Lynne Mapp Drexler

Who is Lynne Mapp Drexler?

Lynne Drexler an American artist. She began painting as a child, and later took art classes at the College of William and Mary. In 1956, she moved to New York City in order to further her study. There, she became a devotee of Abstract Expressionism, and studied with two major figures of the movement: Hans Hofmann and Robert Motherwell. Her time with both of these artists had a lasting influence on her work, which was characterized by vivid colors, free brushwork, and geometric shapes. Many of her canvasses were large and have a patchwork quality.

Drexler remained in New York City throughout the 60s and 70s, living for a time at the famed Chelsea Hotel. She was a devotee of classical music and would often go to opera and symphony performances with a sketchpad in hand in order to be inspired by the music. As her distinctive artistic style developed, Drexler's paintings became less strictly abstract and exhibited a synthesis of abstract and representational influences.

By 1983, Drexler had grown weary of the art scene in New York and felt increasingly distanced from and unmoved by the Pop Art movement, then in its ascendancy. She moved permanently to Monhegan Island, an artists' haven off the coast of Maine, where she had spent most summers since 1963. The island's unique mixture of solitude and community provided a much-needed respite from the clamorous lifestyle Drexler had lived in New York, and during this time she began to paint more prolificly.