Reconstituting the landmark exhibition American Painting: The Eighties from New York University’s Grey Art Gallery exhibition in 1979, American Painting: The Eighties Revisited captures a pivotal moment in twentieth century art. It features abstract paintings by artists, including Sam Gilliam, Nancy Graves, and Elizabeth Murray, all of whom were new to the New York art scene at the time. American Painting: The Eighties toured to Houston, Texas, then to 13 cities abroad, from Paris to Tel Aviv.

Along the way, a lively argument ensued about the direction that art was headed: would the best paintings reflect back on the Abstract Expressionism of the 1950s, or would they launch from the subsequent Pop Art or Minimalist movements?

All 41 artists featured in the original exhibition are shown here, including 35 paintings shown at the Grey Art Gallery. This collection has been acquired by the Cincinnati Art Museum through the generosity of Ronnie and John Shore.