Todd Krasovetz: Dual Coast Abstract Artist Calls Shelter Island Home

Todd Krasovetz's "Girl and a Martini Glass"

Todd Krasovetz is one extremely busy individual. He is a painter of abstract and "military art," a father, husband, businessman, and an all around San Diegan (a resident of Shelter Island). In the realm of "military art," Krasovetz has had one of his paintings set in Lifetime's television show Army Wives, as well as a piece commissioned by the Walter Reid Military Hospital in Bethesda, Maryland. Though Krasovetz is known for his military art work, he maintains a driving passion in creating modern abstract art.

Krasovetz has shown and his abstract work in New York City at the Agora Gallery from June 12 to July 3, was commissioned to paint a mural at La Bec Fin restaurant in Philadelphia, and has had his art shown locally in La Jolla and in his Point Loma Studio. " Due to his talent level, Krasovetz is able to be successful at mainly two styles of art, making the journey in the artistic expression continuously fresh and dimensional.

Despite remaining active in the local market, Krasovetz has exhibited and sold some of his soft abstracts, "Woman and a Martini Glass," and "Red Wine Late Night," at the Agora gallery. Similar to Pollock's "action painting," which Krasovetz refers to as "event painting," the artist creates impressive large scale works reminiscent of Sargent, Matisse, and Van Gogh.

Pollock-esque in nature, Krasovetz says of the composition process, "I lay the canvas down, working off the ground, create the basic design, and then continue with the composition. When I'm working, I like to think of the process as 'the 30,000 foot view' approach."

Utilizing oil paint, Krasovetz works horizontally - accelerating the drying process, and allowing the artist to delve deeper into his combinations of warm and cool hues. Emitting these contrasting notes, which emerge as translucent and metallic layers, resembling the ebb and flow of water. Ornate patterns and undisclosed narrative qualities embellish the plane. As a whole the portraits evoke a sense of fragmentation, memory and emotionality, catalyzing around the evocative feminine mystique, which they take as their central theme.

"I centralize the female figure as the design for my pieces," says Krasovetz. "Approaching the work in a Pollack/Matisse style, all the while adding a little more realism as a foundation, I typically make the original sketch in PhotoShop or Illustrator. Currently, most of my representation is in New York, but since my studio is in Point Loma, it allows for people to see what I'm doing locally."

Though there are many artists in this genre, Krasovetz, with his set influences and style, is definitely a rare find in San Diego. The future will see Krasovetz hosting shows soon in San Diego once again, since he propagates his work in both the east and west.