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Alex Katz Art

American, b. 1927

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 opened a major retrospective of his art.

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Artist: Alex Katz
Black Dress 9 (Christy) - 21st Century, Alex Katz, Figurative Sculpture, Woman

Black Dress 9 (Christy) - 21st Century, Alex Katz, Figurative Sculpture, Woman

By Alex Katz

Located in Köln, DE

The "Black Dress" sculptures by Alex Katz are more than figurative sculptures. They are a homage to elegance, fashion and the female body. This cut-out is made from powder-coated alu...

Category

2010s Contemporary Alex Katz Art

Materials

Other Medium

Portraits: Jessica
Portraits: Jessica

Portraits: Jessica

By Alex Katz

Located in New York, NY

Alex Katz uses outline drawings, called “cartoons”, as templates to transfer full size images onto the canvas prior to painting. Rendered in red chal...

Category

Early 2000s Alex Katz Art

Materials

Etching

Vincent 1 from White Shirt series
Vincent 1 from White Shirt series

Vincent 1 from White Shirt series

By Alex Katz

Located in Calabasas, CA

Artist: Alex Katz Title: Vincent 1 from White Shirt series Year: 2021 Medium: Archival pigment ink on Innova Etching Cotton Rag 315 gsm fine art paper Edition: 50; signed and numbere...

Category

2010s Contemporary Alex Katz Art

Materials

Archival Pigment

Purple Irises on Red

Purple Irises on Red

By Alex Katz

Located in New York, NY

An artwork of uncommon beauty, Purple Irises on Red, by Alex Katz was created by the artist in 2023, is hand-signed and numbered in pencil measuring 24 x 30 inches (61 x 76 cm), unfr...

Category

21st Century and Contemporary Alex Katz Art

Materials

Archival Pigment

Goldenrod
Goldenrod

Goldenrod

By Alex Katz

Located in Toronto, Ontario

Adored by collectors and art lovers around the globe, Alex Katz is renowned for his elegant and distinctive version of figuration. Born in 1927, Katz has been dedicated to art-makin...

Category

2010s Pop Art Alex Katz Art

Materials

Rag Paper, Laser, Archival Pigment

Ariel
Ariel

Ariel

By Alex Katz

Located in Miami, FL

TECHNICAL INFORMATION: Alex Katz Ariel (set of 3) 2016 Baked archival UV inks on shaped powder-coated aluminum 60 x 28 in. (overall dimensions) Edition of 40 Engraved signed and n...

Category

2010s Contemporary Alex Katz Art

Materials

Aluminum, Cut Steel

Ariel 2

Ariel 2

By Alex Katz

Located in New York, NY

A beautiful and enigmatic image rendered as an original screenprint created in 2021, Ariel 2 is hand-signed and numbered by Alex Katz, the artwork measuring 60 x 37 in. (153 x 94 cm)...

Category

21st Century and Contemporary Alex Katz Art

Materials

Screen

Dancer II, Alex Katz

Dancer II, Alex Katz

By Alex Katz

Located in New York, NY

Created as a three-dimensional cut-out on aluminum by Alex Katz in 2020, Dancer II is printed the same on each side with UV-cured archival inks and mounted on an aluminum base.  With...

Category

21st Century and Contemporary Alex Katz Art

Materials

Archival Ink

Big Smile (Vivien)

Big Smile (Vivien)

By Alex Katz

Located in New York, NY

Created in 2021 as an archival pigment print, Alex Katz's Big Smile (Vivien) is hand-signed and numbered. Measuring 35 x 70 in. (89 x 178 cm.), unframed, thi...

Category

21st Century and Contemporary Contemporary Alex Katz Art

Materials

Archival Pigment

Yellow Flags on Brown

Yellow Flags on Brown

By Alex Katz

Located in New York, NY

An artwork of uncommon beauty, Yellow Flags on Brown, by Alex Katz was created by the artist in 2023, is hand-signed and numbered in pencil measuring 24 x 30 inches (61 x 76 cm), unf...

Category

21st Century and Contemporary Alex Katz Art

Materials

Archival Pigment

Vivien

Vivien

By Alex Katz

Located in New York, NY

Created by Alex Katz in 2022, Vivien is hand-signed and numbered in pencil, measuring 32 x 24 in. (81 x 61 cm.), unframed, from the edition of 150 as issued.

