Sidney B. Felsen and Artists at Gemini G.E.L.
Felsen reflects on his photographs of artists at Gemini G.E.L., the renowned Los Angeles print workshop.
“When I began photographing the artists in the early 1970s, it was just about taking photos. But soon I realized that all of the artists working with us were so highly accomplished, and I had the feeling of history building up.”
—Sidney B. Felsen
Felsen appears in the lower right mirror holding a camera (detail).
In 1966, Sidney B. Felsen (b. 1924), along with his wife Rosamund Felsen, partners Stanley and Elyse Grinstein, and master printer Kenneth Tyler, cofounded Gemini G.E.L., a Los Angeles artist’s workshop and publisher of prints and sculpture. Within five years, Gemini had published editions by Robert Rauschenberg, Frank Stella, Ed Ruscha, Claes Oldenburg, Jasper Johns, Roy Lichtenstein, Ken Price, and Ellsworth Kelly.
More than just a workshop, Gemini was a community that championed collaboration and technical innovation. Felsen, through his photographs, documented this remarkable history of artists at Gemini over half a century. His archive, part of the Getty Research Institute’s collections, comprises about 75,000 images.
The Getty Research Institute presents a selection from Felsen's archive, accompanied by his own words and personal memories.
All photographs were taken by Sidney B. Felsen. To see full images, click on the information icon that appears on the upper left corner of each photograph.
Henry Geldzahler sitting for David Hockney (detail), Sidney B. Felsen, 1976
"Between my 20-some years in art school and being around Gemini, I got the spirit of what it is to be creative—how demanding it is, and the importance of the creative moment."
—Sidney B. Felsen
"'Silent and invisible,' those are the two words that I thought I had to live by. I had to make the artist think I'm not there. One of the compliments that I really appreciated is, ‘I didn't even realize you were taking my picture.'"
—Sidney B. Felsen
James Webb and Robert Rauschenberg (1977) by Sidney B. FelsenGetty Research Institute
James Webb and Robert Rauschenberg, Sidney B. Felsen, 1977
Felsen captured the joy and demands of the creative process. His photographs reveal the different stages of collaboration and bring to light each artists’ individual approach to printmaking.
“This photo tells the story of collaboration—printer and artist, working closely together. The artist is the one who creates the image, and the printer knows and understands the process...Many strong friendships develop through these collaborations.”
—Sidney B. Felsen
James Rosenquist drawing on a plate for "The Glass Wishes" (detail), Sidney B. Felsen, 1980
“Hand-printing results in a reverse image, and this causes many artists problems in terms of the desired results."
"Jim Rosenquist taped a sketch to his chest, and by using a mirror, the image would appear reversed and he could refer to that as a guide as he painted and drew onto the copper etching plate. I thought that was fun. He’s the only one I ever saw do it.”
—Sidney B. Felsen
Susan Rothenberg using a crowbar to create an image on an etching plate (detail), Sidney B. Felsen, 1986
“Susan Rothenberg was about five feet tall; she was a mighty mite. She wanted to draw a very deep groove into a copperplate to get a really strong image out of it.”
"So she picked up a crowbar...Any tool is a possibility for an artist.”
—Sidney B. Felsen
Roy Lichtenstein carving a huge woodblock for "Blue Floor" (1990) by Sidney B. FelsenGetty Research Institute
Roy Lichtenstein carving a huge woodblock for "Blue Floor" with sketches for his “Interior Series” on the wall, Sidney B. Felsen, 1990
“Roy Lichtenstein is carving a woodblock that is seven feet wide. He had to lie on it to work on the entire surface. We bought sophisticated tools, but he didn’t use them.”
“We went to a hardware store and bought a $3.00 thing with a blade on it, and that's what he wanted. Roy carved 8 hours a day for 6 weeks to complete this series, he was so heroic.”
“The sketches on the back wall are studies he created at home for the project.”
—Sidney B. Felsen
Richard Serra stomping oil stick through wire mesh to create a texture (detail), Sidney B. Felsen, 1998
There's very loud rock n’ roll music playing and [Richard Serra's] dancing—he's dancing on this circle of black oil stick…jumping up and down and moving around until he finds a texture that he likes.”
