- Al Held
Infobox Artist
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name = Al Held
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birthdate = birth date |1928|10|12|
location =Brooklyn, New York
deathdate = death date and age |2005|7|27|1928|10|12|
deathplace =
nationality = American
field =Abstract expressionist
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awards =Al Held (
October 12 ,1928 –July 27 ,2005 ) was an American Abstract expressionist painter. He was particularly well known for his large scaleHard-edge painting s.Background and education
Born in
Brooklyn ,New York in 1928, Held showed no interest in art until leaving theNavy in 1947. Inspired by his friendNicholas Krushenick , Held enrolled in theArt Students League of New York . In 1949, using the support of theG.I. Bill , he went toParis for three years, to study at theAcadémie de la Grande Chaumière . He returned to New York in 1953, to struggle with his work for several years.Career
After his first solo
Abstract expressionist exhibition in 1959, Held's large-scale paintings of colourful, simple abstractgeometric forms gained increasing recognition in America andEurope . In 1962, he was appointed to theYale University Faculty Of Art (where he would teach until 1980). In 1965, the criticIrving Sandler curated the critically acclaimed Concrete Expressionism show atNew York University featuring the work of painters Al Held andKnox Martin and the sculptorsRonald Bladen ,George Sugarman andDavid Weinrib . [Irving Sandler, From Avant-Garde to Pluralism: An On-The-Spot History (Hard Press Editions, 2006.)]
In 1966, Held was awarded aGuggenheim Fellowship and received theLogan Medal of the arts . Feeling that he'd reached the end of his style's potential, he shifted in 1967 to black and white images that dealt with challenging perspectives and "spatial conundrums." Some critics dismissed this work as simply disorienting; others declared it Held's finest achievement to date. By the late 70's, he had re-introduced colour to his work.In his later years, Held earned commissions of up to one million dollars. In 2005, he completed a large, colorful
mural in theNew York City Subway system, at East53rd Street and Lexington.At age 76, Held was found dead in his
villa swimming pool nearCamerata ,Italy , onJuly 27 ,2005 . It is believed he died ofnatural causes .ee also
*
Abstract expressionism
*Art Students League of New York References
Books
* Irving Sandler, [http://www.worldcat.org/oclc/69650842 From Avant-Garde to Pluralism: An On-The-Spot History,] (Hard Press Editions, 2006.)ISBN 1889097683
External links
* [http://www.aaa.si.edu/oralhist/held75.htm Interview with Held, 1975]
* [http://www.sheldonartgallery.org/collection/index.html?topic=artistdetail&clct_artist_full_name=Al+Held&clct_id=3760 Biography by the Sheldon Gallery]
* [http://www.guardian.co.uk/obituaries/story/0,,1539959,00.html Obituary in The Guardian, 2005]
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