Jack Hofflander Oil Painting Haitian Scene

Jack Hofflander (American, 1920-2003) had a long and properous career. One of his many influences was Haiti and the primitive style of many Haitian painters. This painting is signed and dated lower right, "Haiti 1957 Hofflander". It is an oil painting on paper laid down on masonite. It is in terrific condition, with an uncanny freshness.

The painting mesures 10.5" high x 17" long. The frame is 14" wide x 20.25" long. The framing features a handcarved inset (blonde wood) within a rougher, stained wood frame.

Following is an excerpt of Jack Hofflander's biography found on AskArt.com.

As a fine artist, beginning in 1953 until the late 1990s, he held 16 one-man art shows, as well as numerous group shows, in New York City, Upstate New York, Boston, Maine, California, Texas, Illinois, Pennsylvania, Florida (Palm Beach), and in the West Indies (Bridgetown, St. Vincent). His work can be found in the Caracci-Boswell Collection, as well as the collections of Marjorie Meriwether Post, Mary Martin, Arthur Laurents, Joan Crawford, Rich Little, and Helena Rubinstein.

Jack’s unique painting style came about while studying at the Art Student’s League of New York City. A combination of New England folk art and Haitian folk art, mixed with influences from Japan, India, and the Middle East, he has been described as a “sophisticated primitive landscape painter, who romanticized small worlds of fact and fantasy,” with his earliest works also taking inspiration from Gaughin, Rousseau, and Braque. Although his work shows a trained technical expertise, his naïve style is unique in its execution. A New York art critic once explained his talent like this: “The man must be a happy painter, for he paints happy pictures in the very special world that he alone inhabits.”