Artist

Jacob Kainen

born Waterbury, CT 1909-died Washington, DC 2001
Jacob Kainen, <i>Self Portrait</i>, ca. 1942, brush and ink on paper, Smithsonian American Art Museum,Gift of Sara L. Lepman  1981.115.
Jacob Kainen, Self Portrait, ca. 1942, brush and ink on paper, Smithsonian American Art Museum,Gift of Sara L. Lepman 1981.115.
Born
Waterbury, Connecticut, United States
Died
Washington, District of Columbia, United States
Active in
  • Washington, District of Columbia, United States
  • Chevy Chase, Maryland, United States
  • New York, New York, United States
Biography

Printmaker who worked in woodcut, silk screen, and other media; his style gradually evolved from the social realism of the 1930s to more abstract portraits in the 1950s and later.

Charles Sullivan, ed American Beauties: Women in Art and Literature (New York: Henry N. Abrams, Inc., in association with National Museum of American Art, 1993)

Works by this artist (136 items)

Jacob Kainen, Woman with Dark Hair, 1959, oil on canvas, Smithsonian American Art Museum, Gift of Mrs. Mary Jane Fisher, 1979.82
Woman with Dark Hair
Date1959
oil on canvas
On view
Jacob Kainen, Nude Relaxing, 1969, crayon on paper, Smithsonian American Art Museum, Gift of Mr. and Mrs. Jem Hom, 1991.6.2
Nude Relaxing
Date1969
crayon on paper
Not on view
Jacob Kainen, Professor X #2, 1977, oil on canvas, Smithsonian American Art Museum, Gift of Mrs. Teden H. Cole, 1979.84
Professor X #2
Date1977
oil on canvas
Not on view
Jacob Kainen, Bronx El, 1941, oil on canvas, Smithsonian American Art Museum, Gift of the artist, 1979.80.4
Bronx El
Date1941
oil on canvas
Not on view

Exhibitions

Media - 1977.48.5 - SAAM-1977.48.5_1 - 59312
Local Color: Washington Painting at Midcentury
July 3, 2008October 12, 2008
Explore the expressive possibilities of color in this special installation of twenty-seven large-scale paintings from the museum's permanent collection.
Media - 1996.104.55 - SAAM-1996.104.55_1 - 55872
Abstract Drawings
June 14, 2012January 6, 2013
Abstract Drawings presents a selection of forty-six works on paper from the Smithsonian American Art Museum’s permanent collection that are rarely on public display.