BIO
Fredrick Kuhn was a contemporary abstract painter and sculptor based in Mid Coast Maine. He had a
Masters degree of Architecture from Harvard University Graduate School of Design, a background in
Industrial Design and a Bachelor of Arts in Anthropology from Syracuse University.
As a practicing professional he specialized in corporate architecture, interiors and industrial design. As a full
university professor he taught Architecture, Interior Design, Industrial Design and Art History.
Kuhn had long been interested in Walter Gropius, the founder of the Bauhaus and his insistence that fine
art be a part of architecture. Kuhn also regarded art and architecture as a continuous spectrum of design, a
philosophy or belief that validated his years of university teaching.
Kuhn worked on cotton canvas or wooden panels using acrylic mediums as paint. His abstract paintings are
explorations to discover the visual possibilities of painting by means of images and forms that he conjured.
His approach was rigorous, utilizing the fundamentals of composition and design. His goal was to create art
that pleases; art that provides psychological and physical sensory experiences. Use of large size format
allows the viewer to physically engage with the painting in a more direct way. Large paintings limit one’s
visual field. In creating a space that is visually closed Kuhn seeked to enhance the viewer’s engagement,
making it a more compelling experience. His non-objective paintings often involve optical effects. His
purpose was the delimination of the focal point found in traditional compositions. He achieved this by
creating overall patterns and saturated complementary colors which when juxtaposed cause an optical
effect.
Very different stylistic exploration was pursued in his paintings done in a range of smaller sizes presenting a
number of distinctive free form, non representational curvilinear organic shapes, at times bordering on
pattern painting, executed in a controlled way. He painted because he was intrigued by the need to
discover what forms or images will emerge from his subconscious and the mystery the process entailed.
Kuhn’s sculptural intentions were to create 3-dimensional form that offers multiple meaning, and ambiguity.
His sculptural objects are primarily minimalist; influences from human anatomy and from the binary
organization he found in the physical world. Kuhn’s sculpture is curvilinear, monochromatic and abstract; a
contrast to his rectilinear form-making as an architect. In his sculpture he works exclusively in wood. Surfaces
are either left clear or finished with paint or stain. The final finish on each is either polished or matte.
Kuhn’s drive to paint and make sculpture is emphasized in his original statement: “My intent is to create art
that delights, that is pleasing, joyful . . . unexpected. Let the viewer decide what it is they see.”