Still, Clyfford (1904–1980)

US painter. He was a pioneer and central figure of abstract expressionism. His vast, thickly painted canvases are characterized by jagged areas of raw colours. 1954 (1954, Albright-Knox Art Gallery, Buffalo, New York) is typical.

Self-taught, Still painted flickering, semi-abstract landscapes of western America during the 1930s and 1940s prior to arriving at his own forceful style about 1947. The broadening of his technique coincided with his moral stance against extraneous detail and his exploration of simplified fields of dark and light colour.