Robert Moskowitz (born 1935 in

Brooklyn Brooklyn () is a borough of New York City, coextensive with Kings County, in the U.S. state of New York. Kings County is the most populous county in the State of New York, and the second-most densely populated county in the United States, be ...

New York New York most commonly refers to: * New York City, the most populous city in the United States, located in the state of New York * New York (state), a state in the northeastern United States New York may also refer to: Film and television * '' ...

) is a contemporary American painter who was influenced by, among other movements,

Abstract Expressionism Abstract expressionism is a post–World War II art movement in American painting, developed in New York City in the 1940s. It was the first specifically American movement to achieve international influence and put New York at the center of the ...

, and gained recognition in the 1960s onward for his paintings, drawings and prints that work in the intersection between Abstract Expressionism, Minimalism and Pop Art. He was influenced in his early career by such artists as Jasper Johns and

Robert Rauschenberg Milton Ernest "Robert" Rauschenberg (October 22, 1925 – May 12, 2008) was an American painter and graphic artist whose early works anticipated the Pop art movement. Rauschenberg is well known for his Combines (1954–1964), a group of artwor ...

. Although his work has been described as a "significant link between the Abstract Expressionism of the New York School and the 'New Image Abstraction' painters of the mid-1970s", Moskowitz has received relatively little public attention and never achieved the level of fame that many of his peers have.Rifkin, Ned. Robert Moskowitz. New York: Thames and Hudson. .

Early life

In 1948, Robert Moskowitz, son of Louis and Lily Moskowitz, was left to care for their youngest daughter, Karen, after his father left the family and his mother was forced to make occasional trips to

Florida Florida is a state located in the Southeastern region of the United States. Florida is bordered to the west by the Gulf of Mexico, to the northwest by Alabama, to the north by Georgia, to the east by the Bahamas and Atlantic Ocean, and to ...

for work. He showed little artistic capability as a child, but enrolled after school at the Mechanics Institute of Manhattan to pursue engineering drafting. In 1956, he began studying at the

Pratt Institute Pratt Institute is a private university with its main campus in Brooklyn, New York (state), New York. It has a satellite campus in Manhattan and an extension campus in Utica, New York at the Munson-Williams-Proctor Arts Institute. The school was ...

in Brooklyn where he studied under Adolph Gottlieb. Moskowitz traveled to Europe in 1959, where he met the British collage and assemblage artist Gwyther Irwin. At Irwin's suggestion, Moskowitz moved into an artist's community outside

London London is the capital and largest city of England and the United Kingdom, with a population of just under 9 million. It stands on the River Thames in south-east England at the head of a estuary down to the North Sea, and has been a majo ...

where he was able to purchase his first studio space for $85.00, which allowed him to remain in London for one year.

Early work, rise to fame (1959-1963)

Moskowitz's first serious body of paintings came from the discovery of a window shade hanging high in his studio space. Following lessons taken from Johns, Rauschenberg, and

Marcel Duchamp Henri-Robert-Marcel Duchamp (, , ; 28 July 1887 – 2 October 1968) was a French painter, sculptor, chess player, and writer whose work is associated with Cubism, Dada, and conceptual art. Duchamp is commonly regarded, along with Pablo Picasso ...

, Moskowitz began to place intact objects, such as the window shade, directly on his paintings as a form of collage. This work was included in the exhibition Art of Assemblage organized in 1961 at the

Museum of Modern Art The Museum of Modern Art (MoMA) is an art museum located in Midtown Manhattan, New York City, on 53rd Street between Fifth and Sixth Avenues. It plays a major role in developing and collecting modern art, and is often identified as one of ...

which also included the work of

Picasso Pablo Ruiz Picasso (25 October 1881 – 8 April 1973) was a Spanish painter, sculptor, printmaker, ceramicist and Scenic design, theatre designer who spent most of his adult life in France. One of the most influential artists of the 20th ce ...

Georges Braque Georges Braque ( , ; 13 May 1882 – 31 August 1963) was a major 20th-century List of French artists, French painter, Collage, collagist, Drawing, draughtsman, printmaker and sculpture, sculptor. His most notable contributions were in his all ...

, Joseph Cornell and

among many other influential artists. His work of this period, primarily untitled collage paintings, culminated in a solo exhibition at the

Leo Castelli Gallery Leo Castelli (born Leo Krausz; September 4, 1907 – August 21, 1999) was an Italian-American art dealer who originated the contemporary art gallery system. His gallery showcased contemporary art for five decades. Among the movements which ...

in 1962, in between solo exhibitions of

Roy Lichtenstein Roy Fox Lichtenstein (; October 27, 1923 – September 29, 1997) was an American pop artist. During the 1960s, along with Andy Warhol, Jasper Johns, and James Rosenquist among others, he became a leading figure in the new art movement. Hi ...

and Frank Stella.

References

1935 births Living people 20th-century American painters American male painters 21st-century American painters 20th-century American printmakers 20th-century American male artists {{US-painter-stub