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
$19,200
H 36 in W 48 in D 1.5 in
"Symphony" - Stunning Dynamic Abstract Expressionist Painting in Cool Palette
By Masri Hayssam
Located in Carmel, CA
Masri Hayssam (Lebanese, Italian, born 1965) "Symphony" 2019 Oil Paint, Acrylic Paint, Mixed Media, Canvas, Stretcher Bars The artist signed the bottom left and the back of the paint...
Canvas, Mixed Media, Oil, Acrylic, Stretcher Bars
$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
$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
$24,000
H 60 in W 48 in D 1.5 in
"Memories I" by Masri - Colorful Action Abstract Expressionist in Warm Palette
By Masri Hayssam
Located in Carmel, CA
Masri (Lebanese, born 1965) "Memories I" 2018 Acrylic paint, Oil paint, Mixed Media, Canvas, Stretcher bars The artist signed the back of the painting. "Memories I" by Masri is a st...
Canvas, Mixed Media, Oil, Acrylic, Stretcher Bars
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
$15,200
H 40 in W 50 in D 1.5 in
"Love for Meadow VII" - Colorful Rainbow Textured Impasto Contemporary Abstract
By Sveta Hessler
Located in Carmel, CA
Sveta Hessler (Russian, born 1973) "Love for Meadow VII" 2025 Acrylic paint, Gel, Mixed Media, Canvas, Stretcher Bars The artist signed the back of the painting. The artist notes th...
Canvas, Acrylic, Stretcher Bars, Mixed Media
$3,400
H 43 in Dm 43 in
Tondo Arboretum II - Circular Contemporary Abstract Warm Tone Botanical Painting
Located in Los Angeles, CA
Harrison Gilman's large original artworks begin with a layer of fast-paced gestural abstraction followed by organic shapes and geometric structures. Some of his paintings remain in t...
Canvas, Mixed Media, Acrylic
$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
$24,000
H 60 in W 48 in D 1.5 in
"Challenge 16" - Energetic Abstract Expressionist in Blue, Red, Black, and White
By Masri Hayssam
Located in Carmel, CA
Masri Hayssam (Lebanese, born 1965) "Challenge 16" 2019 Oil paint, Acrylic paint, Mixed Media, Canvas, Stretcher Bars The artist signed the bottom right and the back of the painting....
Canvas, Mixed Media, Oil, Acrylic, Stretcher Bars
$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
$635
H 9 in W 9 in
Sunrise II - Original Vibrant Yellow 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
$65,686Sale Price|20% Off
H 35 in W 41 in D 2.5 in
Abstract Blue Orange & Red Lake Sunset Landscape by Contemporary British Artist
By Angela Wakefield
Located in Preston, GB
Abstract Blue Orange & Red Lake Sunset Landscape by Contemporary British Artist, Angela Wakefield. Art measures 36 x 30 inches Frame measures 41 x 35 inches This painting is a ra...
Canvas, Paint, Cotton Canvas, Glitter, Mixed Media, Acrylic
Untitled (Horizontal Fade Ellipse)
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
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 ...
Brass
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 ...
Glass
Cube #20-2-92
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 ...
Glass
Lux III ED. 35/150
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 ...
Canvas, Mirror
Lux III
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 ...
Canvas, Mirror
Iceberg
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 ...
Canvas, Mixed Media
SMS Vapor Painting #235
By Larry Bell
Located in Morton Grove, IL
mixed media on canvas
Canvas, Mixed Media