Philip Pearlstein

In 1950 he wed fellow artist Dorothy Cantor and began his graduate studies at New York University’s Institute of Fine Art. At the time of his graduation, noted art critic and essayist Clement Greenberg selected Pearlstein’s work for Emerging Talent, an influential group exhibition at the Kootz Gallery in New York City. Thanks to his growing reputation as a young talent, Pearlstein was awarded a Fulbright grant in 1958. He used the grant to return to Italy and immerse himself in the landscape and culture he recalled from his time in the army.

Through the late 1950s Pearlstein’s paintings depicted the landscape and architectural ruins he found while abroad. These early landscapes are characterized by a freer Expressionist style than his later work. The Italian ruins were symbolic to him as an artist and a veteran, representing the aftermath of the violent war years. After returning from Europe, he began to experiment with drawing the human form during figure modeling sessions. By the early 1960s he had found his calling as a painter. Utilizing the classical subject of the nude figure, he began the extended series of paintings with which he is most identified.

Working only from life, never photographs, Pearlstein has become renowned for realistic depictions of models in complex interiors. These scenes often feature colorful props and oblique perspectives of the figure. The ability to look objectively at the human body as an object in the scene, one element of an overall composition, has characterized Pearlstein’s paintings for decades. The props and collectibles featured alongside the figures range from toys to antiques, Americana novelties to international art objects. Much like the models, each object is an equally important element of the final composition. With all narrative content removed, the consistency of finish and the technical ability of the artist’s hand becomes the true subject.

Among Pearlstein’s honors are a National Endowment for the Arts grant, a Guggenheim Foundation fellowship, and election to the American Academy and Institute of Arts and Letters. He has been a dedicated teacher throughout his career, notably at Pratt Institute and the Brooklyn College of the City University of New York. In 2008 he received a Lifetime Achievement Award, National Academy, New York, and the Scholastic Distinguished Alumni Achievement Award. His works are found in the collections of over seventy museums in the United States, including the Art Institute of Chicago, the Corcoran Gallery of Art, the Metropolitan Museum of Art, the Museum of Modern Art and the Whitney Museum of American Art. Pearlstein, age 93, currently lives and works in New York City. He is represented by the Betty Cuningham Gallery.

Press

“Major Figure: Philip Pearlstein at SAM” by Barbara Trainin Blank, The Burg,  January 31, 2017