The Facts
On November 10, 2026, Thaddaeus Ropac announced that The Museum of Modern Art in New York has acquired Alex Katz's painting "Black Roses 11" (2025). The work belongs to a series of new paintings by the American artist, others of which were shown in a solo exhibition at Thaddaeus Ropac Salzburg earlier this year. The large-scale canvas depicts flowers, a motif Katz has revisited throughout his career, rendered with flat fields of black or orange paint against white backgrounds. Katz distills the flowers into rhythmically arranged areas of opaque paint, eliminating adornment to emphasize shape and space, giving the motif an almost sculptural quality. MoMA holds an extensive collection of Katz's work and most recently exhibited the artist in a 2024 solo show, "Alex Katz: Seasons."
The Signal
The acquisition of a 2025 work signals MoMA's continued support for Katz's late-career output, reinforcing his standing as a key figure in contemporary painting. The series represents a return to floral subjects, now distilled into near-abstract compositions that highlight Katz's exploration of color and form. For the market, institutional placement of recent works adds to the artist's significance, particularly as his paintings remain sought after by collectors and museums alike.
- Artists: Alex Katz
- Galleries: Thaddaeus Ropac
- Museums: The Museum of Modern Art
- Locations: New York
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