Category

21st Century and Contemporary Contemporary Alex Katz Art

Materials

Archival Pigment

Red Dancer 1

Red Dancer 1

By Alex Katz

Located in New York, NY

Created by Alex Katz in 2019, Red Dancer 1 is a screenprint in colors, hand-signed in pencil and numbered, the artwork measuring 36 x 108 in. (91.5 x 274 cm),...

Category

21st Century and Contemporary Alex Katz Art

Materials

Screen

Laura 2

Laura 2

By Alex Katz

Located in New York, NY

Created by Alex Katz in 2018, Laura 2 is an original etching, hand-signed in pencil and numbered, the artwork measures 42 x 42 in. (107 x 107 cm), unframed, fr...

Category

21st Century and Contemporary Alex Katz Art

Materials

Etching

Large Black Hat (Ada) - Kraft
Large Black Hat (Ada) - Kraft

Large Black Hat (Ada) - Kraft

By Alex Katz

Located in Boca Raton, FL

Alex Katz’s Large Black Hat (Ada) (2012) distills representation into its most minimalistic visual form, continuing the artist’s decades-long project of rendering presence as an act ...

Category

21st Century and Contemporary Pop Art Alex Katz Art

Materials

Screen

Alex and Ada, 1984 Screenprint by Alex Katz

Alex and Ada, 1984 Screenprint by Alex Katz

By Alex Katz

Located in Miami, FL

Technical Information: Alex Katz Alex and Ada 1984 Screenprint 30 x 36 in. Edition of 75 Pencil signed and numbered Accompanied with COA by Gregg Shienbaum Fine Art

Category

1980s Contemporary Alex Katz Art

Materials

Screen

"Yellow Flags on White", Flowers, Yellow, White

"Yellow Flags on White", Flowers, Yellow, White

By Alex Katz

Located in Köln, DE

We are proud to present a brand new edition by Alex Katz. "Yellow Flags on White" is one of the latest works that has been published. It is an homage to his landscape and flower artworks...

Category

2010s Contemporary Alex Katz Art

Materials

Pigment

Sunset 2, from Sunrise Sunset Portfolio

Sunset 2, from Sunrise Sunset Portfolio

By Alex Katz

Located in Miami, FL

Technical Information Alex Katz Sunset 2, from Sunrise Sunset Portfolio 2020 Archival Pigment inks on Innova etching cotton rag 315 gsm paper 42 x 46 i...

Category

21st Century and Contemporary Contemporary Alex Katz Art

Materials

Archival Ink, Archival Paper, Archival Pigment

Alex Katz - "Plate 21" From GLORIA Portfolio (Original Etching, 2005) Ed 100

Alex Katz - "Plate 21" From GLORIA Portfolio (Original Etching, 2005) Ed 100

By Alex Katz

Located in Philadelphia, PA

This print is priced fairly, offered at the same wholesale discount extended to our partner galleries and private dealers. We strongly encourage prospective buyers to compare our lis...

Category

Early 2000s Contemporary Alex Katz Art

Materials

Etching

Alex Katz - "Plate 15" From GLORIA Portfolio (Original Etching, 2005) Ed 100

Alex Katz - "Plate 15" From GLORIA Portfolio (Original Etching, 2005) Ed 100

By Alex Katz

Located in Philadelphia, PA

This print is priced fairly, offered at the same wholesale discount extended to our partner galleries and private dealers. We strongly encourage prospective buyers to compare our lis...

Category

Early 2000s Contemporary Alex Katz Art

Materials

Etching

Alex Katz - "Plate 13" From GLORIA Portfolio (Original Etching, 2005) Ed 100

Alex Katz - "Plate 13" From GLORIA Portfolio (Original Etching, 2005) Ed 100

By Alex Katz

Located in Philadelphia, PA

This print is priced fairly, offered at the same wholesale discount extended to our partner galleries and private dealers. We strongly encourage prospective buyers to compare our lis...

Category

Early 2000s Contemporary Alex Katz Art

Materials

Etching

Alex Katz - "Plate 11" From GLORIA Portfolio (Original Etching, 2005) Ed 100

Alex Katz - "Plate 11" From GLORIA Portfolio (Original Etching, 2005) Ed 100

By Alex Katz

Located in Philadelphia, PA

This print is priced fairly, offered at the same wholesale discount extended to our partner galleries and private dealers. We strongly encourage prospective buyers to compare our lis...

