Howard Fonda

Howard Fonda is a Chicago-based painter known for his vibrantly colored canvases that blur the boundaries between representation and abstraction: his lurid compositions of squiggles, swirls, and marks seem to dance kinetically across his canvases. As Fonda points out on his website, "The difference between representation and abstraction is like the difference between clouds and sky. The origin of the debate is more useful than the debate itself...Painting is a vehicle of contradiction adept at conveying the hubris of, and understanding of, existence." Fonda proudly upholds the tradition of twentieth century painting. An old school Modernist, he views painting as a "philosophical sanctuary and spiritual outpost," finding "comfort in its traditions and limitations."

Fonda exhibits frequently at Mixed Greens in New York and throughout Chicago. His work is in the collections of Museum of Modern Art, New York and the Museum of Contemporary Art, Chicago.

Text courtesy of the artist's website and the Hoffman Gallery