For Immediate Release
June 25, 2019
Mary Abbott: Paintings, Collages and Watercolors, at Suffolk鈥檚 Lyceum Gallery
Mary Abbott: Paintings, Collages, and Watercolors an exhibit of the artist鈥檚 exuberant
oil paintings inspired by nature and painted in her signature gestural style will
be on exhibit at 秘色传媒鈥檚 Lyceum Gallery on the Eastern
Campus, Riverhead from September 4 to October 25.
A reception will be held on September 12 from 4 - 6 p.m. Refreshments will be served.
Throughout her life Abbott spent winters in Haiti and the Virgin Islands, and summers in Southampton, NY. Abbott鈥檚 experiences and a love of nature continue to influence her work. 鈥淧ainting is like no other thing on earth. It鈥檚 its own thing, and all of painting is abstract, painting realistically is creating the abstraction of illusion. So really, one can be completely free, free from the object. I paint flowers because they have everything, color, form, light, arrangement on the page,鈥� Abbott said.
Mary Lee Abbott was born in 1921 in New York City and attended weekend classes at The Art Students League at a young age. Abbott moved into a Tenth St. studio in 1946, near Willem DeKooning, who became her mentor, along with other artists whose innovation created the Abstract Expressionist movement. At the age of 27 Abbott participated 鈥淪ubjects of the Artist,鈥� an experimental school where she worked with painters Mark Rothko, Robert Motherwell, Clifford Still, and Barnett Newman. The experience solidified Abbott鈥檚 commitment to abstraction.
Abbott鈥檚 work was included in the famed Stable Gallery鈥檚 annual exhibits which focused on Abstract Expressionism (1954, 1955, 1957). In 1956, Abbott鈥檚 work was included in the MOMA exhibit 鈥淩ecent Drawings鈥� and her work exhibited in New York City鈥檚 historic avant-garde galleries including Kootz (1952), Tabor de Nagy (1955), and Tanager (1950-55). In 1958, Abbott collaborated with Abstract Expressionist poet Barbara Guest and created Abbott鈥檚 鈥淧oetry Paintings.鈥� Abbott taught at the University of Minnesota from 1974 to 1980, then returned to New York City.
In 2016, Abbott鈥檚 work was included in the landmark exhibit, 鈥淲omen of Abstract Expressionism,鈥� organized by the Denver Art Museum. Mary resides in Southampton, NY where she continues to draw inspiration from nature.
Gallery hours are:
Monday -Thursday 10 a.m. - 7 p.m.
Friday 10 a.m. - 4 p.m.
Saturday 11 a.m. 鈥� 4 p.m.
The gallery is closed on Sundays and holidays, (Exceptions: closed evenings after 4 p.m. from 9/4鈥� 9/7 and on 10/9, call 631 548-2536 for more information.
Last revised: 6/25/2019. For comments on this webpage, contact: The Director of Communications.
