For your consideration a rare lot of (x2) the Gallery announcement (designed by KLINE an unknown edition) of the Franz Kline exhibition of paintings in 1956 in New York City at the Sidney Janis Gallery, located at 15 East 57th Street. March 5 – March 31, 1956. Also, included in this sale is the exhibition catalogue 'Sidney Janis Presents an Exhibition of New Paintings by Franz Kline 1960' (Catalogue is from the Marlborough Gallery NYC).

The catalogue is from the exhibition Sidney Janis Presents an Exhibition of New Paintings by Franz Kline which took place March 7 to April 2, 1960, at the Sidney Janis Gallery. Provenance: the catalogue is from the (stamped) Marlborough gallery NYC.

While the 1956 show was his first solo exhibition with dealer Sidney Janis. The March 1956 exhibition marked the beginning of Sidney Janis serving as Kline's primary dealer. Janis went on to organize four solo shows for Kline between 1956 and 1961. 

The Sidney Janis Gallery did not print prices on its 1956 exhibition checklists, art market records from the mid-1950s indicate that Kline's large-scale canvases sold for roughly $1,500 to $3,500 (in today's dollars $3500 = $45,000. His paintings now go for Millions!). By comparison, when Kline first debuted at the Charles Egan Gallery in 1950, his paintings were priced between $150 and $750 and largely went unsold. Joining Sidney Janis in 1956 marked a major jump in both his commercial demand and gallery pricing.

In the colour fotos shown are paintings originally shown in this 1956 show at the Sidney Janis Gallery, Franz Kline, March 1956, titled 'No. 11'. At some point it was re-named 'Vawadavitch' (1955). This is now at auction at SOTHEBY's NYC (Nov 16th 2026) with an estimate of $7-10 million (USD). Another painting from this 1956 Sidney Janis Gallery show was 'No.14' now titled 'Mahoning' (1956) in the permanent collection of the Whitney Museum of American Art, NYC.

This announcement is great for framing (an example of a framed invite is shown- frame not included). 1960 Catalogue gives reference (showing the 1956 show interior) and general context of the 1956/1960 show. 

Please ask any and all questions. Final sale.

Shipping: Please write for quote.

Condition: paper loss upper right corner. Ink smudging. Folds. abrasions. See fotos.

Size: Invite- folded 9" x 5.5" inches, Unfolded 16" x 18" inches. Catalogue- 8.5" x 11" inches.

Franz Kline (May 23, 1910 – May 13, 1962) was an American painter. He is associated with the Abstract Expressionist movement of the 1940s and 1950s. Kline, along with other action painters like Jackson Pollock, Willem de Kooning, Robert Motherwell, John Ferren, and Lee Krasner, as well as local poets, dancers, and musicians, came to be known as the informal group, the New York School. Although he explored the same innovations to painting as the other artists in this group, Kline's work is distinct in itself and has been revered since the 1950s.