Lynne Drexler, “Blue Bondage,” 49 by 30 inches. Courtesy of Moss Galleries
Lynne Drexler was an unusual Monhegan artist. She was one of only two painters who lived on the island year-round who also died there, which happened in 1999. And she was also an abstract painter, uncommon among island artists, though she drew from the same sources of inspiration as her representational peers.
Beginning this week, Moss Galleries in Falmouth debuts a new online viewing room of 12 paintings that Drexler completed in the late 1960s and early 1970s, before moving to Monhegan full time. “Lynne Drexler: Bathed in Color” includes early abstract works from New York, around the time she began living in the Chelsea Hotel, popular among rock stars and musicians. The online exhibition is on view into November.
These paintings have never been exhibited, and 10 percent of proceeds from exhibition sales will benefit the Monhegan Museum of Art and History. Drexler was married to the painter John Hultberg. They spent their summers there until 1983, when they moved to the island full time. But Hultberg didn’t last, leaving the island in 1985, moving first to Portland and eventually back to New York. Drexler stayed, and became one of Monhegan’s beloved contemporary artists.
The works on view through Moss Galleries are based on her vision of the landscape, translated with large and energetic brush strokes. She was born in Virginia in 1928, and studied painting with modernist Hans Hoffman. She also studied with Robert Motherwell, the painter and critic. Her early work focused on color and composition. After moving to Maine, she blended representational ideas into her paintings.
Drexler exhibited throughout her life, including solo exhibitions in 2008 at the Monhegan Museum and the Portland Museum of Art. Her art was featured in Architectural Digest a few years ago in a spread about the home of model Chrissy Teigen and singer John Legend.
For information, visit elizabethmossgalleries.com
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