The legendary Los Angeles art scene of the 1960s produced many spectacular visual artists, such as Ed Moses, Billy Al Bengston and James Turrell. Painter and sculptor Larry Bell is arguably among the most influential of the era’s marquee names. A quintessential contemporary abstract artist, Bell explored light with glass sculptures that are difficult to categorize, while his abstract prints are a meditation on color. Whether working in two or three dimensions, Bell's artistic intuition always leads the way.
Bell was born in 1939 in Chicago and grew up in California. From 1957 to 1959, he attended the Los Angeles Chouinard Art Institute where he created monochromatic abstract oil paintings that drew on Abstract Expressionism. Soon, he began incorporating mirrors and glass in his designs, which eventually evolved into provocative sculptural works.
During the mid-1960s, Bell developed his signature technique of modifying how light moves through and is reflected in his sculptures. Working with glass cubes he built, Bell used an industrial process that sees vaporized metals becoming thin plastic films to be added to the works’ interior panels. He essentially turned his transparent boxes into tapestries of diffuse color. Bell showed his cubes at a solo exhibition at Pace Gallery in New York City in 1965. The show was a huge success, selling out on its first day.
Bell continued experimenting with new methods and techniques, shifting his focus to larger and more monumental works in the late 1960s. In the 1970s, he developed adjustable glass sculptures with as many as fifty-six panels. He also dabbled in bronze sculpture and furniture design.
Throughout his career, Bell has exhibited widely, with shows at the Museum of Contemporary Art and Norton Simon Museum in California, the Modern Art Museum of Fort Worth, Denver Art Museum, Carré d'Art-Musée d'art contemporain de Nîmes in France and Tate Britain, among many others.
In 2019, gallerist Peter Blake held a show celebrating West Coast minimalism, including the work of Bell as a respected and influential veteran in the space. Later, in 2022, Hauser & Wirth gallery in Los Angeles held a joint exhibition featuring the work of Bell and artist John Chamberlain. The two artists were lifelong friends who met in the 1960s Los Angeles art scene. In a sense, the show brought Bell back full circle.
Find original Larry Bell art on 1stDibs.
Larry Bell, Untitled (Fraction of Fractions), mixed media, unique, signed
By Larry Bell
Located in New York, NY
Larry Bell Untitled (Fraction of Fractions), 2000 Pink, green and black painted elements with applied canvas and paper strips on French watercolor paper Pencil signed and dated lowe...
Fabric, Canvas, Paper, Mixed Media, Acrylic
Fractions Series (LB 4970)
By Larry Bell
Located in London, GB
Larry Bell Fractions Series (LB 4970) 1999 Collage on paper 25.4 x 25.4 cms (10 x 10 ins) LB11
Mixed Media
$3,000
Fraction
By Larry Bell
Located in London, GB
FRACTIONS The Fractions are a large body of small works on paper that Larry Bell made using collaged pieces of discarded Mirage works. Each Fraction is composed of one or more 3×3” s...
Mixed Media
Fraction Series (4522) 12/21/98
By Larry Bell
Located in London, GB
Larry Bell Fraction Series (LB 4522) 1998 Mixed media and collage on paper 25.4 x 25.4 cms (10 x 10 ins) LB 4368
Mixed Media
$455
H 18 in W 13 in
Bladder Campion - Yellow Framed Floral Artwork on Antique Botanical Book Page
By Lee Herring
Located in Los Angeles, CA
Lee Herring focuses his contemporary paintings on vibrant, textured, and abstract landscapes that convey fleeting moments. Herring's energetic artworks are inspired by everyday momen...
Paper, Mixed Media
Cielo di Venere
Located in Atlanta, GA
"My passion for the vestiges of aged surfaces that inspires my painting has been influenced by my travels in Finland, France, Germany, Greece, Italy, Mexico, Russia, and Sweden." --...
Mixed Media, Oil, Wood Panel
$3,400
H 36 in W 48 in
Fruity Ramen Alchemy: ARRIVAL - Meditative Abstract Blue Tone Painting on Canvas
Located in Los Angeles, CA
Abstract minimalist artist Jason DeMeo presents a collection of artworks designed to engage viewers in a meditative experience, drawing them closer to the enduring ideals of truth, b...
