A Life in Art

Few painters have written autobiographies, and only Benvenuto Cellini’s is remembered. Yet Robert Kipniss, the widely recognized and collected painter and print artist (and part-time resident of Sharon), felt compelled to share his story of struggle, obstinacy and tenacity in “Robert Kipniss: A Working Artist’s Life.” “This is the kind of book I wished for when I was young. It’s about how hard it is to establish a career in art, much less earn a living from it,” he says. Kipniss intended to be a writer. Yet a single art course at the University of Iowa (he had been asked to leave his first college because of petitioning for better food in the cafeteria) led eventually to a different path. Along the way, Kipniss married and fathered four children, painted by day and worked by night, most famously at the main post office in New York City “because it paid more than any other job” he could get, and lived in what he describes as “extreme poverty.” Early on Kipniss learned that without galleries and dealers an artist can have no career. “Once artists became known in the great salons of Paris, London and New York,” he points out. But when the salons ended, only dealers showed art and introduced new artists to the public. Some of the most interesting parts of Kipniss’s book describe the artist-gallery relationship and the gallery owners and directors — some greedy, even crooked; some paternalistic — who effectively made his career. “At four or five key moments in my life and career, I found someone who believed in me and my work,” he says. Of course, fine painter that he is, Kipniss is known as a superb creator of intaglio prints. His explanation of how various forms — lithograph, dry point, mezzotint — are made is fascinating. Recounting the summer months (because he made new prints for the September opening of the New York art season) he spent each year in the famous Bank Street Atelier making his art and watching its printing, he is compelling. Kipniss writes with the same precision and clarity that he brings to his art. And he is fearlessly candid without resorting to the sensational. The deterioration of his first marriage, his long time relationship with another woman, his devotion to playing pool for money are all recounted with honesty. “They happened,” he explains. Simple as that. This is a beautifully produced book with 32 full-color illustrations that show the artist’s work from early full-color abstracts and portraiture to the later, carefully controlled pictures and prints with their ghostly, haunting, tense qualities. Kipniss’s discovery of the power of middle tones in his work is wonderfully described in words and fully illustrated. What you won’t find in the book is much about success itself. “It’s less interesting,” he says. Or his life with writer Laurie Lisle, his second wife. Theirs is clearly a mutually supportive but private relationship that came long after Kipniss’s struggle to be recognized. Robert Kipniss will read from his book during a reception and book signing hosted by Susan and Tino Galluzzo and Dan Dwyer at The White Gallery Oct. 1, from 5 to 7 p.m. in Lakeville. More information at 860-435-6677 or 860-435-1029; or visit the websites of The White Gallery or Johnnycake Books. ?