, as Betrothal II.
Rosenberg, Harold. "Arshile Gorky, His Art and His Influence." Portfolio & Artnews Annual (New York), no. 5 (1961), ill. in color, p. 112, as Betrothal II.
Boatto, Alberto. "L'itinerario di Gorky." Arte Oggi (Rome) 14 (June–December 1962), discussed, p. 15, as "Il fidanzamento II".
Kozloff, Max. "New York Letter: Gorky." Art International (Paris) 6 (April 1962), discussed, p. 42, as Betrothal II.
Rosenberg, Harold. Arshile Gorky: The Man, the Time, the Idea. New York: Horizon Press, 1962. Monograph, ill. in b/w, p. 111, as "The Betrothal II".
Ashton, Dore. "Arshile Gorky peintre romantique." XXe siècle (Paris) 19 (June 1962), ill. in b/w, p. 79, as "The Betrothal II".
Alloway, Lawrence. "Gorky." Artforum (San Francisco) 1, no. 9 (March 1963), ill. in b/w, p. 29, as "The Betrothal II".
Dennison, George. "The Crisis Art of Arshile Gorky." Arts Magazine (New York) 37 (February 1963), ill. in b/w, p. 15, as "The Betrothal II".
Kramer, Hilton. "Art." The Nation (New York) 196 (January 12, 1963), discussed, p. 39, as one of the "two versions of The Betrothal".
Rubin, William. "Arshile Gorky, Surrealism, and the New American Painting." Art International (Paris) 7, no. 2 (February 25, 1963), ill. in b/w, p. 36; ill. in b/w (detail), p. 36, as "The Betrothal II".
Sandler, Irving Hershel. "New York Letter." Quadrum (Brussels), no. 14 (1963), ill. in b/w, p. 116, as "The Betrothal II".
Levy, Julien. Arshile Gorky. New York: Harry N. Abrams, Inc., 1966. Monograph, pl. 179, ill. in color, p. 203, as "The Betrothal II".
Rubin, William. Dada, Surrealism, and Their Heritage. New York: The Museum of Modern Art, 1967. Exhibition catalogue (1968 CE–MoMA), no. 140, ill. in b/w, p. 175, as "The Betrothal II".
Christensen, Erwin O. A Guide to Art Museums in the United States. New York: Dodd, Mead & Company, 1968, fig. 186, ill. in b/w, p. 84, as "The Betrothal".
Mellow, James R. "The Most Elegant Stylist." Review of Arshile Gorky, by Julien Levy. New York Times Book Review, March 31, 1968, ill. in b/w, p. 7, as "The Betrothal II".
Passeron, René. Histoire de la peinture surréaliste. Paris: Librairie Le Livre de Poche, 1968, discussed, p. 245, as "Les Fiançailles, II".
Rubin, William S. Dada and Surrealist Art. New York: Harry N. Abrams, Inc., 1968, fig. 415, ill. in b/w, p. 399, as "The Betrothal II".
Claman, Julian. "Spot Check: Some Observations on the State of the Arts in America Today." Harper's Bazaar (New York) 102, no. 3087 (February 1969), ill. in b/w, p. 122D, as Betrothal II.
Geldzahler, Henry. New York Painting and Sculpture: 1940–1970. New York: E.P. Dutton, in association with the Metropolitan Museum of Art, 1969. Exhibition catalogue (1969–70a New York), no. 95, ill. in b/w, p. 161; p. 46, as "The Betrothal II".
Kramer, Hilton. "30 Years of the New York School." New York Times Magazine (October 12, 1969), ill. in b/w, p. 119, as "The Betrothal II".
Sandler, Irving H. The Triumph of American Painting: A History of Abstract Expressionism. New York: Praeger Publishers, 1970, pl. II, ill. in color, p. 83, as "The Betrothal II".
Alloway, Lawrence. "Art." The Nation (New York) (September 7, 1974), discussed p. 190, as "The Betrothal, II".
Russell, John. "Whitney Museum Taking Stock: But Summer Shows of 35 Artists Are Called Cryptic." New York Times, June 29, 1974, ill. in b/w, p. 25, as "The Betrothal II".
Calas, Nicolas. "A Tough Nut to Crack." Artforum (New York) 13 (May 1975), ill. in b/w, p. 49, as "The Betrothal II".
