Norma Isaacs
1901-1998

Norma Isaacs began painting late in life. By 1949, at age 48, she had raised three daughters and became divorced. A friend invited her to a painting class in Queens, NY.  She remarked, "From the minute I picked up the paintbrush, I knew it was a moment I had waited for all my life.”
 
By the early 1950’s Norma began spending summers in Provincetown, where The New York School of Painters led by Hans Hofmann was flourishing.  “It was the pinnacle of the art colony's moment, largely because Hofmann had attracted most of the New York School by then, including Franz Kline, Mark Rothko and Lee Krasner, who brought along Jackson Pollock.” *
 
In Provincetown she met her teacher, “dogmatic, tyrannical, and rebellious” Morris Davidson. He introduced Norma to the fundamentals of painting and the modern masters.  He would go so far as to tell Norma to destroy a painting if she finished it too quickly. She obeyed his instructions without question, as she said, "I followed everything he told me to do, because I knew I was there to learn.”
 
Using the tools given to her by Davidson, Norma gained the means to give visual expression to a more fluid and independent voice.  Inspired by the “abstract forms found in nature, sensuous surfaces and textures, and the sheer joy of color,” Norma explored a seemingly endless series of ideas on canvas and on paper.
 
"I strive for unity and serenity through my work,” she explained. 
 
Selling her artwork was never a motivating factor. By the 1960's, Abstract Expressionism was no longer in vogue. Photo-Realism and Pop Art had begun dominating the New York art market. 
 

Financial realities required Norma working a 9-5 job during the day as a secretary in a dental clinic. She painted out of a small alcove in her studio apartment, using evenings and spare time to explore and express herself through the canvas. It was this process of self expression without the pressures of selling or paid commissions that gave Norma the freedom to find her creative voice.
 

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Norma continued to paint up until her death at 97.

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Of the over 500 artworks she produced, most remain in the private collections of her immediate family, children, grandchildren, great-grandchildren, and intimate friends who showed interest, love and appreciation for her work.






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* Ann Wilson Lloyd
A Provincetown Adjunct Of the New York School
The New York Times, July 19, 1998

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