American Monotypes from the Baker/Pisano Collection | Page 61

Joseph Solman (American, 1909–2008)
Tar Cart, ca. 1975

Color monotype, 8 7/8 x 4 3/8 in.
Chazen Museum of Art, gift of D. Frederick Baker from the
Baker/Pisano Collection, 2014.6.20

Brought to New York City from Russia when he was three
years old, Solman lived and worked as an artist in his adopted
city for the entirety of his life. He attended the National
Academy of Design, but it was his love for New York City and
its residents that truly informed his work. Along with Mark
Rothko, he co-founded The Ten, a group of expressionist
painters who exhibited together in the 1930s. Solman once
noted that the group had only nine members so they could
bring other artists into their shows. He lived and worked
during the extraordinary period of contention between
Abstract Expressionism and Realism, deftly maneuvering a
place somewhere between. Solman said that he most admired
Cezanne “because he taught [himself ] humility through his
persistent attempt to climb the mountain of realism.”* Solman
began working in monotype in the 1960s and his description of
the monotype is perhaps the best take on the process: “Monotype allows no ‘wiggle room’ for the artist. It’s either good, or
it’s bad. You get one shot at it. I find that my greatest work
results from a number of initial failures and subsequent
attempts at correction. For me, the attraction to monotypes is
the ultimate ‘surprise’ that brings unexpected results.”**

NOTES:
Bergeron, “Painter Joseph Solman.”
*Kimmelman, “Joseph Solman, Painter, Is Dead at 99.”
**Solman, “Turning Everyday Ordinary Subjects into Extraordinary
Visual Expressions.”

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