Jay Rosenblum, Polarity #9

Jay Rosenblum

Polarity #9, 1981

Acrylic on Paper

Signed and titled in graphite pencil on the recto

Unique

This gem of a work is an acrylic painting on paper by renowned Abstract Color Field painter Jay Rosenblum (1933–1989), featuring his trademark bold and dramatic color stripes done with a paint roller. Jay Rosenblum, a gifted musician and talented painter, coined the term “Free Association Color Development” to describe his vibrant and expressive color block paintings. Based on his love of Classical music, he felt that a painting should come together similar to a sonata, with various notes falling into a synchronistic compilation to create a sensory experience as a whole. He worked with this expressive “visual stripe motif” for over thirty years.

Born and raised in the Bronx, Rosenblum’s life was on a clear trajectory toward the arts from the very beginning. He attended the High School of Music and Art, then went on to receive his Bachelor’s from Bard College, finally studying at Cranbrook Academy of Fine Arts. His creative talents were not limited to 2 or 3D work, he was also a gifted violinist, and played with the Seventh Army Symphony in the 1950s. In addition to making work, he also had an extensive teaching career, molding young minds at the Visual School of Arts, the Cleveland Art Institute, and Hunter College.

Rosenblum was awarded the Carlos Lopez Memorial Prize in Painting from the Detroit Institute of Art in 1955, as well as the Painter of Year Award from Larry Aldrich in 1970. He was also selected to design and execute two major murals in New York City.