Born Lena Krassner in 1908 to Russian-Jewish parents in Brooklyn, Krasner studied at Cooper Union and the National Academy of Design before attending classes with the influential German-born artist Hans Hofmann. There, she became increasingly interested in Cubism and abstraction. In the 1940s, she joined the American Abstract Artists group, establishing herself within New York’s burgeoning avant-garde.
In 1945, Krasner married fellow artist Jackson Pollock, and the couple settled in Springs, East Hampton. Though often overshadowed by Pollock, Krasner developed an independent and evolving practice that has continued to gain recognition in recent years. Working from her home in East Hampton, she created the Little Images — intimate paintings characterised by intricate, jewel-like surfaces and informed by her surroundings.
Transformation became central to Krasner’s art. She frequently cut apart and reassembled her own drawings and paintings, turning discarded fragments into new compositions. This cycle of destruction and renewal produced work that balanced spontaneity with rigorous formal control. In 1965, she held her first solo exhibition at the Whitechapel Gallery in London. Krasner died in 1984, just months before the opening of her retrospective at the Museum of Modern Art in New York.
Today, the artist is recognised as a major figure in post-war American art, celebrated for a body of work that defied convention. As the artist once remarked, ‘I like a canvas to breathe and be alive. Be alive is the point.’
Lee Krasner (1908-1984)
Untitled
Lee Krasner (1908-1984)
Shattered Light
LEE KRASNER (1908-1984)
Untitled
LEE KRASNER (1908-1984)
Twelve Hour Crossing, March Twenty-first
LEE KRASNER (1908-1984)
Lotus
Lee Krasner (1908-1984)
Night Birds
LEE KRASNER (1908-1984)
Volcanic
Lee Krasner (1908-1984)
Cauldron
Lee Krasner (1908-1984)
Entrance
Lee Krasner (1908-1984)
Bird Talk
LEE KRASNER (1908-1984)
Untitled
Lee Krasner (1908-1984)
Untitled (The Mouse Trap)
LEE KRASNER (1908-1984)
Earth No. 6
LEE KRASNER (1908-1984)
Twenty-Four Hours Dark
Lee Krasner (1908-1984)
In the Tea Leaves
Lee Krasner (1908-1984)
Untitled
Lee Krasner (1908-1984)
Dark Easter
Lee Krasner (1908-1984)
Untitled
Lee Krasner (Brooklyn 1908-1984 New York)
Untitled (Still life)
LEE KRASNER (1908-1984)
Nude Study from Life
Lee Krasner (1908-1984)
Untitled
Lee Krasner (1908-1984)
Jonas Gourd
LEE KRASNER (1908-1984)
Long Lines for Lee Krasner
LEE KRASNER (1908-1984)
The Turning
Lee Krasner (1908-1984)
Untitled
LEE KRASNER (1908-1984)
Gold Stone, from Primary Series
LEE KRASNER (1908-1984)
Blue Stone, from Primary Series
Lee Krasner (1908-1984)
Untitled
LEE KRASNER (1908-1984)
Long Lines for Lee Krasner : one print
LEE KRASNER (1908-1984)
Primary Series : Pink Stone
LEE KRASNER (1908-1984)
Primary Series : Blue Stone
Lee Krasner (1908-1984)
Rose Stone, from Primary Series
LEE KRASNER (1908-1984)
Primary Series: Gold Stone
Lee Krasner (1908-1984)
Gold Stone, from Primary Series
LEE KRASNER (1908-1984)
Siblings