Jules Olitski: Naples Florida

Jules Olitski (B. 1922-) has long been a major force in American painting. He first rose to prominence in the 1960’s as one of the original masters of color field painting -- a type of abstraction that focuses on the subtlety and expressiveness of pure color. Olitski himself, makes little distinction between representational and abstract art, and frequently crosses the line between them. What all his paintings have in common, whether oil on canvas, watercolor or pastel, are areas of rich lush color. Jules Olitski, again and again, tests the limits of how far a painting can be reduced to essentials of color and space without losing the power to move us deeply. His most successful paintings are staggeringly beautiful.

Although Olitski is generally referred to as a painter of the New York School of Art, he, today, divides his time between his homes in the Florida Keys and New Hampshire. Much of his work, in particular since the mid 1990's, is inspired by the seascapes and landscapes that surround his daily life. In his exploration of artistic concepts, Olitski has experimented in pioneering new techniques and materials.

During the 1960's, New York critics, struck by the originality of Jules Olitski's palette, wrote rave reviews about this -then-newly discovered painter. That originality continues throughout his career and is evident in his work today -- a splendor of light, color and energy.