Category

Early 2000s Contemporary Alex Katz Art

Materials

Etching

Yellow flags on white

Yellow flags on white

By Alex Katz

Located in Fairfield, CT

Edition of 150.

Category

2010s Contemporary Alex Katz Art

Materials

Rag Paper, Etching, Archival Pigment

Dancer 1

Dancer 1

By Alex Katz

Located in Fairfield, CT

Silkscreen in 25-colors on Saunders Waterford HP High White 425 gsm paper edition of 60

Category

2010s Alex Katz Art

Materials

Screen

Dancer 1

Dancer 1

By Alex Katz

Located in Miami, FL

TECHNICAL INFORMATION Alex Katz Dancer 1 2019 Silkscreen 60 x 36 in. Edition of 60 Pencil signed and numbered Accompanied with COA by Gregg Shienbaum Fine A...

Category

2010s Contemporary Alex Katz Art

Materials

Screen

Julian and Jessica
Julian and Jessica

Alex KatzJulian and Jessica, 1986

$6,000Sale Price|20% Off

Julian and Jessica

By Alex Katz

Located in Toronto, Ontario

Adored by collectors and art lovers the world over, Alex Katz is renowned for his elegant and distinctive version of figuration. Born in 1927, Katz has been dedicated to art-making s...

Category

1980s Pop Art Alex Katz Art

Materials

Woodcut

Ada 9 - From the Ada Portfolio

Ada 9 - From the Ada Portfolio

By Alex Katz

Located in Fort Lauderdale, FL

Alex Katz (b. 1927) Ada 9 — From the ADA Portfolio, 2022, (/100) Silkscreen in colors on Saunders Waterford High White HP 425 gsm paper 54 x 40.50 in (137.16 x 102.87 cm)

Category

2010s Alex Katz Art

Materials

Screen

"Chris", charcoal, drawing, Katz, Portrait, cool
"Chris", charcoal, drawing, Katz, Portrait, cool

"Chris", charcoal, drawing, Katz, Portrait, cool

By Alex Katz

Located in Köln, DE

This is an outstanding charcoal drawing by Alex Katz. He is portraying "Chris", who was model for several paintings and prints. Drawings do have an important impact to Alex Katz pain...

Category

2010s Contemporary Alex Katz Art

Materials

Charcoal

Green Jacket
Green Jacket

Green Jacket

By Alex Katz

Located in Toronto, Ontario

Alex Katz (b. 1927) has been dedicated to art-making since the 1950's - however, it wasn't until the 60's when he established his signature 'flat' figurative style. Over the succeedi...

Category

1990s Pop Art Alex Katz Art

Materials

Screen

Laura 5 - gray, grey, portrait, profile, shades

Laura 5 - gray, grey, portrait, profile, shades

By Alex Katz

Located in Köln, DE

"Laura 5" is a very special work by Alex Katz. Despite from that he became famous for his bright colors, this print is made in various shades of gray. So this classical Katz portrait...

Category

2010s Contemporary Alex Katz Art

Materials

Digital Pigment

Summer

Summer

By Alex Katz

Located in Fairfield, CT

Edition of 60

Category

2010s Contemporary Alex Katz Art

Materials

Archival Ink, Rag Paper, Archival Pigment

Black Dress 2 (Cecily) - 21st Century, Alex Katz, Figurative Sculpture, Woman

Black Dress 2 (Cecily) - 21st Century, Alex Katz, Figurative Sculpture, Woman

By Alex Katz

Located in Köln, DE

The "Black Dress" sculptures by Alex Katz are more than figurative sculptures. They are a homage to elegance, fashion and the female body. This cut-out is made from powder-coated alu...

Category

2010s Contemporary Alex Katz Art

Materials

Other Medium

"Purple Irises on Red", Iris, Purple, Red, Flowers, Landscape

"Purple Irises on Red", Iris, Purple, Red, Flowers, Landscape

By Alex Katz

Located in Köln, DE

We are proud to present a brand new edition by Alex Katz. "Purple Irises on Red" is one of the latest works that have been published. Edition of 100, signed, numbered and dated.

Category

2010s Contemporary Alex Katz Art

Materials

Pigment

Homage to Monet (Triptych)

Homage to Monet (Triptych)

By Alex Katz

Located in Fairfield, CT

Archival pigment inks on Innova etching, 315 gsm fine art paper. Left panel: 46 x 15.25 in. Center panel: 46 x 23 in. Right panel: 46 x 15.25 in. Edition 23/100.

