Karl Benjamin
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Karl Benjamin
Re-Op: ‘The Responsive Eye’ Fifty Years After
Friday, October 2, 2015 - Saturday, December 12, 2015
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Karl Benjamin
Op Infinitum: 'The Responsive Eye' Fifty Years After (Part II)
American Op Art In The 60s
Tuesday, May 26, 2015 - Sunday, July 12, 2015
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Karl Benjamin
Post-Op: 'The Responsive Eye' Fifty Years After
Tuesday, February 24, 2015 - Saturday, April 11, 2015
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Bio
Born in Chicago in 1925, Karl Benjamin began his undergraduate studies at Northwestern University in Evanston, Illinois in 1943. Interrupted by service in the US Navy during WWII, Benjamin resumed his studies at Southern California's University of Redlands in 1946. Graduating in 1949 with a BA degree in English literature, history and philosophy, Benjamin began his career as a teacher with no intention of becoming an artist. However, his relocation to Claremont California in 1952, shortly after he had begun "playing" with paint in 1951, galvanized his sense of his career path.
Though he continued to teach in public schools and, later to great acclaim, for Pomona College, the artist's work blossomed amid the extraordinarily lively art, design and architecture scene in Los Angeles in the mid twentieth Century. Numerous gallery showings of his work during the 50"s culminated in 1959 with his inclusion in Los Angeles County Museum of Art's ground-breaking exhibition "Four Abstract Classicists: Karl Benjamin, Lorser Feitelson, Frederick Hammersley and John McLaughlin."
The exhibition garnered national attention for the artist along with the creation of a moniker for Benjamin's meticulously orchestrated color and form, Hard Edge Painting. Subsequently Benjamin's work was included in the exhibit Purist Painting traveling to Walker Art Center in Minneapolis, the Everson Museum of Art in Syracuse and the Columbus Museum of Art. The Whitney Museum used his work in Geometric Abstraction in America. Museum of Modern Art (NY) also featured the artist in their watershed exhibit The Responsive Eye.
Benjamin was awarded the National Endowment for the Arts Grant for Visual Arts in both 1983 and 1989. His work has been featured in numerous museum exhibition and is included in the public collections of the Los Angeles County Museum of Art; Museum of Contemporary Art, Los Angeles; Museum of Modern Art, Israel; Oakland Museum, Oakland, CA; San Francisco Museum of Modern Art, CA; Seattle Art Museum, WA; and the Whitney Museum of American Art, NY among others. Benjamin taught for many years at Pomona Valley institutions, and was named Professor Emeritus at Pomona College. He passed away in his Claremont home on July 26, 2012.
Artist Statement
|
2011 |
BIBLIOGRAPHY Muchnic, Suzanne. "Fill Up the Space and Don't Mess Around." (catalogue essay) Karl Benjamin and the Evolution of Abstraction, 1950-1980, Louis Stern Fine Arts, West Hollywood, California. |
| 2010 | Kienholz, Lyn, Elizabeta Betinski, and Corinne Nelson. L.A. Rising: SoCal Artists before 1980. Los Angeles, California: California/International Arts Foundation. |
| 2009 | Anderson, Susan M. Collecting California: Selections from Laguna Art Museum. Laguna Beach, California: Laguna Art Museum. |
| Biller, Steven. "The Accidental Modernist." Palm Springs Life. February. | |
| 2008 | Emerling, Susan. "Karl Benjamin." Artnews. March issue, page 148. |
| Wiehager, Renate. Minimalism and After: Tradition and Tendencies of Minimalism from 1950 to the Present. Germany: Hatje Cantz. | |
| 2007 | Castagno, John. European Artists II: Signatures and Monograms from 1800: A Comprehensive Directory. Lanham, MD: Scarecrow. |
