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Leon Polk Smith Abstract Paintings

American, 1906-1996
Leon Polk Smith (1906 -1996) holds a unique place in a long tradition of American geometric abstract painting, which includes such artists as Bourgoyne Diller, Fritz Glarner, Al Held, and Ellsworth Kelly. Born near Chikasha, a Native American territory later annexed by the U.S. as the state of Oklahoma, Smith’s parents, who were of Cherokee ancestry, raised him with both a strong sense of his heritage and an abiding respect for the land. Art would eventually draw Smith to New York where he would quickly embrace elements of geometric abstraction in his work. His visual vocabulary was influenced by such historical figures as Hilla Rebay, both an abstract painter and the first director of the Solomon R. Guggenheim Museum, and the Dutch De Stijl painter Piet Mondrian. However, many of Smith’s hard-edge compositions could be viewed as distillations of imagery drawn from the Oklahoma landscape and Native American art forms of his youth. Polk Smith’s exploration of non-objective imagery in the late 1950s put him at the forefront of movements including Color Field, Minimalist, and Hard Edge painting. Robert Buck, former director of the Brooklyn Museum, described Polk Smith as “an influential pioneer in the development of American Modernism”, adding, “He created a new vocabulary in painting that has had a far-reaching influence on subsequent generations of artists.” One of Smith’s earliest and most successful forays into printmaking came in 1968 when he received a grant to work at June Wayne’s Tamarind Lithography Workshop in Los Angeles. Smith would create sixteen untitled prints at Tamarind. These bold and vibrant prints incorporate a variety of his painting motifs, many of which relate to his Correspondence Series of 1960-1967, with their interplay of organic forms on solid color backgrounds. Prints would continue to be an important aspect of Smith’s creative output. The artist would go on to make over 50 print editions in this country and Europe.
(Biography provided by Betsy Senior Fine Art)
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Artist: Leon Polk Smith
Equinoctial
By Leon Polk Smith
Located in New York, NY
Geometrically focused abstract painting.
Category

1990s Abstract Geometric Leon Polk Smith Abstract Paintings

Materials

Canvas, Acrylic

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Leon Polk Smith abstract paintings for sale on 1stDibs.

Find a wide variety of authentic Leon Polk Smith abstract paintings available for sale on 1stDibs. You can also browse by medium to find art by Leon Polk Smith in acrylic paint, canvas, fabric and more. Much of the original work by this artist or collective was created during the 1990s and is mostly associated with the abstract style. Not every interior allows for large Leon Polk Smith abstract paintings, so small editions measuring 38 inches across are available. Customers who are interested in this artist might also find the work of Clifford Singer, Erle Loran, and Larry Zox.

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