Helen Frankenthaler

Known for: the soak-stain technique; Mountains and Sea (1952)

Helen Frankenthaler developed the soak-stain technique in 1952 — pouring thinned paint directly onto unprimed canvas laid on the floor, allowing the color to penetrate the weave and become part of the material rather than sitting on top of it — that Morris Louis and Kenneth Noland adopted and extended into Color Field painting. Her Mountains and Sea (1952) is considered a founding work of the movement. She donated her estate and archives to a foundation that bears her name.