Painting portraits, landscapes and still-lifes, realist artist Polly Kraft works in both watercolor and oil. Whether painting still-lifes or the beach landscapes of Long Island, Kraft has the ability to translate a split second glance into a memorable painting. Kraft is included in the permanent collections of the Corcoran Gallery of Art, The Santa Barbara Museum of Art, the American Collection of the United Nations, as well as many public and private collections. Kraft exhibits in New York, California, and Washington, DC.
Polly Kraft (1927 – 2017)
Education
1967 Corcoran School of Art, Washington, DC
1967-68 University of Maryland
Selected Solo Exhibitions
1980 Kornblee Gallery, New York
Louise Himmelfarb Gallery, Southampton, New York
1981 Diane Brown Gallery, Washington, DC
1981-82 Louise Himmelfarb Gallery, Southampton, New York
1983 William Sawyer Gallery, San Francisco, California
1984 Osuna Gallery, Washington, DC
Fischbach Gallery, New York
1986 Fischbach Gallery, New York
1988 Fischbach Gallery, New York
1991 Fischbach Gallery, New York
1993 Fischbach Gallery, New York
1997 Drawings and Watercolors 1989-1996, Glenn Horowitz Booksellers, Inc., East Hampton
1998 Fischbach Gallery, New York
2000 Addison/Ripley Fine Art, Washington, DC
2001 Glenn Horowitz Gallery, East Hampton, New York
2003 Addison/Ripley Fine Art, Washington, DC
2007 Addison/Ripley Fine Art, Washington, DC
2010 Fischbach Gallery, New York, NY
2014 Fishbach Gallery, New York, NY (Nov.)
Selected Group Exhibitions
1980 “Invitational,” Benson Gallery, Bridgehampton, New York
1981 “Still Life – 28 Artists,” Parrish Art Museum, Southampton, New York
Benson Gallery, Bridgehampton, New York
“Invitational,” Fairleigh Dickinson University, New Jersey
Louise Himmelfarb Gallery, Southampton, New York
“22nd Art Exhibition: Works on Paper,” Corcoran Gallery of Art, Washington, DC
1982 “10+10+10 – Washington Painting,” Corcoran Gallery of Art, Washington, DC
“Animal Painting,” Ericson gallery, New York
1983 “Acquisitions since 1975 – A Selection,” Corcoran gallery of Art, Washington, DC
Fischbach Gallery, New York
Fendrick Gallery, Washington, DC
“Women Painters Today,” The Rahr-West Museum, Manitowoc, Wisconsin
1984 Fendrick Gallery, Washington, DC
1985 “The Drawing Center Show,” Benson Gallery, Bridgehampton, New York
curated by Werner Kramarsky
Seven Hampton Artists,” Tower Gallery, Southampton, New York
1986 Fischbach Gallery, New York
Arrangements in Color and Shape,” C. Grimaldis Gallery, Baltimore, Maryland
1987 Fischbach Gallery, New York
1988 “Common Objects,” Benson Gallery, Bridgehampton, New York
1991 “Objects of My Affection,” Benson Gallery, Bridgehampton, New York
1994 “Vered Flower Show,” Vered Gallery, East Hampton, New York
1995 “Flower Painting,” Lizan-Tops Gallery, East Hampton, New York
1996 “In Full Bloom: Flower and Garden Paintings,” Lizan-Tops Gallery, East
Hampton, New York
1998 Apple of My Eye,” Kraushaar Galleries Inc., New York
1999 “Contemporary American Realism,” M.A. Doran Gallery, Tulsa, OK
“Re-Viewing Nature: Long Island Landscape Painting Today,” Sidney Mishkin
Gallery, Baruch College, New York
2001 Arlene Bujese Gallery, East Hampton, New York
2002 Lizan-Tops Gallery, East Hampton, New York
Selected Bibliography
Richard, Paul, The Washington Post, April 4, 1981.
Forgey, Benjamin, “From Kitchen to Bedroom,” The Washington Star, April 17, 1981.
Alexis, Karen, M.E., “Polly Kraft at Diane Brown,” The New Art Examiner, May 8, 1981.
Russell, John, “Alexander Hollweg and Polly Kraft,” The New York Times, Dec. 24, 1981
Alexis, Karen, M.E., “Quality plus Diversity in10+10+10,” The Washington Post, June 22,
1982.
Braff, Phyllis, “From the Studio,” The East Hampton Star, July 29, 1982; sec II, p.6.
“10+10+10,” ARTnews, October 1984.
Allen, Jane, “The Mystic, The Familiar, Life’s Trials,” The Washington Times, Jan. 1984.
Henry, Gerrit, ARTnews, October 1984.
Zaferatos, Olga, Painting the Still Life, New York: Watson Guptill, 1985.
Russell, John, The New York Times, April 4, 1986.
Leigh, Candace, “Honoring the Artists of t he Hamptons – Polly Kraft,” Dan’s Papers.
June 3, 1988.
Braff, Phyllis. “With a Broad Theme, Nostalgia Prevails,” The New York Times,
September 8, 1991.
Heller, Jules and Nancy G., North American Artists of the Twentieth Century, Garland
Publishing, New York, 1995.
Slivka, Rose, C.S., “From the Studio,” The East Hampton Star, May 8, 1997.
Newhall, Edith, “On View,” New York Magazine, May 25, 1998, p.100, illus.
Proztman, Ferdinand, Washington Post, May 2000.
Slivka, Rose, “From the Studio, October 31, 2002
Selected Collections
The Corcoran Gallery of Art, Washington, DC
The Santa Barbara Museum of Art, California
The Artery Corporation, Washington, DC
CIGNA Corporation
The United Nations Commission, NYC
