
Lynne Taetzsch
New York, USA
Modern Abstract Artist
I put everything into my art: everything I see, every emotion I’ve felt, every experience I’ve lived through. I try to be open, alert, and in touch with life in the act of making art.
Lynne Taetzsch – fell in love with the abstract expressionist painters!
At Cooper Union in NYC, I studied life drawing and two and three-dimensional design, but I also fell in love with the abstract expressionist painters I saw in the galleries downtown. My own art became more abstract until I found a way to express myself through gesture and improvisation.

At what age did you know you wanted to be an artist?
I can’t remember a time when I didn’t love arts and crafts. This is what I spent my small allowance on. It’s how I spent my spare time. It’s what I did with my friends. We had a “craft” club during the summers, and later I was president of my High School arts club.
What is the earliest artwork you did that you can remember?
As a young teenager, I liked to draw portraits of family members–anyone who would sit still long enough for me to capture their likeness. I remember finally getting my mother–who was always busy with 6 children in the family–to sit still so that I could draw her. When I finished the drawing, she took a look at it and said, “Is that how you see me?” She was disappointed that I hadn’t made her more attractive, but that was never my goal.
Which classical or contemporary artists have inspired you?
When I went to Cooper Union Art School in NYC, we often visited galleries there. The first time I saw the abstract expressionists, I fell in love: Jackson Pollock, Franz Kline, Helen Frankenthaler–it was the energy and powerful impact of their work that drew me to them.
How would you describe your artistic style?
My work is about color, energy, and composition. It is bold and does not blend quietly into the background. It is certainly gestural and expressionist, but some pieces have an impressionist feel to them.
When did you first sell an artwork? How did you feel?
I sold my first painting to a friend’s mother when I was an 18-year-old student at the University of Southern California. It felt great. I’d sold some of my art to family members before that, but I don’t think that counts.
What's your workstyle? Do you work on one piece at a time or work simultaneously on multiple pieces?
Because I paint in layers and each layer has to dry before I can paint the next, I often work on two or more canvases at a time. It really depends on the painting.
How do you get the inspiration for a new piece?
I don’t think a professional artist needs to wait for inspiration. I go into my studio and start painting. Of course, there are practices that get me started. Sometimes it’s the color I choose to use first: it suggests the next color, and soon I’m lost in the painting process. Sometimes I have a general idea for a background–an assemblage of colors and lines. Then I go from there. I never decide ahead of time what a painting will look like when it’s finished. It’s the process that decides, and I have faith in that process.
Tell us a bit about your personal life ...
I have one daughter, three step-daughters, and five grandchildren. One of my granddaughters decided early on that she wanted to be an artist, and it’s been my pleasure to encourage her along the way.
Each new blank canvas is a challenge and an adventure. I paint standing up at an easel, listening to music, responding spontaneously to the image in front of me. I’m in love with color, form and movement–exploring new paths for the eye to take as it sweeps the emerging composition.”
A few pieces from Lynne’s gallery
Bountiful
Hedgerow
Why they love Lynne Taetzsch’s art
Debra Perillo, Glen Mills
“We received our painting today and we love it. If you saw the room we hung it in you would think you painted it especially for us! We are very pleased. Looking forward to purchasing another soon. Just have to decide which one we want. Thank you again.”
Susan Boyle, Seattle
More about Lynne Taetzsch
Shows & Exhibitions
Solo Exhibitions
Abstract Meditations, CAP ArtSpace Gallery, Ithaca, NY 2016
New Abstract Expressionist Paintings, The Frame Shop Gallery, Ithaca, NY 2013
Improvisation on Canvas, The Kitchen Theater, Ithaca, NY 2012
Abstract Paintings, Salati Gallery, Binghamton, NY 2011
New Abstract Paintings, CAP ArtSpace, Ithaca, NY 2010
Patterns in Abstract Art, Cayuga Museum of History & Art, Auburn, NY 2009
Abstract Refractions, Upstairs Gallery, Ithaca, NY 2007
Black & White & Color, Tompkins County Airport, Ithaca, NY 2006
Featured Artist, Arts Crawl, The Gallery at Hawthorne Plaza, Overland Park, KS 2004
Fundamental Energy, Shangri-La Gallery, Ithaca, NY 2004
New Work by Lynne Taetzsch, Clinton House ArtSpace, Ithaca, NY 2001
Improvisation in Color, Community School of Music & Art, Ithaca, NY 2000
Recent Paintings, Tompkins Cortland Community College, Dryden, NY 2000
New Acrylic Paintings, Gallery for the Arts, Mt. Sterling, KY 1998
Recent Works, Astrea Gallery, Washington, DC 1991
Acrylic Paintings, Division of Cultural Affairs Gallery, Tallahassee, FL 1990
Selected Paintings, President’s Gallery, Florida State University, Tallahassee, FL 1990
Recent Acrylic Paintings, Hartley Gallery, Winter Park, FL 1990
Paintings by Lynne Taetzsch, Friends of Jung, San Diego, CA 1988
Oil Paintings, The Revelation, New York, NY 1971
Recent Oil Paintings, Paula Insel Gallery, New York, NY 1964