Alex Katz
View Similar Items
Alex Katz
About the Item
- Creator:Alex Katz (Artist)
- Dimensions:Height: 40.38 in (102.57 cm)Width: 33 in (83.82 cm)Depth: 1.38 in (3.51 cm)
- Style:Modern (Of the Period)
- Materials and Techniques:
- Place of Origin:
- Period:
- Date of Manufacture:1990
- Condition:Wear consistent with age and use. light wear to frame.
- Seller Location:Southampton, NY
- Reference Number:1stDibs: LU80031105122
Alex Katz
Flat color and minimal forms contrast the often monumental scales of the paintings by Alex Katz through which he creates portraits and landscapes of deceptive simplicity. Although the signature stark style that defines his prints and other work is now recognizable at a glance, it took him a decade to develop. During that time, he has said he destroyed hundreds of paintings.
Born in Brooklyn, New York, to Russian émigré parents, Katz’s family moved to Queens when he was a baby and that is where his family’s passion for the arts supported his early creative interests. In 1946, he enrolled at the Cooper Union in Manhattan where he studied painting under Morris Kantor. While he was influenced by the bold colors and hard edges of modernism, he shifted away from the then-dominant Abstract Expressionism movement to figurative scenes of life that have an inherent cool in their pared-down approach. Especially impactful were Katz’s summer studies between 1949 and 1950 at the Skowhegan School of Painting and Sculpture in Maine, a place where, as he later wrote: “I tried plein air painting and found my subject matter and a reason to devote my life to painting.”
Katz’s first solo show was in 1954 at Roko Gallery in New York. He experimented over the course of the following years with collage and painting on aluminum sheets, with his work in the 1960s drawing inspiration from film and advertising. In the 1970s, Katz expanded into portrait groups that regularly depicted the cultural scene of New York; in the 1980s, he extended his focus to fashion and its supermodels. Since the late 1950s, an enduring muse for his portraits has been his wife, Ada, while others have painted friends and famous figures. The intimate closeness of the frequently cropped faces in Katz’s portraits exudes a sense of tension with the subjects’ enigmatic expressions and planes of color.
In the 1960s, Katz collaborated with American dancer and choreographer Paul Taylor on sets and costumes. His concentration on landscapes emerged in the late 1980s, with atmospheric night views joining his practice, which had previously been defined by bright colors. Always finding new perspectives on his work, he has explored using iPhone photographs as the basis for large-scale compositions in recent years.
Katz’s prolific career has spanned sculpture, prints and public art along with his paintings and drawings, and his works can be found in the collections of leading museums such as the Metropolitan Museum of Art, Whitney Museum of American Art and Museum of Modern Art. He has had over 250 solo exhibitions around the world and continues to be acclaimed. In 2022, the Solomon R. Guggenheim Museum plans to open a major retrospective of his art.
Find Alex Katz art today on 1stDibs.
- Alex Katz, Lithograph of American Choreographer Paul Taylor, 1984By Alex KatzLocated in Brooklyn, NYAlex Katz, black and white lithograph, 1984 Alex Katz (American, b. 1927), Portrait of Paul Taylor, pencil signed and numbered 18/100 lower left, titled lower right, slat framed und...Category
Late 20th Century American Modern Prints
MaterialsPaper
$10,875 Sale Price25% Off - Maharam Serpentine Galleries Wallpaper by Alex KatzBy Alex Katz, MaharamLocated in New York, NYMaharam Serpentine Galleries Wallpaper Sunny by Alex Katz 001 Alex Katz is a New York-based artist whose extensive body of work includes figurative...Category
21st Century and Contemporary American Modern Wallpaper
MaterialsOther
- Woodblock Print by Listed Artist Alex Boz 'Bozickovic'By Alex BozLocated in San Diego, CAA very cool Mid-Century block print portrait of a young woman and two doves by listed artist Alex Boz (Bozickovic). Great color and style; would make a g...Category
20th Century Macedonian Mid-Century Modern Prints
MaterialsPaper
- Vintage Photograph of Alex Katz, 1986, NYCBy Jeannette Montgomery BarronLocated in Brooklyn, NYOriginal vintage photograph taken by Jeannette Montgomery Barron of American artist Alex Katz in NYC, 1986. Vintage gelatin silver print. Framed. Image: 13 × 13 inches Paper: 20...Category
Late 20th Century American Photography
MaterialsOther
- 1813 Joh. W. Von Goethe & Alex. Von Humboldt; Comparative View of MountainsLocated in Norwich, GBEsquisse des principales hauteurs des deux continens dressée par Mr. de Göthe,... d'après l'ouvrage de Mr. de Humboldt, publié en 1807 sous le titre d'Essai sur la géographie des plantes Goethe, Johann Wolfgang von (1749-1832). Cartographer Using information from: Humboldt, Alexander von (1769-1859) 32 x 27 cm on a leaf measuring 47 x 55 cm. Extremely rare example of Johann Wolfgang von Goethe’s comparative chart to depict the relative height of mountains, thus defining a cartographic style that would flourish throughout the remainder of the 19th century. This map is extremely scarce. It was issued and sold independently in Paris, 1813. Beginning in 1805, Goethe gave lectures on natural sciences to a group of Weimar women on Wednesday mornings. The audience included the Duchess Luise, Schiller's widow Charlotte and her sister Caroline von Wolzogen. Here Goethe used his image of heights on April 1, 1807 for the first time. A copy was sent to Alexander von Humboldt...Category
Antique 1810s Biedermeier Prints
MaterialsPaper
- Rare Signed Alex Ross Fantastic 4 Wedding Lithograph Marvel Hero Dynamic ForcesBy Alex RossLocated in Miami, FLAn officially licensed Fantastic Four Wedding Marvel Heroes lithograph on fine art paper by ALEX ROSS. It is his Alex's amazing version of this wedding first appeared in the acclaime...Category
Early 2000s American Prints
MaterialsPaper
$795 Sale Price47% Off