Portia

We see a younger person in a self-reflective pose. Abelman's print focuses on the upper body, bringing the viewer close to the subject’s tilted head and raised hand. The delicate lines, subtle light, and shadows highlight the subject’s upper physique. Features such as the neck, hand, and cheek are prominent. The artist uses soft, earthy colors like muted pinks, pale blues, and light greens. This creates a pensive and somber mood. The shirt’s vertical stripes contrast with the curving lines of the floral background, highlighting the space distructing us from the individual. Abelman’s ability to create three-dimensional forms is evident in the line shading and layered tones, making the print feel organic and intimate. The narrow spatial depth flattens the background pattern, bringing the figure forward and enhancing the emotional impact. The viewer can sense that this print is emotional and vulnerable from the hand’s placement against the chest.

About the Artist

Ida Abelman (New York, 1910-2002) was an artist renowned during the New Deal Art Era, particularly for her lithography work.  Born in New York City to parents from Russia and Poland, she married Larry Abelman in Greenwich Village at age 19. Both she and her husband shared an interest in art. Ida studied at several art institutions, likely beginning her training in the late 1920s or early 1930s. At Hunter College, she trained under Joe Miller and her skills became more advanced at the   Grand Central School of Art, where she focused on painting, printmaking, and drawing. She was also attended the National Academy School of Fine Arts, the Art Students League, and the City College of New York. With a strong educational background, Abelman was recognized as a social realist artist, heavily influenced by constructivism and surrealism.

Abelman began her involvement with the New Deal Art programs in 1934, when she was first employed by Civil Works Administration. She then became a member of the FAP and WPA from 1936 to 1939, producing 23 works of art.  Most of her work during that period was produced in New York City. She worked as a lithography instructor and helped design a major WPA exhibition on public housing at the Community Federal Art Center in Sioux City, Iowa. She was also a member of the WPA Design Laboratory School in New York, which was modeled on the German Bauhaus design school. Abelman participated in the labor movement. She was a member of the American Artists Congress (an anti-fascist group of artists) and a founding member of the Artists Union's Public Use of Art Committee, where she showcased her art in union halls to support workers' rights. Ida’s contributions to the FAP and WPA were fundamental in a time when art was needed more than ever. At the end of the Great Depression, Abelman began teaching at the Fine Arts Institute from 1941 to 1945. During that time, she also developed an interest in murals. She completed federal post office murals in Lewistown, Illinois, and designed and created Boonville Beginnings in Boonville, Indiana. Ida and Larry Abelman moved to Sag Harbor, Long Island, after their children were born. They seemed to have experienced antisemitism following World War II and therefore received few artistic commissions. In 1987, Abelman visited her old WPA mural sites. Ida Abelman continued to work as an artist until her death at 92. Leaving behind 6 grandchildren, 2 great-grandchildren, and a few nieces and nephews.

Abelman, Ida (1910 - 2002)

Alessi, Bella (desription and biography)

Helquist, Morgan (photography)

New Deal Museum, Mount Morris NY

Object #FA 1061

jpeg, 2.3 MB
jpeg, 1.5 MB

Color lithograph on paper

Sheet: 12 1/2 x 17 1/2 in.