In 1950, Youngerman had his first group exhibition,
Les Mains eblouies at
Galerie Maeght in Paris, which also included
Pierre Alechinsky,
Eduardo Chillida and Corneille. He visited the studios of
Constantin Brancusi and
Jean Arp with Kelly, and found himself influenced by their sense of organic form. He met
Alexander Calder through his father-in-law,
Henri Seyrig, a renowned archaeologist and cultural attache to the Free French delegation to the United States. During this time he became interested in the resurgence of geometric abstraction in Paris, especially in exhibitions such as
Salon des Réalités Nouvelles which included
Max Bill,
Auguste Herbin and
Richard Lohse. Youngerman also visited the
Salon de Mai to see the most current work of the School of Paris artists, among them such masters as
Henri Matisse. Youngerman's exposure to the contemporary art in post-war France was critical to his development; he introduced aspects of geometric abstraction and Constructivism into his painting. In 1951 he mounted his first one-person exhibition at Galerie Arnaud in Paris. During this time he met the French artist,
Francois Morellet, with whom he developed a life-long friendship. A few years later he travelled to visit
Henri Seyrig in Beirut, then Director of Institut Francais d'Archeologie. In 1954 Youngerman was commissioned by the architect
Michel Ecochard to create a color design for the College Protestant Français in Beirut. In 1956 he designed sets for the French actor and director, Jean-Louis Barrault's production of Georges Schehaed's Histoire de Vasco. The American art dealer
Betty Parsons visited Youngerman's Paris studio that summer, where she encouraged him to move to New York City. In December 1956, he returned to the U.S. with his wife,
Delphine Seyrig, and son; they rented a space in lower Manhattan's Coenties Slip, an area of largely abandoned loft buildings that would become a legendary artists' colony. There his friends and neighbors included
Robert Indiana,
Jasper Johns,
Ellsworth Kelly,
Agnes Martin, and
Robert Rauschenberg. Youngerman's first one-person show at Betty Parsons Gallery marked his 1958 New York City debut. His development was unique among his peers, with elemental forms and fluid contours that marked his canvasses through the 1950s with imagery often emanating from a central core. Early in his growth the forms were organic; sometimes botanical in nature. He worked in thick black pigment as if it resided within the color spectrum. His career continued its ascent with exhibitions at the
Carnegie Institute in Pittsburgh and the
Corcoran Gallery of Art in Washington, DC. In 1959, Youngerman was featured alongside Johns,
Frank Stella, and Kelly in Sixteen Americans, a landmark exhibition curated by
Dorothy Miller at the
Museum of Modern Art. Between 1961 and 1968, Youngerman exhibited at the
Solomon R. Guggenheim Museum, Galerie Lawrence in Paris, Galleria dell'Arte in Milan, Everett Ellin Gallery in Los Angeles, the
Worcester Art Museum in Massachusetts, and
The Phillips Collection in Washington, DC. In 1968, he established a studio in Bridgehampton, New York, settling there full-time in 1995. In 1976, Youngerman received a
Guggenheim Fellowship for Fine Arts. In 2019, Youngerman premiered a body of work titled "Cut-Ups" at Washburn Gallery in New York City. His final exhibition, Jack Youngerman, "Works on Paper," 1954 - 2019, took place at The Drawing Room in East Hampton, NY. ==Recognition==