Like much abstract art, Barnett Newman's paintings have often been interpreted as significantly gendered. His case is also typical insofar as the interpretive processes by which gender has been located in his work ordinarily have been primitive. Masculinity is situated in the "phallic" vertical bands of his paintings, the so-called zips-this term itself evokes not only speed and direction but also mundane openings onto male organs. Newman's zips and Jackson Pollock's spurts have sometimes been taken to symbolize the intense and aggressive masculinity recognized as characteristic of New York school art and its milieu. Closer scrutiny is warranted as theories of the gendering of abstract expressionism bear increased weight in art historical arguments-some of which seek to interpret the art by women associated with the movement, especially Lee Krasner and Elaine de Kooning, and its neglect by critics; some to explore the inscription of identity in New York school art; and some to establish gender as a significant factor in the development of postmodern reactions against abstract expressionist high modernism.' The case of Barnett Newman is