What is the title of Helen Frankenthaler's first soak-stain painting from 1952?

Helen Frankenthaler’s first soak-stain painting from 1952 is titled “Mountains and Sea.”

Frankenthaler created the work after a summer trip to Cape Breton Island in Nova Scotia. Although it is not a literal depiction of one particular coastline, its translucent blue, green, and ochre passages suggest hills, water, and open landscape. The painting marked a major breakthrough for the 23-year-old artist.

To make it, Frankenthaler placed unprimed canvas directly on the floor and diluted oil paint with turpentine. The thinned colors soaked into the fabric and spread through its fibers, rather than sitting as opaque layers on top. This method became known as soak-staining and strongly influenced later Color Field painters, including Morris Louis and Kenneth Noland.

“Mountains and Sea” was initially met with skepticism, but it later became Frankenthaler’s best-known and most influential painting. It is now associated with Abstract Expressionism, Color Field painting, and Lyrical Abstraction, and is held by the National Gallery of Art.