Alex KatzJune Ekman's Class: Nancy1972
1972
About the Item
- Creator:Alex Katz (1927, American)
- Creation Year:1972
- Dimensions:Height: 11 in (27.94 cm)Width: 15 in (38.1 cm)
- Medium:
- Movement & Style:
- Period:
- Condition:
- Gallery Location:New York, NY
- Reference Number:1stDibs: LU293211059092
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.
- ShippingRetrieving quote...Ships From: New York, NY
- Return PolicyThis item cannot be returned.
- June Ekman's Class: KashaBy Alex KatzLocated in New York, NYAlex Katz June Ekman's Class: Kasha, 1972 aquatint, edition of 50 11 x 15 in. (27.9 x 28.1 cm)Category
1970s Contemporary Portrait Prints
MaterialsAquatint
- June Ekman's Class: HarmonyBy Alex KatzLocated in New York, NYAlex Katz June Ekman's Class: Harmony, 1972 aquatint, edition of 50 11 x 15 in. (27.9 x 38.1 cm)Category
1970s Contemporary Portrait Prints
MaterialsAquatint
- June Ekman's Class: MaryBy Alex KatzLocated in New York, NYAlex Katz June Ekman's Class: Mary, 1972 aquatint, edition of 50 11 x 15 in. (27.9 x 28.1 cm)Category
1970s Contemporary Portrait Prints
MaterialsAquatint
- June Ekman's Class: JuneBy Alex KatzLocated in New York, NYAlex Katz June Ekman's Class: June, 1972 aquatint, edition of 50 11 x 15 in. (27.9 x 28.1 cm)Category
1970s Contemporary Portrait Prints
MaterialsAquatint
- June Ekman's Class: YvonneBy Alex KatzLocated in New York, NYAlex Katz June Ekman's Class: Yvonne, 1972 aquatint, edition of 50 11 x 15 in. (27.9 x 38.1 cm)Category
1970s Contemporary Portrait Prints
MaterialsAquatint
- Napo and JosephineBy Red GroomsLocated in New York, NYRed Grooms Napo and Josephine, 2008 black and white etching with spitbite aquatint on Somerset textured white, ed. of 20 18 x 15 in. (45.7 x 38.1 cm)Category
Early 2000s Contemporary Portrait Prints
MaterialsEtching, Aquatint
- Semen: large scale expressionist nude male figure portrait, floating in pinkBy Francesco ClementeLocated in New York, NYThis large scale, ethereal portrait depicts a tranquil male nude figure floating in pink and blue. Based on a tempera painting, an expressionist, emotive piece to bring dramatic impa...Category
1980s Contemporary Nude Prints
MaterialsDrypoint, Aquatint, Etching
- Mujer Sonande de un Arbol aquatint and chine colle by Leiko IkemuraBy Leiko IkemuraLocated in Boca Raton, FLSoft ground aquatint and chine-collé print by artist Leiko Ikemura. Edition number 13 of 20. Framed under glass in black frame. Framed dimensions: 26 x 22 1/4 inches. Image dimension...Category
2010s Contemporary Figurative Prints
MaterialsAquatint
- TuesdayBy Richard HullLocated in Bloomington, ILHull's etching "Tuesday" depicts a figure viewing itself in a mirror, the funky and undulating frame of which has become part of the figure itself. The print is densely drawn, textur...Category
21st Century and Contemporary Contemporary Abstract Prints
MaterialsEtching, Aquatint
- WednesdayBy Richard HullLocated in Bloomington, ILHull's etching "Wednesday" depicts a figure viewing itself in a mirror, the funky and undulating frame of which has become part of the figure itself. The print is densely drawn, text...Category
21st Century and Contemporary Contemporary Abstract Prints
MaterialsEtching, Aquatint
- "That One Time I Modeled Lingerie" Printmaking: Photogravure, Aquatint EtchingLocated in New York, NY"That One Time I Modeled Lingerie" Printmaking: Photogravure and Aquatint Etching on Paper, Framed Dimensions: 13 x 16in, Framed 22 x 24 x 1in This piece is a Limited Edition of 25, ...Category
2010s Contemporary Figurative Prints
MaterialsEtching, Aquatint, Photogravure, Paper
- Amy Used Twice (block)Located in Saint Louis, MOMonica Majoli Amy Used Twice (block), 2011 Aquatint and etching on BFK Rives 250 g. 30 x 19.5 inches (76.2 x 49.5 cm) Edition 3/10Category
2010s Contemporary Portrait Prints
MaterialsEtching, Aquatint