"Richard is like a steam locomotive: if he's doing something, get out of his way, or he’ll just blow you away.”
—Sidney B. Felsen
Julie Mehretu working on the copper plates for "Auguries" (2010) by Sidney B. FelsenGetty Research Institute
Julie Mehretu working on the copper plates for "Auguries," Sidney B. Felsen, 2010
“Around the turn of the century, there was a belief that younger artists were not interested in printmaking. And all of a sudden came the magical moment when Julie Mehretu appeared in our lives, this 36-year-old who was seriously interested in printmaking.”
“Some artists will be shown what to do, and they do it; but Julie is one of those persons who wants to know about it and what's underneath it.”
—Sidney B. Felsen
Some of the artworks created at Gemini G.E.L. are now part of Getty's collections.
Four Panels from Untitled 1972 (1974) by Jasper JohnsGetty Research Institute
Four Panels from Untitled 1972, Jasper Johns, 1974. Color lithographs with embossing on four sheets. Getty Trust Art Collection
Repetition is integral to Johns’ work. The artist often returned to the crosshatch, which recalls the linear pattern traditionally used in printmaking to describe volume and shadows.
Jasper Johns working on an embossing plate for "Four Panels from Untitled 1972" (1974) by Sidney B. FelsenGetty Research Institute
Jasper Johns working on an embossing plate for "Four Panels from Untitled 1972," Sidney B. Felsen, 1974
“There’s a lot of stripes here—it’s a happy coincidence of all of the stripes on Jasper’s shirt and the cross-hatched marks on the plate. And, at the core, it’s simply great to see such an accomplished artist pounding away on a printing plate.”
—Sidney B. Felsen
18 Colors (Cincinnati), 18-color lithograph (1979-1982) by Ellsworth KellyGetty Research Institute
18 Colors (Cincinnati), Ellsworth Kelly, 1979-1982. 18-color lithograph. Getty Trust Art Collection
This lithograph refers to Kelly's Color Panels for a Large Wall (1978), a series of eighteen large monochrome canvases. Translating the colors from painting into print demanded careful adjustments to the hues.
The edition took three years to complete and was printed from nine plates in nine passes through the press.
"Ellsworth Kelly’s art looks like the easiest thing to do, but it's actually the hardest thing to do in printmaking. His prints are all about purity."
—Sidney B. Felsen
James Reid working on Ellsworth Kelly’s "Color Panels" (detail), Sidney B. Felsen, 2011
Constellation-Uccello (1983) by Vija CelminsGetty Research Institute
Constellation-Uccello, Vija Celmins, 1983. Hardground and softground etching with aquatint. Getty Trust Art Collection
"Vija Celmins draws, say, an inch on a plate, and this takes a day. She makes corrections and then moves up the plate a second inch, and so on. It takes days and days to get to the top. One favorite expression I would hear was, ‘I've got to learn how to make art easier.’ Sometimes I thought the next time she came in she actually found some ways to make it harder to do than before."
—Sidney B. Felsen
Vija Celmins working in the Gemini artist studio on a proof of "Night Sky (Reversed)" (detail), Sidney B. Felsen, 2002
The night sky recurs through Celmins’ work, meticulously drawn from photographs and found images.
Today, Gemini continues to foster collaborations with artists who embrace broad-ranging techniques. Recent artists include Tacita Dean, Analia Saban, and Toba Khedoori.
Tacita Dean working on "LA Exuberance" (detail), Sidney B. Felsen, 2015
Felsen's photographs also capture candid, playful moments that chronicle his many friendships with artists.
"There’s a lot of tension in the workshop when proofing is going on, because the artist has a limited amount of time given their busy schedule. I think of these moments of humor as an artist wanting to get away from what they’re concentrating on and just have some fun."
—Sidney B. Felsen
"It also, in a way, speaks for the fact that a person is relaxed and they’re willing to clown around in front of your camera. So, it’s some form of their acceptance of you as a photographer."
—Sidney B. Felsen
The Sidney B. Felsen Photography Archive was donated to the Getty Research Institute by Jack Shear in 2019.
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