Category

2010s Alex Katz Art

Materials

Paper, Archival Pigment

Sunrise 1

Sunrise 1

By Alex Katz

Located in Miami, FL

Technical Information: Alex Katz Sunrise 1 2022 Archival pigment ink on Innova Etching Cotton Rag 315 gsm fine art paper 54 x 40 1/2 in. Edition of 100 Pencil signed and numbered

Category

21st Century and Contemporary Contemporary Alex Katz Art

Materials

Archival Ink, Archival Pigment

Alex Katz 'Rudy' Signed Pencil Drawing 1973
Alex Katz 'Rudy' Signed Pencil Drawing 1973

Alex Katz 'Rudy' Signed Pencil Drawing 1973

By Alex Katz

Located in Miami, FL

ALEX KATZ (1927-Present) Alex Katz' 'Rudy' is a 1972 graphite drawing on paper. This original piece is signed 'Alex Katz '73', previously acquired from Marlborough Gallery, New Yor...

Category

1990s Contemporary Alex Katz Art

Materials

Pencil

Freesia, Contemporary, Woodcut, Flowers, Yellow and Black

Freesia, Contemporary, Woodcut, Flowers, Yellow and Black

By Alex Katz

Located in Köln, DE

The present work “Freesia” by Alex Katz from 2023 is a color woodcut in seven colors. In terms of both style and motif, the work is one of the most recent in his landscape and floral...

Category

2010s Contemporary Alex Katz Art

Materials

Woodcut

Straw Hat 3

Straw Hat 3

By Alex Katz

Located in Miami, FL

Technical Information: Alex Katz Straw Hat 3 2022 Archival pigment ink on Innova Etching Cotton Rag 315 gsm fine art paper 75 1/2 x 42 in. Edition of 100 P...

Category

21st Century and Contemporary Contemporary Alex Katz Art

Materials

Archival Ink, Archival Pigment

Sunrise, Contemporary Archival Print, Signed, 55x42, 21st Century

Sunrise, Contemporary Archival Print, Signed, 55x42, 21st Century

By Alex Katz

Located in Miami, FL

TECHNICAL INFORMATION Alex Katz Sunrise, from Sunrise Sunset Portfolio 2020 Archival Pigment inks on Innova etching cotton rag 315 gsm paper 55 x 42 in...

Category

21st Century and Contemporary Contemporary Alex Katz Art

Materials

Archival Ink, Archival Paper, Archival Pigment

Vivien in White Coat

Vivien in White Coat

By Alex Katz

Located in Miami, FL

TECHNICAL INFORMATION: Alex Katz Vivien in White Coat 2021 Silkscreen 54 x 39 in. Edition of 60 Pencil signed and numbered

Category

21st Century and Contemporary Contemporary Alex Katz Art

Materials

Screen

Straw Hat 3 - dreaming, straw hat, summer, portrait

Straw Hat 3 - dreaming, straw hat, summer, portrait

By Alex Katz

Located in Köln, DE

In 2022 Alex Katz published the Straw Hat series. These are three beautiful works showing individual portraits of women, each wearing a kind of straw hat. They have this warm, summer...

Category

2010s Contemporary Alex Katz Art

Materials

Digital Pigment

Yellow Flags 4 - 21st Century, Alex Katz Landscape Print, Orang, Yellow, Flowers

Yellow Flags 4 - 21st Century, Alex Katz Landscape Print, Orang, Yellow, Flowers

By Alex Katz

Located in Köln, DE

Yellow Flags 4 - 21st Century, Alex Katz Landscape Print, Orange, Yellow, Flowers, "Yellow Flags 4" is one of Alex Katz's famous flower prints. His flowers are the most reduced form...

Category

2010s Contemporary Alex Katz Art

Materials

Etching, Aquatint

Alex Katz 'Profile of Vincent' Signed Drypoint on German Etching Paper 1974
Alex Katz 'Profile of Vincent' Signed Drypoint on German Etching Paper 1974

Alex Katz 'Profile of Vincent' Signed Drypoint on German Etching Paper 1974

By Alex Katz

Located in Miami, FL

ALEX KATZ (1927-Present) Katz's 1974 'Profile of Vincent' is a drypoint on German etching paper. Signed and numbered to lower left ‘AP 5/10 Alex Katz’. This work is artist's proof 5...

