“Krasner and Pollock: Past Continuous” — The Met opens its major exhibition on the two giants of abstract expressionism on Sunday

The Metropolitan Museum of Art in New York opens on Sunday, October 4, 2026, the major exhibition “Krasner and Pollock: Past Continuous”, which will remain open until January 31, 2027. The exhibition brings together more than 120 paintings, works on paper and archival materials from over 80 collections in the U.S. and abroad, and — as the Metropolitan Museum of Art announces — is the first major presentation in New York devoted to either of the two artists in more than 20 years.

Lee Krasner (1908–1984) and Jackson Pollock (1912–1956) were contemporaries and partners in life: they met in 1942 at an exhibition organised by artist John Graham, married in 1945 and moved to Springs, on Long Island, where they remained connected personally, artistically and professionally until Pollock’s death in 1956.

The exhibition’s subtitle, “Past Continuous”, is borrowed from a 1976 painting by Krasner and follows the two artists’ lives and works in parallel — from shared experiences to the memory that overshadows them. The exhibition highlights the scope and historical importance of Krasner’s work, while offering an in-depth look at Pollock’s complex practice.

“By considering each artist on their own merits, while emphasising their essential relationship, the exhibition places the work of Krasner and Pollock in a broader cultural and artistic context,” said The Met’s director, Max Hollein, as quoted by Artsy. According to him, the project confirms the two artists not only as defining figures of their moment, but also as creators whose work continues to shape and inspire new generations.

The exhibition is open from October 4, 2026 to January 31, 2027 at The Met Fifth Avenue, in Gallery 899 (The Tisch Galleries), and is one of the main events of the world’s autumn art calendar — designboom magazine included it this week in its list of exhibitions to see in October.