| Finkel, Jori. "Karl Benjamin's Colorful Resurgence." New York Times. 7 October. | |
| Hickey, Dave. "Karl Benjamin: A New Past is Now Available." (catalogue essay) Dance the Line: Paintings by Karl Benjamin. Louis Stern Fine Arts, West Hollywood, California. | |
| Humblet, Claudine. The New American Abstraction. Milano: Skira. | |
| Knight, Christopher. "L.A.'s Midcentury Style Gets a Sleek Look in 'Birth of the Cool' at OCMA." Los Angeles Times. 10 October. | |
| 2004 | Nelson, Harold B. "Karl Benjamin: The Early Years." (catalogue essay) Karl Benjamin: Paintings from 1950-1965, Louis Stern Fine Arts, West Hollywood, California. |
| Nieto, Margarita. "Karl Benjamin." ArtScene. Volume XXIII, No. 5, January issue, pages 21-22. | |
| Pagel, David. "A Newly Varnished Reputation." Los Angeles Times. January 16, page E36. | |
| 2003 | Humblet, Claudine. La Nouvelle Abstraction Américaine. Volume I, Milan: Skira/Seuil, pages 468-511. |
| Wiehager, Renate. "Daimler Chrysler Collection: Minimalism and After III." (catalogue), Daimler Chrylser AG, Berlin, 2003, pages 18-19. | |
| 2001 | Bonetti, David. "Karl Benjamin at Brian Gross." San Francisco Chronicle. August 25. |
| 1999 | Duncan, Michael. "Karl Benjamin at Ruth Bachofner." Art in America. February. |
| 1997 | Finch, Christopher. "Hard-Edge Painting: Bold Abstractions from California's Midcentury Avant-Garde." Architectural Digest. April. |
| 1994 | Cutajar, Mario. "Allover and Over." Artweek. October 22. |
| "Informed Teaching." Pomona College Today Magazine. Summer. | |
| 1993 | "Four Abstract Classicists: West Coast Hard-Edge," (catalogue), Modernism Gallery, San Francisco, California. |
| 1992 | Welles, Elenore. "Hard Edges, Bright Centers." Visions. Summer. |
| 1991 | Frank, Peter. "Karl Benjamin: In Microspect." (catalogue essay), Karl Benjamin: Paintings 1955-1990, Ruth Bachofner Gallery, Santa Monica, California and Snyder Fine Art, New York. |
| Ehrlich, Susan. "Southern California's Modernist Dawn." Artspace. Volume 16, number 6, Fall. | |
| Kojima, Hisaka. "Karl Benjamin." Geijutukouron. October. | |
| 1990 | Atkins, Robert. Artspeak: a Guide to Contemporary Ideas, Movements, and Buzzwords. New York: Abbeville. l |
| Donohue, Marlena. "The Art Galleries." Los Angeles Times. January 26. | |
| Ehrlich, Susan and Paul J. Karlstrom. Turning the Tide: Early Los Angeles Modernists 1920-1956. (catalogue) Santa Barbara Museum of Artand Laguna Art Museum, California, pages 43-44. | |
| Frank, Peter. "Art by Peter Frank." LA Weekly. February 16-22. | |
| Jones, Nancy Ann. "Color into Form." Artweek. January 25. | |
| Schlosberg, Suzanne. "Hard Paintings and Soft Photographs." Los Angeles Times. January. | |
| Waldman, Tom. "LA Art: The First Generation." USC Trojan Family. Winter. | |
| 1989 | Curtis, Cathy. "Then and Now." Los Angeles Times. December 29. |
| Schipper, Merle. "Karl Benjamin: A Retrospective 1955-1987." (catalogue) Redding Museum and Art Center, University of the Pacific, Redding, California and California State University, Northridge, California. | |
| 1988 | Curtis, Cathy. "Exhibit Featuring Linear Concepts." The Irvine World News. April 7. |
| Donahue, Marlena. "The Galleries." Los Angeles Times January 29. | |
| 1986 | Muchnic, Suzanne. "Benjamin Shapes Up as Unself-Conscious Type." Los Angeles Times. February 3, pages 1-2. |
| Muchnic, Suzanne. "The Art Galleries." Los Angeles Times. July 4. | |
| Schipper, Merle. "Karl Benjamin: Selected Works 1979 -1986." (catalogue) Los Angeles Municipal Art Gallery, Barnsdall Art Park, Los Angeles, California. | |
| Schipper, Merle. "Karl Benjamin." Artnews. October. | |
| Wilson, William. "Two Careful Technicians Whose Feelings Seep Out." Los Angeles Times. February 9. | |
| Wilson, William. "Municipal Art Gallery Retrospective Exhibition." Los Angeles Times. February 9. | |
