My good friend of 23 years passed on this morning. He was a member of the Citi-Corp coffee gang. I had last visited him in the nursing home in NYC the day before I left for Africa. He was released and sent home to recuperate.
Here is a brief excerpt about his life. I will comment more on Nathan in the coming days.
Nathan Wasserberger, Polish/American (1928 - 2012)
Widely collected and admired in Europe and the United States, Nathan Wasserberger was born in Chrzanow, Poland in 1928. As a young man, he witnessed first hand the horrors of World War II including the death of friends and family and is himself a survivor of Buchenwald.
Despite these early challenges, he went on to study at the Academy Julien in Paris and at the Art Students League in New York.
Early in his career, his paintings reflected the unbelievable injustices committed by the Nazis upon himself and millions of other innocents.
This brooding period was soon replaced by introspective expressions of the joy of life and a celebration of beauty and sensuality. Yet, concealed in every painting, there is a touch of sadness, a carry over of his experiences as a young man. Perhaps also a comment upon the unceasing suffering that still haunts humanity today.
Having 67 photos and color plates of his paintings in the permanent archives of American Art in the Smithsonian Institution in Washington, DC, assures this artist a place of honor in American art.
An excerpt from a book about Nathan Wasserberger quotes as follows:
"The treatment of the figure is concentrated, elegant and correct. At the same time there is an additional heritage in the lesson of drawing: The structures of the paintings are clarified, the concentration on the single figures producing the first signs of the crystaline structural clarity his paintings now display. Moreover, the technique is kept light and informal with none of the freezing into cold stiff line which academic figure painters tend to adopt. Finally, adding to this buoyancy is the lesson of tone: A silvery high-key tone begins to infuse the work. It is a luminous spirit lifting tone."
Dear Pat: I was Nathan's friend for 38 years. I was at the burial on Tuesday and visited Nathan at the nursing home and at his home right before he died. I miss him so much. I met him when I was 18. I used to sit for him and lived with him for a few years. We threw a 1976 Bicentennial party at his loft. I would love to chat with you more about Nathan.
ReplyDeleteI made a Facebook page for him: www.facebook/nathanwasserberger
I would be happy to chat with you or get together when I am in the city next week. I am up in Saratoga now. Thanks for responding. Patrick Faiola 808-227-8760 cell PLF123@gmail.com
ReplyDeleteThat sounds great Pat. Thank you so much for joining my page of Nathan. I will definitely give you a call some time next week. I plan to visit Keiko-san over the weekend. I am eager to hear stories of Nathan. He had the knack of surrounding himself with the greatest people. Did you know Sol? Does he know about Nathan?
ReplyDeleteMy email is eegpoet@aol.com
Sincerely,
Elena