Ron Gorchov

(American, 1930–2020)

Ron Gorchov was an American artist known for his richly colored paintings on saddle-shaped supports. By stretching linen over curved stretcher bars, Gorchov achieves unique, concave surfaces which recall Bronze Age shields or sarcophagus masks. “I fell in love with Matisse’s way of using very little paint. I liked the elegance of using thin paint,” he explained. “I wanted to be more like a sign painter, where it was objectively motivated. In other words, I wanted to know where the paint was going.” Born on April 5, 1930 in Chicago, IL, he attended Saturday morning art classes at the School of the Art Institute of Chicago at 14 years old. The artist briefly attended the University of Mississippi in 1947, before returning to Chicago and completing his studies at the Roosevelt College and Art Institute. In 1953, Gorchov and his wife moved to New York where he supported himself working as a lifeguard until 1960 when he had his first solo show at Tibor de Nagy Gallery. Over the following two decades, he befriended an eclectic group of artists including John Graham, Al Held, Malcom Morley, and Lynda Benglis. After years out of the spotlight, in the early 2000s the artist’s work once again began to attract public attention. Gorchov passed away on August 18, 2020 at the age of 90. Today, his works are held in the collections of The Museum of Modern Art in New York, the Detroit Institute of Art, and the Art Institute of Chicago, among others.