Category

1970s Contemporary Alex Katz Art

Materials

Paper, Archival Paper, Lithograph

Dancer 3

Dancer 3

By Alex Katz

Located in Miami, FL

TECHNICAL INFORMATION Alex Katz Dancer 3 2019 Silkscreen 60 x 36 in. Edition of 60 Pencil signed and numbered Accompanied with COA by Gregg Shienbaum Fine Art Condition: This work...

Category

2010s Contemporary Alex Katz Art

Materials

Screen

Dancer 3 on Rod

Dancer 3 on Rod

By Alex Katz

Located in Fairfield, CT

Edition of 15

Category

2010s Contemporary Alex Katz Art

Materials

Metal

Sweatshirt 2 (Alex and Ada Suite)

Sweatshirt 2 (Alex and Ada Suite)

By Alex Katz

Located in Miami, FL

TECHNICAL INFORMATION Alex Katz Sweatshirt 2 (Alex and Ada Suite) 1990 Screenprint 36 x 28 5/8 in. Edition of 150 Pencil signed and numbered Accompanied with COA by Gregg Shienbaum...

Category

1990s Contemporary Alex Katz Art

Materials

Screen

Sasha 1

Sasha 1

By Alex Katz

Located in Miami, FL

TECHNICAL INFORMATION: Alex Katz Sasha 1 2016 Archival pigment inks on Crane Museo Max paper 32 x 16 in. Edition of 90 Pencil signed & numbered Accompanied with COA by Gregg Sh...

Category

21st Century and Contemporary Contemporary Alex Katz Art

Materials

Archival Pigment

Purple irises on red

Purple irises on red

By Alex Katz

Located in Fairfield, CT

Edition of 100

Category

2010s Contemporary Alex Katz Art

Materials

Rag Paper, Etching, Archival Pigment

Belinda

Belinda

By Alex Katz

Located in New York, NY

Created by Alex Katz in 2017, Belinda is an archival pigment print on Crane Museo Max paper. Hand-signed in pencil and numbered, the artwork measures 30 x 22 in. (76 x 56 cm), unfram...

Category

21st Century and Contemporary Contemporary Alex Katz Art

Materials

Archival Pigment

Alba

Alba

By Alex Katz

Located in New York, NY

Created by Alex Katz in 2017, Alba is an archival pigment print on Crane Museo Max paper. Hand-signed in pencil and numbered, the artwork measures 30 x 22 in. (76 x 56 cm), unframed,...

Category

21st Century and Contemporary Contemporary Alex Katz Art

Materials

Archival Pigment

Jessica

Jessica

By Alex Katz

Located in New York, NY

Created by Alex Katz in 2017, Jessica is an archival pigment print on Crane Museo Max paper. Hand-signed in pencil and numbered, the artwork measures 30 x 22 in. (76 x 56 cm), unfram...

Category

21st Century and Contemporary Contemporary Alex Katz Art

Materials

Archival Pigment

Yellow Flags 3

Yellow Flags 3

By Alex Katz

Located in Miami, FL

TECHNICAL INFORMATION Alex Katz Yellow Flags 3 2020 Archival pigment ink on Innova Etching Cotton Rag 315 gsm fine art paper 33 x 22 in. Edition of 15...

Category

2010s Contemporary Alex Katz Art

Materials

Archival Pigment

Tree 10

Tree 10

By Alex Katz

Located in Miami, FL

Technical Information: Alex Katz Tree 10 2022 Screenprint 37 1/2 x 38 in. Edition of 60 Pencil signed and numbered

Category

21st Century and Contemporary Contemporary Alex Katz Art

Materials

Screen

Ada 3 - From the Ada Portfolio

Ada 3 - From the Ada Portfolio

By Alex Katz

Located in Fort Lauderdale, FL

Alex Katz (b. 1927) Ada 3 — From the ADA Portfolio, 2022, (/100) Silkscreen in colors on Saunders Waterford High White HP 425 gsm paper 54 x 40.50 in

Category

2010s Contemporary Alex Katz Art

Materials

Screen

Dancer II, Alex Katz

Dancer II, Alex Katz

By Alex Katz

Located in New York, NY

Created by Alex Katz in 2019, Dancer II is an original screenprint in colors, hand-signed by the artist in pencil, and numbered, measuring 60 x 44 in. (153 x 111 cm), unframed, from ...