Calas, Nicolas. "Letter to the Editor." Arts Magazine (New York) 50, no. 10 (June 1976), discussed, p. 110, as Betrothal II.
Kagitani, Y. "Arshile Gorky: A Man Who Lived in the Middle of Solitude." Mizue (みづゑ) (Tokyo) 9, no. 858 (September 1976), ill. in color, p. 28.
Herrera, Hayden. "The Sculptures of Arshile Gorky." Arts Magazine (New York) 50, no. 7 (March 1976), discussed, p. 90, as "The Betrothal II".
Hughes, Robert. "The Tribal Style: Ab Ex at the Whitney Museum." Time (New York) 112, no. 16 (October 16, 1978), ill. in color, p. 82, as "The Betrothal II".
Levin, Gail. "Arshile Gorky (1904–1948)." In Abstract Expressionism: The Formative Years. Ithaca, NY and London: Cornell University Press, 1978. Exhibition catalogue (1978 Ithaca), fig. 29, ill. in color, p. 43, as "The Betrothal, II".
Suenaga, Terukazu. "Mirror of Memory: Gorky's Cruel Change." Mizue (みづゑ) (Tokyo) 9, no. 894 (September 1979), ill. in color, p. 32.
Jordan, Jim M. "Gorky at the Guggenheim." Art Journal (New York) 41, no. 3 (Fall 1981), fig. 21, ill. in b/w, p. 265, as "The Betrothal II".
Larson, Kay. "The Man Who Would Be Best." New York 14 (May 11, 1981), ill., p. 73, as "The Betrothal II".
Levin, Kim. "Arshile Gorky." Flash Art (October–November 1981), ill. in b/w, p. 52, as "The Betrothal, II".
Morgan, S. "Becoming Arshile Gorky." Artscribe (London), no. 31 (October 1981), ill. in b/w, p. 23, as "The Betrothal II".
Rand, Harry. Arshile Gorky: The Implication of Symbols. Montclair, NJ: Allanheld, Osmun & Co. Publishers Inc., and London: George Prior Associated Publishers Ltd., 1981. Monograph, fig. 10–2, ill. in b/w, p. 149, as "The Betrothal II".
Waldman, Diane. "Arshile Gorky: Poet in Paint." In Arshile Gorky 1904–1948: A Retrospective. New York: Harry N. Abrams, Inc. in collaboration with The Solomon R. Guggenheim Foundation, 1981. Exhibition catalogue, discussed, p. 58, as "The Betrothal II".
Ashton, Dore. American Art Since 1945. New York: Oxford University Press, 1982, no. 19, ill. in color, p. 41, as "The Betrothal II".
Millard, Charles W. "Arshile Gorky." The Hudson Review (New York) 35, no. 1 (Spring 1982), discussed, p. 110, as "The Betrothal II".
Jordan, Jim M. "The Paintings of Arshile Gorky: New Discoveries, New Sources, and Chronology." In The Paintings of Arshile Gorky: A Critical Catalogue, by Jim M. Jordan and Robert Goldwater. New York and London: New York University Press, 1982, discussed pp. 90–91, as "The Betrothal II".
Jordan, Jim M. "Catalogue Raisonné of Paintings." In The Paintings of Arshile Gorky: A Critical Catalogue, by Jim M. Jordan and Robert Goldwater. New York and London: New York University Press, 1982, no. 339, ill. in b/w, pp. 515–16, as "The Betrothal II".
Seitz, William C. Abstract Expressionist Painting in America. Cambridge, MA and London: Harvard University Press for the National Gallery of Art, 1983, fig. 82, ill. in color, as "The Betrothal II".
Lader, Melvin P. Arshile Gorky. New York: Abbeville Press, 1985. Monograph, fig. 103, ill. in color, p. 102; ill. in color, back cover, as "The Betrothal II".
Phillips, Lisa. Vital Signs: Organic Abstraction from the Permanent Collection. New York: Whitney Museum of American Art, 1988, ill. in b/w, p. 26, as "The Betrothal II".
Anfam, David. "Convulsive Images." Art International (Paris) 11 (Summer 1990), discussed, p. 101, as "Betrothal".
