16th May, 2024
Max Weber, a Russian-born Jewish-American painter, introduced Cubism to the US and was influenced by Henri Rousseau, Matisse, and Cézanne. He believed art transcends nature and has a greater goal than copying it. Weber's works are held in museums worldwide.
Elie Nadelman, born in 1882, was a Polish sculptor who moved to Paris at 22 and began his career in classical sculpture. He traveled to America during World War I, where his classical heads gained popularity. Despite criticism, Nadelman continued to work in this style, with his stylized genre sculptures being recognized as his greatest after his death in 1946.
Born in Russia in 1895, Glinsky emigrated to America and studied at the Beaux Arts Institute. He received a Guggenheim Fellowship and traveled to Italy and France. During the Great Depression, he worked for the Works Progress Administration and became a master instructor.
Ellen Sinton, also known as "Nell," was a postwar California artist who attended the California School of Fine Arts and studied with Lucien Labaudt and Maurice Sterne. She was named one of the Ten Most Distinguished Bay Area Women in 1959 and was a member of the San Francisco Art Commission and Board of Trustees.
Alex Katz, an American artist, is known for his large-format landscapes, flowers, and portraits of his wife Ada. Born in Brooklyn in 1927, he studied at Cooper Union School of Art and Skowhegan School of Painting and Sculpture. His work has influenced younger artists.
Helen Levitt, a renowned street photographer, documented New York's underprivileged communities from the 1930s to the 1990s. Influenced by surrealism and silent film, her work often depicted depression and conflict. Levitt received a Guggenheim grant in 1959 and exhibited her work in 1974.
Markus Rothko, born in 1903 in Latvia, studied at Yale University and Parsons School of Design under painter Arshile Gorky. They shared an interest in European Surrealism, leading to Rothko's unique style of floating color zones. Due to health issues, he limited canvases size and switched to acrylic paints.
Philip Guston is renowned for his comical paintings and drawings, ranging from ordinary images to political satires, particularly on Richard Nixon. His work has gained critical acclaim and is currently on display in major museums. An online show at Hauser & Wirth will launch on July 30. Guston's works will also be featured in a touring survey, postponed due to the pandemic.
Roy Lichtenstein, a prominent Jewish American pop artist, was a key figure in the Pop Art movement, known for his cartoon-inspired works that influenced late twentieth-century movements and social issues. Born in Manhattan, he studied at Parsons School of Design and Ohio State University, and began his career in 1962.
Helen Frankenthaler, born in 1928, was a prominent New York artist known for her abstracts, created by staining vibrant hues into unprimed canvas. Inspired by childhood experiments with her mother's nail polish, she used a unique "soak-stain" technique, allowing paint to bleed into the canvas, creating inky, ethereal shapes.
Hyman, a renowned artist, is known for her hyper-realistic porcelain sculptures of common objects, using tools like molds and electric slab rollers. She creates intricate details using screen printing, slips, and glazes. Hyman taught art in the New York Public School System and received international recognition for her ceramics contributions.