Gold Leaf
$3,900
H 72 in W 48 in D 1.5 in
The Fort Protected - Large Oversized Contemporary Abstract Blue Painting
By Sarah Svetlana
Located in Los Angeles, CA
Sarah Svetlana's original abstract artworks offer a captivating glimpse into the intricacies of the human experience, drawing inspiration from a diverse range of sources and influenc...
Canvas, Charcoal, Varnish, Pastel, Mixed Media, Spray Paint, Acrylic
$635
H 9 in W 9 in
Glowing Sunset II - Original Vibrant Warm Tone Textured Abstract Artwork Framed
By Frederic Paul
Located in Los Angeles, CA
The delicate and poetic artworks of painter Frederic Paul reference his Asian roots in expressive and elaborate compositions. Inspired by the bold colors, spices, flora, and landscap...
Canvas, Mixed Media, Oil, Acrylic, Rice Paper
Valentine
By Katherine Bello
Located in Kansas City, MO
Artist : Katherine Bello Title : Valentine Materials : Acrylic and paper on board Date : 1/2020 Dimensions : 18"x18"x.75" Signed and Dated by Hand COA Provided Katherine Bello's aim as an artist is to capture a sense of place, a moment of time, or a feeling - to evoke a sense of wonder. Bello loves paint and paint brushes; bold, gestural mark-making and the interplay of color. She is influenced by light and landscape, poetry, history and science. Formerly educated in Chemical Engineering and Interior Design, Bello is drawn to the process of creating Something out of Nothing. Abstract, sbstract art...
Canvas, Paint, Paper, Mixed Media, Acrylic, Board
$14,306
H 57.49 in W 89.77 in D 1.58 in
Rose Madone — Large Neutral Abstract Minimal Earth Diptych on Canvas (Set of 2)
Located in Barcelona, Barcelona
Onirisme organique (Diptych), 146 × 114 cm each panel, Acrylic on raw canvas. Total size of the two panels: 146 × 228 cm. At Escat Gallery, we are committed to maintaining the highe...
Cotton Canvas, Mixed Media, Pigment
$5,890
H 50.01 in W 38.19 in D 1.97 in
Abstract Painting Landscape with Organic Earth Tones by Rose Madone Contemporary
Located in Barcelona, Barcelona
At Escat Gallery, we are committed to maintaining the highest standards of trust and professionalism for our collectors. Every artwork in our collection comes with a Certificate of A...
Cotton Canvas, Mixed Media
$4,650
H 44 in W 66 in
Chop Jit - Large Abstract Color Drenched Unique Mixed Media Painting on Canvas
Located in Los Angeles, CA
Rue Bootay, a New York-born artist now rooted in the vibrant artistic landscape of Los Angeles, navigates the avant-garde realm of nonrepresentational surrealism with a style uniquel...
Canvas, Charcoal, Mixed Media, Acrylic
$635
H 9 in W 9 in
Caribbean Sea - Original Textured Blue Tone Abstract Landscape Artwork Framed
By Frederic Paul
Located in Los Angeles, CA
The delicate and poetic artworks of painter Frederic Paul reference his Asian roots in expressive and elaborate compositions. Inspired by the bold colors, spices, flora, and landscap...
Canvas, Mixed Media, Oil, Acrylic, Rice Paper
$5,370
H 48 in W 67 in
My Joyful Heart - Lively Colorful Abstract 3-D Painted Weaving
Located in Los Angeles, CA
Impasto-painted strokes of bright colors are the framework of artist Shiri Phillips’ abstract artworks. Her paintings are flooded with texture through the layering of acrylic paint i...
Wire
$3,400
H 40 in W 36 in
Eternal Sakura - Original Textured Neon Pink Landscape Artwork
By Frederic Paul
Located in Los Angeles, CA
The delicate and poetic artworks of painter Frederic Paul reference his Asian roots in expressive and elaborate compositions. Inspired by the bold colors, spices, flora, and landscap...
Canvas, Mixed Media, Oil, Acrylic, Rice Paper
Untitled
By Larry Bell
Located in Laguna Beach, CA
Larry Bell is most commonly known for his Minimalist sculptures—transparent cubes that thrive on the interplay of shape, light, and environment— that champion the ideas of the Light ...
Paper
MSMS 20
By Larry Bell
Located in Houston, TX
Mixed media abstract by Larry Bell.
Canvas, Mixed Media