"An Opening of the Field: Jess, Robert Duncan, and Their Circle applies this vision of imaginative interconnection to a stimulating group of works in varied media. Deeply rooted in myth and romanticism, Olson would have appreciated its broad cultural scope, grounded in the specifics of local history."

New York City (October 23, 2013)—Artist Jess (1923–2004) and poet Robert Duncan (1919–1988) number among the most fascinating artistic couples of the twentieth century. After meeting in San Francisco in 1950, they created a domestic life together based on mutual intellectual and aesthetic interests that resulted in an array of fascinating artworks and writings. From January 14 to March 29, 2014, New York University’s Grey Art Gallery presents the first overview to showcase their rich artistic production alongside works by their remarkable circle of friends.

"If you were young, gifted and odd, San Francisco was a good place to be in the years after World War II, when big changes were brewing in American art and culture. And that city is the setting for “An Opening of the Field: Jess, Robert Duncan, and Their Circle,” an exhibition that feels like a chunk of Bay Area turf lifted from the past and set down, untrimmed and buzzing, in New York University’s Grey Art Gallery."