| 1985 | Muchnic, Suzanne. "Colorforms: An Old-Fashioned Salute." Los Angeles Times. June 3. |
| Schipper, Merle. "Provocative Color." Artweek. December 7. | |
| 1983 | Figoten, Sheldon. "Karl Benjamin at Stella Polaris." Images & Issues. Volume III, April. |
| 1982 | Wilson, William. "The Galleries." Los Angeles Times. October 29. |
| 1981 | Muchnic, Suzanne. "Karl Benjamin Exhibit at Pepperdine." Los Angeles Times. April 10. |
| Schipper, Merle. "Paintings from the Fifties." (catalogue) Art Gallery, Pepperdine University, Malibu, California. | |
| Karl Benjamin. Personal interview conducted by William L. Weiss. September 10, Archives of American Art, Smithsonian Institution. | |
| Karl Benjamin papers. Microfilm 2786. Archives of American Art, Smithsonian Institution. | |
| 1980 | Fox, Louis. "Karl Benjamin: 1970-1980." (catalogue) University of Redlands, Redlands, California. |
| Hemmerdinger, William. "The Essence of Color and Structure." Artweek. November 15. | |
| 1979 | Wilson, William. "An Open and Shut Case for Seeing in Black and White." Los Angeles Times. February 11. |
| Wortz, Melinda. "Los Angeles Abstract Painting." (catalogue) University of New Mexico, Albuquerque and University of California, Riverside. | |
| 1978 | App, Timothy. "Karl Benjamin: Recent Paintings." (catalogue) Tortue Gallery, Santa Monica, California. |
| Schipper, Merle. "Karl Benjamin: Color as Commitment." Artweek. December 16. | |
| Wilson, William. "Art Walk." Los Angeles Times. November 24. | |
| 1977 | Schipper, Merle. "California: 5 Footnotes to Modern Art History." (catalogue), Los Angeles County Museum of Art, page 53. |
| Muchnic, Suzanne. "Five 'Footnotes' to California History." Artweek. March 26. | |
| 1975 | App, Timothy. "Chromatic Explorations." Artweek. November 8. |
| Benjamin, Karl. "Setting the Record Straight." LAICA Journal, Los Angeles, California, April/May. l |
|
| Plagens, Peter. "The Soft Touch of Hard Edge." LAICA Journal, Los Angeles, California, April/May. | |
| Wilson, William. "Art Walk." Los Angeles Times. October 31. | |
| 1969 | Mount San Antonio College Art Gallery, (catalogue), Walnut, California. |
| 1965 | C.O. "Karl Benjamin at Esther Robles Gallery, Los Angeles." Artforum. Volume III, number 4, January, page 16. |
| J.M. "Karl Benjamin, Hollis Gallery." Artforum. February, page 12. | |
| "Colorists: 1950-1965." (catalogue), San Francisco Museum of Modern Art, California. | |
| 1964 | Frankenstein, Alfred. "Around the Galleries." San Francisco Chronicle. December 1. |
| Langsner, Jules. "California Hard Edge Painting." (catalogue), Pavilion Gallery, Balboa, California. | |
| 1963 | "Karl Benjamin at Esther Robles Gallery, Los Angeles." Art International. Volume III, 3, March 25, page 77. |
| Martin, Fred. "San Francisco Letter." Art International, page 129. | |
| 1960 | Alloway, Lawrence. "Classicism or Hard-Edge?" Art International Vol. IV, 2-3, page 60. |
| 1959 | Langsner, Jules. "Four Abstract Classicists." (catalogue) Los Angeles County Museum of Art, California. |
| 1956 | Langsner, Jules. "Art news from Los Angeles." Artnews. May. |
Gallery Statement / Profile
Karl Benjamin did not set out to become one of the founding fathers of Hard Edge painting. His plan was to write. However, in 1950 while attempting to offer art instruction, along with reading and writing, to his classroom of sixth graders, Karl Benjamin discovered painting, switched his allegiance to the visual arts and the rest is history. In the course of his lengthy career, Benjamin and his luminous, grid-based paintings have earned accolades from colleagues, collectors and curators alike. Benjamin's meticulous exploration of color, his intuitive understanding of complex spatial relationships and the sheer joie de vivre with which each canvas announces itself to the viewer are, in equal parts, impeccable and irresistible.
CV/BIO
| 2011 |
2015 Op Infinitum: “The Responsive Eye” Fifty Years After, Part I, American Op Art in the 60’s, David Richard Gallery, Santa Fe, NM
Muchnic, Suzanne. "Fill Up the Space and Don't Mess Around." (catalogue essay) Karl Benjamin and the Evolution of Abstraction, 1950-1980, Louis Stern Fine Arts, West Hollywood, California. |
| 2010 | Kienholz, Lyn, Elizabeta Betinski, and Corinne Nelson. L.A. Rising: SoCal Artists before 1980. Los Angeles, California: California/International Arts Foundation. |
| 2009 | Anderson, Susan M. Collecting California: Selections from Laguna Art Museum. Laguna Beach, California: Laguna Art Museum. |
| Biller, Steven. "The Accidental Modernist." Palm Springs Life. February. | |
| 2008 | Emerling, Susan. "Karl Benjamin." Artnews. March issue, page 148. |
| Wiehager, Renate. Minimalism and After: Tradition and Tendencies of Minimalism from 1950 to the Present. Germany: Hatje Cantz. | |
| 2007 | Castagno, John. European Artists II: Signatures and Monograms from 1800: A Comprehensive Directory. Lanham, MD: Scarecrow. |
| Finkel, Jori. "Karl Benjamin's Colorful Resurgence." New York Times. 7 October. | |
| Hickey, Dave. "Karl Benjamin: A New Past is Now Available." (catalogue essay) Dance the Line: Paintings by Karl Benjamin. Louis Stern Fine Arts, West Hollywood, California. | |
| Humblet, Claudine. The New American Abstraction. Milano: Skira. | |
| Knight, Christopher. "L.A.'s Midcentury Style Gets a Sleek Look in 'Birth of the Cool' at OCMA." Los Angeles Times. 10 October. | |
| 2004 | Nelson, Harold B. "Karl Benjamin: The Early Years." (catalogue essay) Karl Benjamin: Paintings from 1950-1965, Louis Stern Fine Arts, West Hollywood, California. |
| Nieto, Margarita. "Karl Benjamin." ArtScene. Volume XXIII, No. 5, January issue, pages 21-22. | |
| Pagel, David. "A Newly Varnished Reputation." Los Angeles Times. January 16, page E36. | |
| 2003 | Humblet, Claudine. La Nouvelle Abstraction Américaine. Volume I, Milan: Skira/Seuil, pages 468-511. |
| Wiehager, Renate. "Daimler Chrysler Collection: Minimalism and After III." (catalogue), Daimler Chrylser AG, Berlin, 2003, pages 18-19. | |
| 2001 | Bonetti, David. "Karl Benjamin at Brian Gross." San Francisco Chronicle. August 25. |
| 1999 | Duncan, Michael. "Karl Benjamin at Ruth Bachofner." Art in America. February. |
| 1997 | Finch, Christopher. "Hard-Edge Painting: Bold Abstractions from California's Midcentury Avant-Garde." Architectural Digest. April. |
| 1994 | Cutajar, Mario. "Allover and Over." Artweek. October 22. |
| "Informed Teaching." Pomona College Today Magazine. Summer. | |
| 1993 | "Four Abstract Classicists: West Coast Hard-Edge," (catalogue), Modernism Gallery, San Francisco, California. |
| 1992 | Welles, Elenore. "Hard Edges, Bright Centers." Visions. Summer. |
| 1991 | Frank, Peter. "Karl Benjamin: In Microspect." (catalogue essay), Karl Benjamin: Paintings 1955-1990, Ruth Bachofner Gallery, Santa Monica, California and Snyder Fine Art, New York. |
| Ehrlich, Susan. "Southern California's Modernist Dawn." Artspace. Volume 16, number 6, Fall. | |
| Kojima, Hisaka. "Karl Benjamin." Geijutukouron. October. | |
| 1990 | Atkins, Robert. Artspeak: a Guide to Contemporary Ideas, Movements, and Buzzwords. New York: Abbeville. l |
| Donohue, Marlena. "The Art Galleries." Los Angeles Times. January 26. | |
| Ehrlich, Susan and Paul J. Karlstrom. Turning the Tide: Early Los Angeles Modernists 1920-1956. (catalogue) Santa Barbara Museum of Artand Laguna Art Museum, California, pages 43-44. | |
| Frank, Peter. "Art by Peter Frank." LA Weekly. February 16-22. | |
| Jones, Nancy Ann. "Color into Form." Artweek. January 25. | |
| Schlosberg, Suzanne. "Hard Paintings and Soft Photographs." Los Angeles Times. January. | |
| Waldman, Tom. "LA Art: The First Generation." USC Trojan Family. Winter. | |
| 1989 | Curtis, Cathy. "Then and Now." Los Angeles Times. December 29. |
| Schipper, Merle. "Karl Benjamin: A Retrospective 1955-1987." (catalogue) Redding Museum and Art Center, University of the Pacific, Redding, California and California State University, Northridge, California. | |
| 1988 | Curtis, Cathy. "Exhibit Featuring Linear Concepts." The Irvine World News. April 7. |
| Donahue, Marlena. "The Galleries." Los Angeles Times January 29. | |
| 1986 | Muchnic, Suzanne. "Benjamin Shapes Up as Unself-Conscious Type." Los Angeles Times. February 3, pages 1-2. |
| Muchnic, Suzanne. "The Art Galleries." Los Angeles Times. July 4. | |
| Schipper, Merle. "Karl Benjamin: Selected Works 1979 -1986." (catalogue) Los Angeles Municipal Art Gallery, Barnsdall Art Park, Los Angeles, California. | |
| Schipper, Merle. "Karl Benjamin." Artnews. October. | |
| Wilson, William. "Two Careful Technicians Whose Feelings Seep Out." Los Angeles Times. February 9. | |
| Wilson, William. "Municipal Art Gallery Retrospective Exhibition." Los Angeles Times. February 9. | |
| 1985 | Muchnic, Suzanne. "Colorforms: An Old-Fashioned Salute." Los Angeles Times. June 3. |
| Schipper, Merle. "Provocative Color." Artweek. December 7. | |
| 1983 | Figoten, Sheldon. "Karl Benjamin at Stella Polaris." Images & Issues. Volume III, April. |
| 1982 | Wilson, William. "The Galleries." Los Angeles Times. October 29. |
| 1981 | Muchnic, Suzanne. "Karl Benjamin Exhibit at Pepperdine." Los Angeles Times. April 10. |
| Schipper, Merle. "Paintings from the Fifties." (catalogue) Art Gallery, Pepperdine University, Malibu, California. | |
| Karl Benjamin. Personal interview conducted by William L. Weiss. September 10, Archives of American Art, Smithsonian Institution. | |
| Karl Benjamin papers. Microfilm 2786. Archives of American Art, Smithsonian Institution. | |
| 1980 | Fox, Louis. "Karl Benjamin: 1970-1980." (catalogue) University of Redlands, Redlands, California. |
| Hemmerdinger, William. "The Essence of Color and Structure." Artweek. November 15. | |
| 1979 | Wilson, William. "An Open and Shut Case for Seeing in Black and White." Los Angeles Times. February 11. |
| Wortz, Melinda. "Los Angeles Abstract Painting." (catalogue) University of New Mexico, Albuquerque and University of California, Riverside. | |
| 1978 | App, Timothy. "Karl Benjamin: Recent Paintings." (catalogue) Tortue Gallery, Santa Monica, California. |
| Schipper, Merle. "Karl Benjamin: Color as Commitment." Artweek. December 16. | |
| Wilson, William. "Art Walk." Los Angeles Times. November 24. | |
| 1977 | Schipper, Merle. "California: 5 Footnotes to Modern Art History." (catalogue), Los Angeles County Museum of Art, page 53. |
| Muchnic, Suzanne. "Five 'Footnotes' to California History." Artweek. March 26. | |
| 1975 | App, Timothy. "Chromatic Explorations." Artweek. November 8. |
| Benjamin, Karl. "Setting the Record Straight." LAICA Journal, Los Angeles, California, April/May. l |
|
| Plagens, Peter. "The Soft Touch of Hard Edge." LAICA Journal, Los Angeles, California, April/May. | |
| Wilson, William. "Art Walk." Los Angeles Times. October 31. | |
| 1969 | Mount San Antonio College Art Gallery, (catalogue), Walnut, California. |
| 1965 | C.O. "Karl Benjamin at Esther Robles Gallery, Los Angeles." Artforum. Volume III, number 4, January, page 16. |
| J.M. "Karl Benjamin, Hollis Gallery." Artforum. February, page 12. | |
| "Colorists: 1950-1965." (catalogue), San Francisco Museum of Modern Art, California. | |
| 1964 | Frankenstein, Alfred. "Around the Galleries." San Francisco Chronicle. December 1. |
| Langsner, Jules. "California Hard Edge Painting." (catalogue), Pavilion Gallery, Balboa, California. | |
| 1963 | "Karl Benjamin at Esther Robles Gallery, Los Angeles." Art International. Volume III, 3, March 25, page 77. |
| Martin, Fred. "San Francisco Letter." Art International, page 129. | |
| 1960 | Alloway, Lawrence. "Classicism or Hard-Edge?" Art International Vol. IV, 2-3, page 60. |
| 1959 | Langsner, Jules. "Four Abstract Classicists." (catalogue) Los Angeles County Museum of Art, California. |
| 1956 |
Langsner, Jules. "Art news from Los Angeles." Artnews. May.
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