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Leslie
Jakobovits grew up in New York City. He attended the Roosevelt School in
Stamford, Connecticut from 1961 until 1964, where he studied painting
under Arthur Bressler, a student of German painters Max Beckmann and
George Grosz.
His studies in painting and drawing continued at The Art Student’s
League in New York City, followed by a year at l’Academie de la Grande
Chaumiere in Paris, France. This period was accompanied by two years of
painting and drawing in Israel and Hungary, where his family is from, as
well as in Sweden and France.
Leslie earned his B.A. in art and history in Texas in 1972. He received
his M.F.A. in painting and drawing from Washington State University in
1975, where he studied under renowned American painter, Gaylen Hansen.
Upon graduation, he traveled to India, Asia and the Far East to study
oriental painting and sculpture.
Leslie’s work has been exhibited in fine art galleries in California,
New York, Texas, Florida, Vermont and New Mexico. Individuals around the
world collect his paintings. He has also exhibited in Israel, Sweden and
Hungary.
As a “plein-air” painter, Leslie travels extensively throughout the
world and paints his landscapes on site. These paintings are generally
done in the medium of gouache, which dries rapidly and is easily
transported. From these completed works, he is further inspired to paint
larger oils, which are completed in his Santa Fe studio. The Fauves and
the German Expressionists of the 19th century, including Oskar Kokoschka,
Chaim Soutine and Maurice de Vlaminck have influenced his painting style,
and his more recent works look to the early Taos and Santa Fe schools of
painting.
Leslie believes that his paintings are a direct response to his inner
needs and his environment. His subjects are traditional in nature, yet
gilded with a personal vision. Most recently, his travels have taken him
to Mexico, Costa Rica and Peru. Leslie feels that the light in Mexico and
the inner beauty of her people are inspirational, while the beautiful
grays and moodiness of the Costa Rican skies, volcanoes, rainforests and
cloud forests have given him rich sources of exceptional material. Peru
has offered the mystery of the pre-Inca and Inca cultures, textiles and
metalwork. To Leslie, Latin America offers a distinct and rare quality
that provides a very fertile milieu for his artistic expression.
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