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Carol Bennett Abstract Paintings

American, b. 1954

Splitting her time between Hawaii and California, Carol Bennett (b. 1954) has mastered the art of capturing movement in her enigmatic paintings.

While Bennett has garnered praise for the meditative sensibility that characterizes her paintings as well as a bold use of bright colors, some of her works are more famous than others. In fact, her “Women in Water” series is perhaps her most well-known collection. As its name implies, the series features women swimming. They’re captured from an underwater perspective, and their faces are either out of frame entirely or obscured by the sun-dappled surface of the water, which serves as a showcase for Bennett’s portrayal of the qualities of sunlight. The upper half of each painting is flecked with the blues and greens of the ocean as well as whatever color the subject’s bathing suit happens to be.

The series originated with Bennett sketching swimmers at an athletic club’s pool in Los Angeles, but as her process evolved, her husband, Wayne Zebzda, began to film the artist on her daily swim on Kauai. The resultant images inform her work, but she doesn’t consider these works to be depictions of her in particular.

“I swim seven days a week, and while I don’t consider them self-portraits, I am the swimmer in the paintings,” Bennett has said.

Given her constant proximity to the ocean, it’s no surprise that Bennett is inspired by water’s glassy properties, citing its presence as both “a mirror and then a window.” Her radiant paintings, whether she’s working with oil and shellac on paper or wood panels, allow her to explore sunlight in such a rich and provocative way that it’s as if she endeavors to suspend rays of light above the water’s surface, making them seem as tangible and physical as the swimmers themselves.

Aside from her works that hang on the walls of galleries and museums around the world, Bennett has also painted murals and even a 48-foot photovoltaic solar canopy for the Hawaii State Art Museum Sculpture Garden.

Find Carol Bennett’s paintings on 1stDibs.

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Artist: Carol Bennett
"MV Spring" abstract figurative oil painting swimmer underwater with orange
"MV Spring" abstract figurative oil painting swimmer underwater with orange

"MV Spring" abstract figurative oil painting swimmer underwater with orange

By Carol Bennett

Located in Edgartown, MA

"I throw myself into the water almost every day- it grounds me, the body floats and the mind drifts. The "Swimmer series" has followed me over the years, resurfacing and evolving. Pr...

Category

2010s Carol Bennett Abstract Paintings

Materials

Mixed Media, Cardboard

Fish Study, painting, Reverse painting on glass gold leaf, oil, cobalt, water
Fish Study, painting, Reverse painting on glass gold leaf, oil, cobalt, water

Fish Study, painting, Reverse painting on glass gold leaf, oil, cobalt, water

By Carol Bennett

Located in Riverdale, NY

Fish Study by Hawaii artist Carol Bennett is a reverse painting on glass artwork. It is Oil, Varnish, Gold Leaf and powdered Cobalt. It is 9x12. Carol Bennett's artwork is a meditative journey through both the water and through life. She is one of the few artists to truly capture what it's like to be in and moving and swimming through the water. For Carol, the act of swimming underwater is similar to the process of painting. Her approach results in multi-layered surfaces that are intricate and textured and unexpected. She is constantly experimenting with her pieces: adding, subtracting, sanding. When she is not painting Swimmers, she is capturing the fish surrounding her. She has created over 100 large public and corporate commissions internationally, and is in private collections around the world. Carol Bennett was recently currently featured in two exhibits at the Honolulu Museum of Art. Networking and Water: Carol Bennett featuring female swimmers, as well as marine nets floating or submerged in water. Bennett was also part of the group exhibit Making Waves highlighting the important role of women artists in the museum’s contemporary collection. In this show, the works by international and Hawaii-based artists all have a relationship to water. Featured artists also included: April Gornik, Agnes Martin, Judy Pfaff, Kiki Smith and Pat Steir! Elisa Contemporary Art...

