The Life and Art of Louisa Chase
Louisa Chase was an American neo-expressionist painter and printmaker. Born in Panama City, Panama, she grew up in Lancaster, Pennsylvania. Her academic journey included earning a BFA in printmaking from Syracuse University in 1973 and an MFA in fine art from Yale University School of Art in 1975. Following her graduation, she had her first New York exhibition at the alternative gallery Artists Space. Her professional career included teaching painting at the Rhode Island School of Design from 1975 to 1979, and at the School of Visual Arts from 1980 to 1982. She was also a National Endowment for the Arts grantee.
Chase's work is characterized by the use of a bright color palette and geometric forms. She was known for her use of schematically drawn body parts—such as hands, feet, and torsos—alongside elements of landscape, which were sometimes combined or used separately. Her paintings often featured a juxtaposition between disturbing imagery and a lightness or humor of style. She paid special attention to energetic brushstrokes, markings in wood, and a cartoonish style used to symbolize body parts. Her imagery often depicted partial figures that appeared to be hovering, falling, drowning, or being assumed into the sky.
Exhibitions and Collections
Throughout her career, Chase exhibited at the 1984 Venice Biennale and held solo exhibitions at various venues, including the Brooke Alexander Gallery, The Texas Gallery in Houston, and Gallery Inge Baker in Cologne, Germany. Her work has been featured in group exhibitions at the New Museum, the Whitney Museum, the Rhode Island School of Design’s Museum of Art, SFMoMA, LACMA, and the Brooklyn Museum. Other exhibitions included shows at the Institute of Contemporary Art in Boston, the Madison Art Center, and the Contemporary Museum in Baltimore.
Her artwork is held in numerous prestigious collections, including:
