QUOGUE GALLERY
FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE
Harry Bertschmann: Over 50 Years of Painting
June 21 – July 19, 2018
Artist Reception: Sunday, July 1 from 5 to 7 PM
Quogue, NY, June 18 , 2018: The year 2018 began with the surprising rediscovery of a painter who is being added to the pantheon of significant abstract expressionist masters. The Harry Bertschmann story first broke on Sunday, January 7th, 2018 in The New York Times by writer Susan Chumsky, and has quickly achieved high acclaim from art historians while delighting collectors. Quogue Gallery will continue its rediscovery of the Harry Bertschmann Collection at its gallery in Quogue from June 21 to July 19, 2018. An artist Reception will take place on Sunday, July1 from 5 to 7 p.m. The exhibition at the gallery follows the successful launch of the abstract master’s works at the Art Palm Beach fair in January and the Art on Paper fair in Manhattan in March. The exhibition will feature over 25 paintings from the 1950s up until the 1990s. Paintings from Bertschmann’s many different series will be on display, including work from the Stuttgart Series, the Ab-Ex Shapes Series, the Bank Street Series, and the Subway Series.
Harry Bertschmann, “Bank Street Series No. 36,” 1978 – 1985, Acrylic on canvas, 47.25″ x 79″
The 87-year-old Bertschmann enjoyed many solo exhibitions at museums and galleries during the 1950s. In 1958 the jury of the prestigious Carnegie International selected him as its youngest exhibitor — and one of his large abstract expressionist paintings hung beside those by Mark Rothko, Franz Kline, Barnet Newman, Philip Guston, and Robert Motherwell. He was represented by the Howard Wise Gallery in New York City for eight years, and in 1961 Bertschmann’s solo exhibition followed one for Elaine de Kooning. But after settling in Greenwich Village in the early 1960s Bertschmann drifted from the gallery scene because he was leading a double life. His training at the famous Basel School of Design led him to become an innovator in graphic design, and many of his commercial logos and packaging have become pervasive in American culture. The logos and packaging for Kent and Newport cigarettes, Nestlé’s, and Bufferin are but a few of his creations. In 1997 the artist was honored with a retrospective in Basel. Despite earning a living from his commercial projects, he was resolute in painting every day.
Harry Bertschmann, “Bank Street Series No. 33,” 1978 – 1985, Acrylic on canvas, 48″ x 64″
Art critic and historian Prof. Robert C. Morgan described Bertschmann’s vision as “abstract gestural signs that suggest a language.” He added, “Bertschmann is essentially an art world outsider looking inward. He is a seasoned artist, a highly creative artist, an articulate individual, and a nearly obsessive worker, always willing to stand back and examine what he does before moving ahead. He is also an exemplary draughtsman…His atelier is a phenomenon to behold.”
Harry Bertschmann, “Bank Street Series, No. 30,” 1978 – 1985, Acrylic on canvas, 48″ x 70.5″
ABOUT QUOGUE GALLERY
As Quogue’s first and only private art gallery, the Quogue Gallery is a dynamic space in the Hamptons where artists, collectors, and art enthusiasts can meet and share their common passion for serious artistic investigation and appreciation. The gallery’s mission is to present a program of artistic excellence not limited to any genre or medium. Its focus is on modern and contemporary art created by emerging, established, and historically important artists. An essential aspect of the mission is to establish the gallery as an active, vibrant, and inventive participant in the Hamptons art panorama, with artist talks and events that significantly contribute to modern and contemporary art discourse.
Contact:
Quogue Gallery
44 Quogue St
Quogue NY 11959
Chester & Christy Murray
info@quoguegallery.com
(631) 653-6236
By Appointment
(203) 981-8260 or (203) 321-9427