Florence U. “Fonchen” Lord (1911–1993) was a Minimalist painter and sculptor based primarily in Lakeland, Florida. This is the first time that her work will be exhibited at the Museum of Fine Arts, showcasing both her paintings from the 1960s and the lacquered, large-scale sculptures of her later career. Lord earned her BFA from Radcliffe College and an MA from Washington University in St. Louis. Of her evolution toward sculpture, she said it was a “need to free myself from the shackles of frames [and] two-dimensional flat canvas.”

Image: Fonchen Lord, White Cross, 1970, Acrylic on shaped canvas, Gift of the artist, On loan from Polk Museum of Art © Fonchen Lord.