Category

21st Century and Contemporary Alex Katz Art

Materials

Screen

Purple irises on white

Purple irises on white

By Alex Katz

Located in Fairfield, CT

Edition of 100.

Category

2010s Contemporary Alex Katz Art

Materials

Rag Paper, Etching, Archival Pigment

Azaleas on Yellow, from The Flowers Portfolio
Azaleas on Yellow, from The Flowers Portfolio

Azaleas on Yellow, from The Flowers Portfolio

By Alex Katz

Located in London, GB

Archival pigment print, 2021, on Innova Etching Cotton Rag 315 gsm paper, signed in pencil, numbered from the edition of 100, Lococo Publishing, Missouri, 119 x 86 cm. (46¾ x 33¾ in.)

Category

2010s Contemporary Alex Katz Art

Materials

Archival Pigment

Red Dancer 1

Red Dancer 1

By Alex Katz

Located in Fairfield, CT

Silkscreen in 25-colors on Saunders Waterford HP High White 425 gsm paper edition of 60

Category

2010s Alex Katz Art

Materials

Screen

Ada 1 - From the ADA Portfolio (/100)

Ada 1 - From the ADA Portfolio (/100)

By Alex Katz

Located in Fort Lauderdale, FL

Alex Katz was born in Brooklyn, New York in 1927. In 1928, at the outset of the Depression, his family moved to St. Albans, a diverse suburb of Queens that had sprung up between the two wars. Katz was raised in St. Albans by his Russian parents. His mother had been an actress and possessed a deep interest in poetry and his father, a businessman, also had an interest in the arts. Katz attended Woodrow Wilson High School for its unique program that allowed him to devote his mornings to academics and his afternoons to the arts. In 1946, Katz entered The Cooper Union Art School in Manhattan, a prestigious college of art, architecture, and engineering. At The Cooper Union, Katz studied painting under Morris Kantor and was trained in Modern art theories and techniques. Upon graduating in 1949, Katz was awarded a scholarship for summer study at the Skowhegan School for Painting and Sculpture in Maine, a grant that he would renew the following summer. During his years at Cooper Union, Katz had been exposed primarily to modern art and was taught to paint from drawings. Skowhegan exposed him to painting from life, which would prove pivotal in his development as a painter and remains a staple of his practices today. Katz explains that Skowhegan’s plein air painting gave him “a reason to devote my life to painting.” Katz’s first one-person show was held at the Roko Gallery in 1954. Katz had begun to develop greater acquaintances with the New York School and their allies in the other arts; he counted amongst his friends’ figurative painters Larry Rivers and Fairfield Porter, photographer Rudolph Burckhardt, and poets John Ashbery, Edwin Denby, Frank O’Hara, and James Schuyler. From 1955 to 1959, usually following a day of painting, Katz made small collages of figures in landscapes from hand-colored strips of delicately cut paper. In the late 1950s, he moved towards greater realism in his paintings. Katz became increasingly interested in portraiture, and painted his friends and his wife and muse, Ada. He embraced monochrome backgrounds, which would become a defining characteristic of his style, anticipating Pop Art and separating him from gestural figure painters and the New Perceptual Realism. In 1959, Katz made his first cutout, which would grow into a series of flat “sculptures;” freestanding or relief portraits that exist in actual space. In the early 1960s, influenced by films, television, and billboard advertising, Katz began painting large-scale paintings, often with dramatically cropped faces. In 1965, he also embarked on a prolific career in printmaking. Katz would go on to produce many editions in lithography, etching, silkscreen, woodcut and linoleum cut. After 1964, Katz increasingly portrayed groups of figures. He would continue painting these complex groups into the 1970s, portraying the social world of painters, poets, critics, and other colleagues that surrounded him. He began designing sets and costumes for choreographer Paul Taylor in the early 1960s, and he has painted many images of dancers throughout the years. In the 1980s, Katz took on a new subject in his work: fashion models in designer clothing. In the late 1980s and 1990s, Katz focused much of his attention on large landscape paintings, which he characterizes as “environmental.” Rather than observing a scene from afar, the viewer feels enveloped by nearby nature. Katz began each of these canvases with “an idea of the landscape, a conception,” trying to find the image in nature afterwards. In his landscape paintings, Katz loosened the edges of the forms, executing the works with greater painterliness than before in these allover canvases. In 1986, Katz began painting a series of night pictures—a sharp departure from the sunlit landscapes he had previously painted, forcing him to explore a new type of light. Variations on the theme of light falling through branches appear in Katz’s work throughout the 1990s and into the 21st century. At the beginning of the new millennium, Katz also began painting flowers in profusion, covering canvases in blossoms similar to those he had first explored in the late 1960s, when he painted large close-ups of flowers in solitude or in small clusters. More recently Katz began painting a series of dancers and one of nudes, which was the subject of a 2011 exhibition at the Kestnergesellschaft in Hanover. Katz’s work continues to grow and evolve today. Alex Katz's work has been the subject of more than 200 solo exhibitions and nearly 500 group exhibitions internationally since 1951. In 2010, Alex Katz Prints was on view at the Albertina Museum in Vienna, which showed a retrospective survey of over 150 graphic works from a recent donation to the museum by Katz of his complete graphic oeuvre. The National Portrait Gallery in London presented an exhibition titled Alex Katz Portraits. In June 2010, The Farnsworth Art Museum in Rockland, Maine opened Alex Katz: New Work, exhibiting recent large-scale paintings inspired by his summers spent in Maine. Katz was also represented in a show at the Metropolitan Museum of Art, New York, curated by Marla Prather, entitled Facing the Figure: Selections from the Permanent Collection, 2010. In 2009-2010, Alex Katz: An American Way Of Seeing was on view at the Sara Hildén Art Museum, Tampere, Finland; Musée Grenoble, Grenoble, France; and the Museum Kurhaus Kleve, Kleve, Germany. In 2007, Alex Katz: New York opened at the Irish Museum of Modern Art, Dublin, Ireland. The show, which included approximately 40 paintings and aquatints, was the first exhibition to concentrate primarily on Katz’s relationship with his native city. The Jewish Museum, New York, presented Alex Katz Paints Ada in 2006-2007, an exhibition of 40 paintings focused on Katz’s wife, Ada, dating from 1957 to 2005. It coincided with an exhibition devoted to Katz’s paintings of the 1960s at PaceWildenstein, Alex Katz: The Sixties, on view from April 27 through June 17, 2006 at 545 West 22nd Street. Alex Katz in Maine, an exhibition of landscapes and portraits made over six decades, opened at The Farnsworth Art Museum and Wyeth...