Rand, Harry. Arshile Gorky: The Implication of Symbols. Rev. ed. Berkeley and Los Angeles: University of California Press, 1991. Monograph, fig. 10–2, ill. in b/w, p. 171, as "The Betrothal II".
Kramer, Hilton. "Tragedy of Life and Art." Art & Antiques (New York) 18, no. 9 (October 1995), discussed p. 116, as "The Betrothal".
Sawin, Martica. Surrealism in Exile and the Beginning of the New York School. Cambridge, MA, and London: The MIT Press, 1995, discussed, p. 322, as Betrothal II.
Weil, Rex. "Arshile Gorky." Artnews (New York) 94 (September 1995), discussed, p. 147, as one of "three versions of The Betrothal".
Ades, Dawn. Surrealist Art: The Lindy and Edwin Bergman Collection at the Art Institute of Chicago. Margherita Andreotti, ed. Chicago and New York: Art Institute of Chicago and Thames and Hudson, 1997, discussed, p. 144, as "The Betrothal II".
Herrera, Hayden. Arshile Gorky: His Life and Work. New York: Farrar, Straus, and Giroux, 2003, fig. 170, ill. in color, as "The Betrothal II".
Herskovic, Marika. "'Goodbye My Loveds,' Homage to Arshile Gorky: The Spirit of Abstract Expressionism." In American Abstract Expressionism of the 1950s: An Illustrated Survey with Artists's Statements, Artwork and Biographies. New York and Franklin Lakes, NJ: New York School Press, 2003, ill. in color, p. 18, as "The Betrothal, II".
Beredjiklian, Alexandre. Arshile Gorky: sept thèmes majeurs. Suresnes, France: Alphamédian & Johanet; Lisbon: Fondation Calouste Gulbenkian, 2007. Monograph, discussed, pp. 55, 63, as "Les Fiançailles II".
Cooksey, Chelsea L. "Arshile Gorky: The Abstraction of Symbol, Figure, and Form." M.A. Thesis, Purchase College, State University of New York, 2009, fig. 42, ill. in color, p. 75, as "The Betrothal II".
Matttison, Robert S. Arshile Gorky: Works and Writings. Barcelona: Ediciones Polígrafica, 2009. Monograph, ill. in color, p. 137, as "The Betrothal I".
Gale, Matthew. Arshile Gorky: Enigma and Nostalgia. London: Tate Publishing, 2010. Exhibition catalogue (2009–10 Philadelphia), no. 43, ill. in color, p. 81, as "The Betrothal II".
Murachanian, Jean. "The Forging of an Artistic Identity: A Gorky Retrospective." Asbarez Newspaper (Los Angeles), July 2, 2010, ill. in color, as "Betrothal".
Weston, Neville. "Arshile Gorky: A Retrospective." Craft Arts International (Neutral Bay Junction, N.S.W.) 79 (2010), ill. in color, p. 86, as "The Betrothal II".
Miller, Dana, ed. Whitney Museum of American Art: Handbook of the Collection. New Haven and London: Yale University Press, 2015, ill. in color, p. 151, as "The Betrothal II".
Warren, Beth Gates, and Marie Difilippantonio. Julien Levy: The Man, His Gallery, His Legacy. New York: Jean and Julien Levy Foundation for the Arts, 2023, ill. in color, volume four cover, as "The Betrothal, II".
Notes
The canvas was relined. The inscription on the reverse is known from a photograph provided by the Whitney Museum of American Art, New York.
Commentary
Gorky titled the painting Betrothal II in preparation for its 1948 showing at the Julien Levy Gallery in New York, which took place several months before his death in July of that year.1 According to Julien Levy (1906–1981), by this point, in part due to André Breton's (1896–1966) departure from New York in December 1945, Gorky's process for arriving at titles had evolved from its earlier basis in collaborative plays of free association (see commentary for P287), to an increasingly succinct "vocabulary" that was "more manifest and less a process of discovery."2
1. Julien Levy Gallery, New York, Arshile Gorky, February 29–March 20, 1948. No catalogue. The works that appeared in the exhibition are known from a price list on file in the Julien Levy papers at the Philadelphia Museum of Art Archives.
2. Julien Levy, Arshile Gorky (New York: Harry N. Abrams Inc., 1966), 36.
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