What are some interesting facts about Ellsworth Kelly?

Here are some interesting facts about Ellsworth Kelly. As a child growing up in Newburgh, New York, near the Oradell Reservoir, he was an avid birder and loved the colorful illustrations of naturalist John James Audubon. A high school teacher encouraged him to study art, so he enrolled at Pratt Institute in Brooklyn, studying there until 1943, when he enlisted in the army. During World War II, he served, along with scores of other artists, in a unit known as the Ghost Army, where he learned the elements of camouflage while creating fake trucks and tanks intended to mislead Axis forces.

When the war was over, Kelly took advantage of the G.I. Bill to study painting at the School of the Museum of Fine Arts in Boston, drawing inspiration from the museum's collections. He later studied at the École nationale supérieure des Beaux-Arts in Paris.

Kelly went on to become one of the key figures in postwar American art, particularly influencing Pop art, minimalism, color field and hard edge painting. Widely known for his brightly colored geometric compositions, he was among the first artists, alongside his contemporary Frank Stella, to use irregularly shaped canvases. Although highly abstract, Kelly’s paintings and prints are precise expressions in color and form of his sensory experience of the world. Explore a collection of Ellsworth Kelly art on 1stDibs.