Category

2010s Contemporary Carol Bennett Abstract Paintings

Materials

Gold Leaf

"Bad Ass Rose (paper)" Acrylic painting on paper of a white rose with red dots
"Bad Ass Rose (paper)" Acrylic painting on paper of a white rose with red dots

"Bad Ass Rose (paper)" Acrylic painting on paper of a white rose with red dots

By Carol Bennett

Located in Edgartown, MA

"I throw myself into the water almost every day- it grounds me, the body floats and the mind drifts. The "Swimmer series" has followed me over the years, resurfacing and evolving. Pr...

Category

2010s Carol Bennett Abstract Paintings

Materials

Mixed Media, Acrylic

"Suzie Q (Paper)" mixed media painting of feet floating in water with reflection
"Suzie Q (Paper)" mixed media painting of feet floating in water with reflection

"Suzie Q (Paper)" mixed media painting of feet floating in water with reflection

By Carol Bennett

Located in Edgartown, MA

"I throw myself into the water almost every day- it grounds me, the body floats and the mind drifts. The "Swimmer series" has followed me over the years, resurfacing and evolving. Pr...

Category

2010s Carol Bennett Abstract Paintings

Materials

Mixed Media, Archival Paper

"Heleconia" Abstract Painting, Mixed Media on Glass, 21st Century

"Heleconia" Abstract Painting, Mixed Media on Glass, 21st Century

By Carol Bennett

Located in Edgartown, MA

"I throw myself into the water almost every day- it grounds me, the body floats and the mind drifts. The "Swimmer series" has followed me over the years, resurfacing and evolving. Pr...

Category

21st Century and Contemporary Abstract Carol Bennett Abstract Paintings

Materials

Glass, Mixed Media

Waterfall Duet 1, Water, Gold, White, Flowing, Acrylic, Oil, Painting, unframed
Waterfall Duet 1, Water, Gold, White, Flowing, Acrylic, Oil, Painting, unframed

Waterfall Duet 1, Water, Gold, White, Flowing, Acrylic, Oil, Painting, unframed

By Carol Bennett

Located in Riverdale, NY

Waterfall Duet 1 is an original waterfall painting by Hawaii artist Carol Bennett. It is reminiscent of the beautiful flowing waterfalls throughout the Hawaiian islands. It is Acry...

Category

2010s Contemporary Carol Bennett Abstract Paintings

Materials

Varnish, Oil, Acrylic, Board

Waterfall Duet 2, Water, Gold, White, Flowing, Acrylic, Oil, Painting, unframed
Waterfall Duet 2, Water, Gold, White, Flowing, Acrylic, Oil, Painting, unframed

Waterfall Duet 2, Water, Gold, White, Flowing, Acrylic, Oil, Painting, unframed

By Carol Bennett

Located in Riverdale, NY

Waterfall Duet 2 is an original waterfall painting by Hawaii artist Carol Bennett. It is reminiscent of the beautiful flowing waterfalls throughout the Hawaiian islands. It is Acry...

Category

2010s Contemporary Carol Bennett Abstract Paintings

Materials

Varnish, Oil, Acrylic, Board

"Trigger" Abstract Painting, Mixed Media on Glass, bright colors

"Trigger" Abstract Painting, Mixed Media on Glass, bright colors

By Carol Bennett

Located in Edgartown, MA

"I throw myself into the water almost every day- it grounds me, the body floats and the mind drifts. The "Swimmer series" has followed me over the years, resurfacing and evolving. Pr...

Category

21st Century and Contemporary Abstract Carol Bennett Abstract Paintings

Materials

Glass, Mixed Media

"Flame Angel" Abstract mixed media reverse triptych painting behind glass
"Flame Angel" Abstract mixed media reverse triptych painting behind glass

"Flame Angel" Abstract mixed media reverse triptych painting behind glass

By Carol Bennett

Located in Edgartown, MA

"I throw myself into the water almost every day- it grounds me, the body floats and the mind drifts. The "Swimmer series" has followed me over the years, resurfacing and evolving. Presently I'm working on wood, I'm intrigued by wood grain swirling like water and how that ground moves through the swimmer's form”. Carol graduated from the Art Center College of Design in painting. For some 20 years she split her time between her loft in downtown LA and a beach bungalow in Hawaii- satisfying a passion for culture and the ocean's pull. In LA she painted backdrops...

