Qatar Museums unveiled Ellsworth Kelly at 100, a landmark exhibition celebrating the seven-decade career of Ellsworth Kelly. Organised by Glenstone Museum in Maryland, U.S.A., and hosted by M7, the exhibition commemorates Kelly’s 100th birthday and is the first major survey of his work in the MENASA region. Running until February 25, 2025, the exhibition was inaugurated by H.E. Sheikha Al Mayassa bint Hamad bin Khalifa Al Thani, Chairperson of Qatar Museums, alongside Emily Rales, Director of Glenstone Museum.
Featuring nearly 70 pieces, the exhibition offers a comprehensive look at Kelly’s work across painting, sculpture, photography, and paper, reflecting his minimalist approach and mastery of colour and form. In addition to works from Glenstone’s collection, significant loans from the Centre Pompidou, Foundation Louis Vuitton, National Gallery of Art, Philadelphia Museum of Art, SFMOMA, Art Institute of Chicago, Walker Art Center, and Whitney Museum contribute to this robust retrospective.
This exhibition marks a milestone in Qatar’s cultural landscape, introducing Kelly’s iconic work to the region for the first time. Ellsworth Kelly at 100 continues the centennial celebrations launched at Glenstone Museum in 2023, followed by a presentation at the Foundation Louis Vuitton in Paris. The Doha exhibition is part of the Qatar–USA 2021 Year of Culture legacy, underscoring Qatar’s continued cultural collaborations.
Alongside the exhibition, M7 is hosting a diverse public program, including workshops, sensory-friendly sessions, lectures, school visits, and events exploring connections between Kelly’s work and Islamic design.
Nora Cafritz the senior director of collections at Glenstone answers our questions about the show.
Interview with Nora Cafritz
What’s your vision in curating the Ellsworth Kelly at 100 exhibition specifically for an audience in the MENA region? How did this context influence the selection of works presented?
That’s a wonderful question. The simple answer is that we wanted to create a show that truly celebrates Ellsworth Kelly’s remarkable contributions to abstraction. His work is extensive and filled with masterworks, so one of the challenges was determining which pieces would most fully represent his evolution as an artist. We approached this exhibition with the goal of telling the story of his artistic journey over 70 years. For audiences in the Middle East, as well as those in Paris, we aimed to centre the artist himself, not necessarily the institution or region. It was about finding the best way to honour his legacy.
In Doha, we’re particularly excited because this is the first time Kelly’s work has been exhibited in the region. It’s an opportunity to introduce him to audiences who may have never seen his work or even heard his name. With that comes a responsibility to present his art in a way that invites curiosity and encourages new viewers to engage thoughtfully. Contemporary art doesn’t demand that you like everything—it’s about interaction and personal perspective. I love that viewers may have questions like, “Why is this monochromatic, deeply saturated black canvas a painting? My child could do that.” Those are some of my favourite conversations because they open the door to a deeper appreciation while validating each viewer’s unique experience.
Kelly’s work is known for its interaction with colour, form, and space. How did you and Qatar Museums work together to highlight these elements, especially with installations like Yellow Curve?
Collaborating with M7 has been wonderfully generative and dynamic. Their team has been deeply supportive, working closely with us to solve spatial and architectural challenges. Bringing Yellow Curve to life was a particular focus for both of us. This piece required a dedicated structure to achieve the effect Kelly intended. Originally created for a German institution in 1990, the work depends on a specific spatial context. M7’s commitment to this installation was extraordinary, both in resources and in construction effort. The process involved designing a custom-built area to honour the original parameters of Yellow Curve, ensuring its impact remains true to Kelly’s vision.
The broader exhibition was also developed in close partnership with M7, with the aim of creating a visitor experience that’s both accessible and insightful. We opted for a chronological layout, which we felt would benefit viewers unfamiliar with Kelly’s work by guiding them through his evolution as an artist. It’s been a rewarding partnership, and we’re immensely grateful for M7’s support and vision.
How long did it take to build the Yellow Curve?
Constructing Yellow Curve took about a week, but the preparation process was much longer. After sourcing materials and assembling the structure, there were multiple stages of sanding, adhesion, and layering. A fine mesh was added to create the look of a canvas painting, then it was primed and painted over several days. Each coat needed to dry completely before applying the next layer, making it a meticulous process. The vessel for Yellow Curve required several weeks to build prior to the installation itself, so overall, it was a significant commitment.
What happens to Yellow Curve after the exhibition?
Yellow Curve is too large to transport, so it will be dismantled at the close of the exhibition. We preserve pieces of it as a record of each installation, which is essential for documentation. However, Yellow Curve is ultimately a conceptual work, so every iteration is rebuilt anew, respecting Kelly’s vision of the piece’s ephemeral nature.
In bringing Kelly’s legacy to a new cultural audience, which aspects of his journey do you hope will resonate most with viewers at M7, especially given his focus on nature and architectural forms?
This is my first visit to Doha, and I’ve been deeply inspired by the city’s architectural heritage and Islamic art collections, which resonate beautifully with Kelly’s focus on nature. His plant drawings, for instance, reflect a profound respect and admiration for the natural world, a sentiment shared by artists in the Islamic tradition. I noticed this connection in the arabesques that appear in the city’s architecture and museums. These arabesques, often based on natural forms like plants and flowers, are abstracted into rhythmic patterns with a unique choreography.
While Kelly’s abstractions are more minimal, the shared impulse of honouring nature is striking. I hope visitors to Ellsworth Kelly at 100 will notice these parallels and perhaps feel a deeper connection to his work as they see reflections of their own cultural motifs. This exhibition has allowed me to see Kelly’s work anew, and I hope the same will happen for those who visit here in Doha.
About Ellsworth Kelly
Ellsworth Kelly (1923–2015) was an influential American artist known for his pioneering work in colour field painting, minimalism, and abstract art. Celebrated for his bold use of colour, shape, and line, Kelly created works that emphasize form and simplicity, often using large, flat planes of colour and distinct shapes. His style was deeply informed by nature and architectural elements, which he abstracted into minimalist compositions. Kelly’s career spanned over six decades, during which he produced paintings, sculptures, and prints that challenged conventional approaches to composition and perception. His legacy endures in major museum collections worldwide, symbolising modern abstraction’s transformative power.
Location: M7, Doha, Qatar
Dates: 1 November 2024 – 25 February 2025
Watch the Guided Tour of Ellsworth Kelly at 100 by Nora Cafritz