Category

2010s Contemporary Alex Katz Art

Materials

Screen

Alex Katz art for sale on 1stDibs.

Find a wide variety of authentic Alex Katz art available for sale on 1stDibs. If you’re browsing the collection of art to introduce a pop of color in a neutral corner of your living room or bedroom, you can find work that includes elements of blue, orange, red and other colors. You can also browse by medium to find art by Alex Katz in screen print, pigment print, archival pigment print and more. Much of the original work by this artist or collective was created during the 21st century and contemporary and is mostly associated with the contemporary style. Not every interior allows for large Alex Katz art, so small editions measuring 6 inches across are available. Customers who are interested in this artist might also find the work of Andrew Moore, Donald Sultan, and Raphael Macek. Alex Katz art prices can differ depending upon medium, time period and other attributes. On 1stDibs, the price for these items starts at $290 and tops out at $250,000, while the average work can sell for $14,989.
Questions About Alex Katz Art
  • 1stDibs ExpertMarch 22, 2022
    Alex Katz is a contemporary artist who produced paintings, sculptures and prints. Many historians associate him with the Nouveau réalisme movement, but he also worked in figurative and Pop art styles. Shop a collection of Alex Katz art on 1stDibs.
  • 1stDibs ExpertApril 16, 2024
    What media Alex Katz uses varies. Over the course of his career, the American artist has worked in painting, sculpture and printmaking. Always finding new perspectives on his work, he has explored using iPhone photographs as the basis for large-scale compositions in recent years. On 1stDibs, shop an assortment of Alex Katz art.
  • 1stDibs ExpertMay 3, 2024
    Yes, Alex Katz's style is Pop art. During the 1950s, he experimented with collage and painting on aluminum sheets, with his later 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. These sources of inspiration align with Pop art's focus on transforming elements of popular culture into fine art. On 1stDibs, shop a collection of Alex Katz art.