They say “a picture is worth a thousand words.” Well, Martin Kreloff’s paintings certainly have that effect.
Kreloff, a Miami artist now residing in Las Vegas, has been creating art since he was a child.
Kreloff, who hails from Brooklyn, N.Y., started drawing when he was 5. He said his mom recognized his talent and got him private lessons and, he attended adult art classes at the Brooklyn Museum when he was 12-years-old.
He attended Parsons the New School for Design in New York, before moving to Miami with his family in 1967. He found the transition to be difficult, since New York was much more culturally diverse then Miami’s retirement community in the 60s.
“It was often referred to, jokingly and half-jokingly, as ‘God’s waiting room.’ All those old people sitting in, rocking back and forth down in South Beach looking out at the ocean,” said Kreloff. “It was a rather sad place, and I found culture to be really lacking.”
He studied at the University of Miami in 1970 and received his master’s degree a few years later. He noticed there wasn’t a cohesive form to the arts and the people producing art in Miami.
When Kreloff was on faculty at the Miami Metropolitan Museum and Art Center, he had the idea to produce one show that would bring the arts community together.
He came up with the concept Miami Says Art, for which he photographed between 150 to 200 people involved in all levels of the arts. He brought them together and had them say the word “art.” He received international recognition for that project and did a retrospective Miami Says Art 2 at 2013’s Art Basel, a week-long event filled with galleries, discussions and performances.
He even received a proclamation from the Miami Mayor Tomás Regalado, proclaiming Miami Say Art Week.
Still, Kreloff stays humble.
“I don’t have a big ego. I do my work and I’m happy with what I do,” he said. “The next thing is I share it with other people. That’s part of the game. Creating in some of it and sharing it is the next part.”
Kreloff considers himself a second generation pop artist, after Andy Warhol made the form famous. He creates classis and contemporary works of art and grew up loving Disney art.
As an undergraduate student, one of his instructors told him, “The hardest thing for an artist to do is to not fall in love with their work.”
Kreloff said, “When you’re doing the work, you’re with the canvas for whatever number of days, weeks or months, and it’s very much like a love affair. You’re totally absorbed and then it’s over.”
His colorful paintings, like those of Elizabeth Taylor and George Clooney, reflect Kreloff’s zest for life. He even painted a film festival poster for movie star Esther Williams and painted a portrait of actor Cary Grant and his wife. While living in Los Angeles, he would paint for his friend and “The Golden Girls” star Estelle Getty. He’s done advertisements for companies like Warner Bros. Entertainment, Bloomingdales and Harley Davidson.
“My paintings are about joy; they’ve always been,” said Kreloff. “I’ve always thought ‘I was to bring joy to the world.’ My paintings are about color and happiness.”
A full-size portrait takes Kreloff up to three months to create. He’s a hard-edge painter, meaning he doesn’t blend color but rather puts shape next to shape.
Kreloff hopes to return to South Florida permanently, since he spent 25 years living in Florida.
“I’ve had a 50-year career of painting … I’m awfully proud of the work I’ve done,” said Kreloff. “Collectively, I smile and I say, ‘You did that, kid?’”
Check out Kreloff’s work at martinkreloff.com.
