Artist b. 1954

 

Bio:  Began painting at age three after being inspired by the housepainters, who had just finished his parents apartment with a clean coat of what he thought was primer.  He energetically created a large orange circle with crayon, as wide and high as his reach allowed, and filled it in fully.  The use of a personal kinesthetic and unique marks for each area of the surface was already in evidence.

 

Works:  Mr. Do's practice engages the viewer in direct, and fresh contact with the natural world. One is transported to each specific place, feeling the breeze, the light, the time of day, and the weather.  This is achieved by painting en plein air, at the site of each location.

 

History: Although bestowed with a Vietnamese name from his father, one of the first so-called "elites" to have arrived in the U.S. from what was then French Indo-China, Mr. Do was raised in New York City.  His mother, a descendant of the Dutch and Belgian van Gaasbeek line, (see the castle here, http://www.kasteelvangaasbeek.be), introduced him to the artwork, culture, and music of New York City in the 50's and 60's.

 

Experience: Hence, raised in the Western milieu, steeped in northern European traditions, and trained by artists and mentors who were taught by Josef Albers, of Bauhaus and Yale renown, Mr. Do's trajectory was preset.  Other mentor-teachers, one may have heard of, include Harry Holtzman, Neil Welliver, Elaine DeKooning, John Cohen, Rackstraw Downes, Irving Kreisberg, Rudy Burckhardt, and Antonio Frasconi.

H.S. of Music and Art, NYC

BFA - Purchase College

New York Studio Program, Empire State University

MFA- University of Pennsylvania

 

Gallery Affiliation: Blue Mountain Gallery, NYC;  Windham Fine Arts, Windham, NY;  Gallery on 16, Marion, VA

formerly represented by the following:  Tatistchieff Gallery, NYC, Gross McCleaf, Philadelphia, Cox Gallery, Woodstock, Salander O'Reilly, Berlin  See also my ARTSY site: https://www.artsy.net/show/blue-mountain-gallery-kim-van-do-light-and-air-of-summer?sort=partner_show_position

 

Teaching:  Horace Mann School 1985-2022, former Chair Dept. of Visual Art

 

Notable Collections: Corporate Headquarters for Citibank, Cargill International, Japan Long Term Loan, American Express, Reader's Digest, Brown-Forman, Johnson & Johnson, Triangle Industries, Strook, Strook and Lavan, etc.