YIVO Mounts New Exhibition: The Instant Art of Morris Katz

(New York, NY) – The YIVO Institute for Jewish Research (YIVO) is pleased to announce its newest on-site exhibition, The Instant Art of Morris Katz, which explores Morris Katz’s background, art, and his unique creative process. The exhibition opens to the public on Thursday, May 16, 2024, with a reception at 7:00pm ET with guided tours of the exhibition and food catered by The Challah Fairy at YIVO located in the Center for Jewish History building (15 West 16th Street, New York, New York).

“Katz was a genuine performance artist,” said curator, Eddy Portnoy, “and his standard routine would be to line up two dozen canvases and paint them all within the span of an hour – using only a palette knife and toilet paper – all the while cracking jokes and explaining his craft to rapt audiences.” Katz took this “show” annually to the Catskills, where he performed for years and where he made much of his living.

“Painting,” according to Morris Katz, “is like shmearing a bagel.”

Called “a self-contained vaudeville act” by New York Magazine, Katz holds a unique place in the annals of the art world as a painter who not only worked with incredible speed—whipping up paintings within just minutes—but who did so while engaging his audiences with Borscht Belt-style shtick and then auctioning the paintings off to all comers. Although none of his art reached critical acclaim, he became a minor celebrity and appeared on numerous television shows, among them those of Mike Douglas, Joe Franklin, Alan Thicke, and Rich Little, whose light mockeries he endured as part of his act. He also had his own public access show and published a book on “how to paint fast and good,” which taught the secrets of his unique style in typically jovial Katzian fashion.

The Guinness World Book of Records recognized Katz for having produced and sold more original paintings than any other artist in the world, leaving Picasso in second place.

The Instant Art of Morris Katz will be on view at YIVO located in the Center for Jewish History building (15 West 16 Street, New York, New York) from May 16 through the fall of 2024. Learn more about the exhibition at: yivo.org/Morris-Katz.

OPENING RECEPTION

What:            The Instant Art of Morris Katz Exhibition Opening
When:           Thursday, May 16, 2024 | 7:00pm ET
Where:          Taking place in person at YIVO Located in the Center for Jewish History (15 West 16th Street, New York, NY 10011)
Cost:              Free
Reservations Available at:  yivo.org/morris-katz-opening

This program is supported, in part, by public funds from the New York City Department of Cultural Affairs, in partnership with the City Council.

For more information contact:
Shelly Freeman
Chief of Staff

Exhibit courtesy of the Oeuvre Family Collection.

This program is supported, in part, by public funds from the New York City Department of Cultural Affairs, in partnership with the City Council.

YIVO

The YIVO Institute for Jewish Research is dedicated to the preservation and study of the history and culture of East European Jewry worldwide. For nearly a century, YIVO has pioneered new forms of Jewish scholarship, research, education, and cultural expression. Our public programs and exhibitions, as well as online and on-site courses, extend our outreach to a global community. The YIVO Archives contains 24 million unique items and YIVO’s Library has over 400,000 volumes—the single largest resource for the study of East European Jewish life in the world. yivo.org / yivo.org/the-whole-story