Copen, Herman (1908-2002)

The son of Lithuanian immigrants, Copen grew up in Coney Island, NY and worked in the family business. He showed his art at a1939 WPA show at Federal Extension Gallery, Long Beach, NY with a theme of farms and country life; his watercolor was entitled “Curb Market.” Along with NDG artists Fred Adler and Ben Delman, Copen was chosen for a 1941 exhibit at the USDA’s Surplus Marketing Department, in New York City called “Market Scenes”; his paintings were entitled “Street Scene” and “City Markets.” At his death in 2002, Copen donated 2,700 pieces of African art to Colgate University’s Longyear Museum of Anthropology that he had collected during 1960s-90. 1 more image at FAP.

 

Works in the New Deal Collection at GVCA by Herman Copen:

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Fruit and Plant
Fruit and Plant

A half circular table is placed against the wall. On top of the table is a pile of fruits, pears, apples and lemons, spilling out of a wooden basket that is sideways. To the left of the basket and behind the fruit is a potted plant that appears to be a cactus. There is a clear reflection in the table of the objects on the table creating a shine to the table. There are visible brush strokes on the canvas which indicates that the painter had impressionist influences.

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