Mel Zabarsky

Mel Zabarsky
BornAugust 21, 1932
Worcester, MA
DiedDecember 5, 2019
NationalityAmerican
EducationWorcester Art Museum School; Ruskin School of Drawing & Fine Arts, Oxford University; Boston University; University of Cincinnati
Known forPaintings
Notable workSurrealist political and historic painting
MovementBoston Expressionism
SpouseJoyce Reopel
Websitehttps://www.melzabarsky.com

Melvin Joel Zabarsky (1932–2019) was an American figurative painter who created representational work in the narrative tradition. Known for a bright, bold palette, his work often explores political, historical and cultural themes to surreal and realist effect. In a six-decade career marked by several distinct phases, Zabarsky's imaginative use of color, formal experimentation and commitment to narrative organization in both traditional and avant garde styles are hallmarks of his work. In an interview with the British philosophers Donald and Monica Skilling, he said, "I'm discovering history, or a narrative, within a painting, as I go along."[1]

That sensibility is in keeping with what Boston Globe critic Robert Taylor defined as "urban, Jewish, introverted and lyrical,"[2] which he credits to the artists championed by art dealer Boris Mirski,[3][4][5] Boston's leading gallerist from 1944 to 1979,[6] and his NYC counterpart, Edith Halpert[7][8] of the Downtown Gallery.[9][10] This group included Zabarsky, fellow artist and wife Joyce Reopel, Hyman Bloom,[11] Barbara Swan, Jack Levine, Marianna Pineda, Harold Tovish and others, who helped overcome Boston's conservative distaste for the avant-garde, occasionally female, and often Jewish[12] artists later classified as Boston expressionists. Unique to New England, the art movement had lasting national and local influence, and is now in its third generation.

  1. ^ Zabarsky, L., ed. (Jan 25, 2000). Past Into Present: Paintings by M. Zabarsky. New Hampshire: University of New Hampshire Museum of Art. ISBN 978-0964895324.
  2. ^ Lafo, Rachel R.; Capasso, Nicholas; Uhrhane, Jennifer. (2002). Painting in Boston, 1950-2000. Boston and Amherst, MA: University of Massachusetts Press. p. 26. ISBN 978-1558493643.
  3. ^ Smithsonian: Archives of American Art. "Boris Mirski Gallery records, 1936-2000". A Finding Aid to the Boris Mirski Gallery Records, 1936-2000.
  4. ^ Chaet, Bernard (1980). "The Boston Expressionist School: A Painter's Recollections of the Forties". Archives of American Art Journal. 20 (1): 25–30. doi:10.1086/aaa.20.1.1557495. JSTOR 1557495. S2CID 192821072.
  5. ^ Bookbinder, Judith (Aug 22, 2005). Boston Modern: Figurative Expressionism as Alternative Modernism (Revisiting New England). Lebanon, NH: University Press of New England. ISBN 978-1584654889.
  6. ^ DeCordova Museum (2002). Painting in Boston, 1950-2000. University of Massachusetts Press. ISBN 9781558493643.
  7. ^ Smith, Roberta (Dec 26, 2006). "The Tough-Talking Godmother of Downtown Art". The New York Times. Retrieved Sep 21, 2018.
  8. ^ Thompson, Kathleen (Mar 1, 2009). "Jewish Women: A Comprehensive Historical Encyclopedia. Edith Gregor Halpert". Jewish Women's Archive.
  9. ^ Stover Gaines, Catherine (2000). "A Finding Aid to the Downtown Gallery Records, 1824-1974, bulk 1926-1969, in the Archives of American Art" (PDF). Smithsonian Archives of American Art.
  10. ^ The NYPR Archive Collections (Oct 9, 1950). "The Functions of the Art Gallery - Edith Halpert". The NPR Archive Collection.
  11. ^ "The Estate of Hyman Bloom". Hyman Bloom Estate. Sep 21, 2018.
  12. ^ Giuliano, Charles (May 22, 2018). "Visual Arts Commentary: Paying Attention to Boston's Jewish Expressionists". The Arts Fuse.