In the years between his celebrated 1954 and 1958 series of stained Veil paintings, Washington Color School artist Morris Louis worked in a more conventional Abstract Expressionist style based on vigorous gesture and chaotic, all‑over composition. Of the approximately 300 paintings he produced during this period, only thirteen are known, one of which is Untitled 5‑76. In 1958, the artist destroyed all other works from this time frame that remained in his possession. Why he disavowed this large body of work is unknown, especially as the paintings were well received when first shown to dealers, collectors, and critics. Perhaps Louis’s negative reevaluation was guided by the writings and opinions of prominent modern art critic Clement Greenberg, who disapproved of the lush painterliness of Willem de Kooning and his many followers. In Untitled 5 -76, Louis juxtaposes various methods of applying paint, ranging from de Kooning’s textured brushstrokes to Jackson Pollock’s splashed droplets and Helen Frankenthaler’s liquid stains. The brilliant palette of violet, magenta, yellow, orange, and aqua anticipates the dazzling hues of Louis’s later stain paintings, as well as those of his friend Kenneth Noland, whose work is also on view in this gallery.