Once in Manhattan, Stella quickly became a regular in that scene. He befriended painters Jasper Johns and Robert Rauschenberg, and architects Richard Meier and Philip Johnson, and married his first wife, art critic Barbara Rose, then a Columbia graduate student.

In 1959, art dealer Leo Castelli included Stella, then only 23, among the breakthrough artists his gallery represented. Though he continued to refine his signature cool, removed approach into the 60s, his paintings evolved to include bright colors, metallic paint and geometrically and curvilinear-shaped canvases.

In contrast to their minimalist appearance, the titles of Stella’s works became increasingly exotic and evocative: names like (continued)