Gallery Delaive is excited to announce Sam Francis: Monotypes, an exhibition showcasing a selection of some of Sam Francis’ most captivating monotypes. On view from March 20 to April 30, 2025, this exhibition offers a rare glimpse into Francis’ innovative monotype techniques, creating a body of work that blurs the lines between painting and printmaking.
Sam Francis fully immersed himself in printmaking during the early 1970s, initially collaborating with a variety of printmakers before establishing The Litho Shop, where he could develop his personal practice. The works he produced were strikingly similar to his paintings, but instead of merely reproducing his painting style, Francis approached printmaking as a deeply experimental process. Rather than planning his lithographs and etchings in advance, he allowed them to evolve organically, much like his painted works. His preferred tools included brushes—opting for them instead of the more conventional pens, crayons, or markers—capturing the same dynamic, gestural energy. Francis also created numerous proofs, refining the works through iterative exploration.
In 1974, he began experimenting with monotypes (unique, one-of-a-kind prints), a method he described as “instant painting.” Although not a new technique—having been explored by artists like Rembrandt and Degas—Francis brought a fresh vitality to the medium. He painted rapidly onto various printing plates (including aluminum, copper, wood, and stone) and then combined oil and water, acrylic and watercolor, dry pigment, gouache, and inks in an experimental mix. The plates were then pressed in a machine, where heat fused all the materials onto a sheet of paper in a single “flash.”
By the late 1970s and into the 1980s, Francis introduced ‘prototypes’—wood veneer plates stacked one on top of another, each covered with his characteristic painterly gestures. These prototypes were not just preparatory works; they became works of art in their own right, a highly unique aspect of Francis’ creative legacy. Each monotype came into being in an instant, a process that fascinated the artist:
“Once you peel it off, there is something beautiful, which you could not have seen any other way. It wasn’t there before. It isn’t like a print either. In printmaking you know what you’re doing, with this I am learning.”
For an insight in the available works, go to the artist’s page.
For inquiries please send an email to info@delaive.com