Category

2010s Abstract Carol Bennett Abstract Paintings

Materials

Gold Leaf

Flat, painting inspired by Hawaii Fish, Red, black, Green, Oil, Ink on panel
Flat, painting inspired by Hawaii Fish, Red, black, Green, Oil, Ink on panel

Flat, painting inspired by Hawaii Fish, Red, black, Green, Oil, Ink on panel

By Carol Bennett

Located in Riverdale, NY

Flat is Ink and Oil and Varnish on Wood Panel inspired by the Hawaii Flatfish. It is 20x20 filled with red, orange, black and green. Carol Bennett spends all of her time surrounded...

Category

2010s Contemporary Carol Bennett Abstract Paintings

Materials

Ink, Oil, Wood Panel

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Previously Available Items
"Light Catcher" Woman in white bathing suit at play under water
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"I throw myself into the water almost every day- it grounds me, the body floats and the mind drifts. The "Swimmer series" has followed me over the years, resurfacing and evolving. Pr...

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"Listening (Paper)" Figurative abstract oil painting of people in the ocean

"Listening (Paper)" Figurative abstract oil painting of people in the ocean

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"I throw myself into the water almost every day- it grounds me, the body floats and the mind drifts. The "Swimmer series" has followed me over the years, resurfacing and evolving. P...

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"Beachwalker (In the Light)" abstract painting of silhouette, glistening ocean

"Beachwalker (In the Light)" abstract painting of silhouette, glistening ocean

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Located in Edgartown, MA

"I throw myself into the water almost every day- it grounds me, the body floats and the mind drifts. The "Swimmer series" has followed me over the years, resurfacing and evolving. Pr...

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"Time Out (paper)" abstract painting of a woman swimming under teal water
"Time Out (paper)" abstract painting of a woman swimming under teal water

"Time Out (paper)" abstract painting of a woman swimming under teal water

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Abstract mixed media painting of a woman swimming under teal water "I throw myself into the water almost every day- it grounds me, the body floats and the mind drifts. The "Swimmer ...

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"Om/Mom" Black and white abstract seascape of figures in the ocean
"Om/Mom" Black and white abstract seascape of figures in the ocean

"Om/Mom" Black and white abstract seascape of figures in the ocean

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Located in Edgartown, MA

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"Kissing the Ground" Abstract oil painting of a woman in a red suit under water

"Kissing the Ground" Abstract oil painting of a woman in a red suit under water

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Located in Edgartown, MA

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"Fresh Water Drops" Black and white oil painting on paper of ripples in water

"Fresh Water Drops" Black and white oil painting on paper of ripples in water

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Located in Edgartown, MA

Black and white oil painting on paper of ripples in water. "I throw myself into the water almost every day- it grounds me, the body floats and the mind drifts. The "Swimmer series"...

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Salmon Study, Mixed Media work on paper, Swimmer, Water, Coral, Orange, floating
Salmon Study, Mixed Media work on paper, Swimmer, Water, Coral, Orange, floating

Salmon Study, Mixed Media work on paper, Swimmer, Water, Coral, Orange, floating

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Located in Riverdale, NY

Salmon Study by Hawaii artist Carol Bennett is Oil and Shellac on Paper, 22x22. It is framed to 24x24. Carol Bennett spends all of her time surrounded by water, and a great deal wi...

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Carol Bennett abstract paintings for sale on 1stDibs.

Find a wide variety of authentic Carol Bennett abstract paintings available for sale on 1stDibs. If you’re browsing the collection of abstract paintings 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 and other colors. You can also browse by medium to find art by Carol Bennett in paint, oil paint, acrylic paint 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 Carol Bennett abstract paintings, so small editions measuring 5 inches across are available. Customers who are interested in this artist might also find the work of Sarah Alexander, Jenny Nelson, and Jenny Kemp. Carol Bennett abstract paintings prices can differ depending upon medium, time period and other attributes. On 1stDibs, the price for these items starts at $500 and tops out at $22,000, while the average work can sell for $2,600.