James Newman Andrews Howell

1935 - 2014
Abstract painter James Howell died in his West Village studio on Sunday, October 5, of myelofibrosis. He was 78.

Howell was best known for an ongoing body of work that explored the gradations of particular grays called "Series 10" that was a culmination of his lifelong fascination with mathematics, physics and Eastern philosophy. "Gray," he explained, "embodies passages of time, for me. It is mysterious...and I like its softness; also its simplicity, and space."

Howell's process was exacting. To create his gradations, he researched the properties of acrylic paint, constantly quizzing paint manufactures for detailed technical specifications. He meticulously recorded his paint mixtures, using a viscosity meter and gram scales for precise formulations. He plotted his gradations from curves derived from differential equations. Through beautifully executed working drawings and paintings, he single-mindedly pursued the subtleness of gray, searching for what constituted painting. 
 


James Howell was born in Kansas City, MO on Nov 17, 1935 to Charles Morgan Howell II and Aimée du Pont Andrews Howell. His interest in art began early, attending the Nelson Atkins Art Institute while in elementary school. He graduated from the Hill School in 1953 (the same year he earned a pilot's license at Northrop Aviation in California, the youngest to do so) and from Stanford University in 1957 with a BA in English literature and in 1961 with a B.Arch. He received the Stanford Humanities Prize for the Arts in 1961. After graduation, Howell worked as an architect in Seattle and Bainbridge Island but by 1962, he decided to exclusively pursue art. He taught himself to draw and paint.

Fairfield Porter encouraged him to use the then new medium of acrylic. Howell would frequently visit Porter's Southampton home, where the two would exhaustively debate the merits of figuration and abstraction. By 1968, Howell was primarily making abstract paintings, and had begun exhibiting regularly.

He built an award-winning studio on San Juan Island, WA, where surrounded by nuanced, infinitely shifting tones of gray sky, water and light that undoubtedly influenced his artistic production. During these years of self-imposed retreat, his work lost its edges and his palette became more neutral. By 1990, Howell had arrived at his signature light into shadow paintings, leading to his "Series 10" in 1996, which would occupy him for the rest of his life.

After moving to New York in 1992, Howell worked with the architect Deborah Berke to transform a 1909, 5,000 square-foot stable into a minimalist live/work space, which won the AIA NY Design Award in 1997. Howell continued to paint constantly, even setting up a second studio in Montauk, NY. His work has been collected in public and private collections internationally.

Howell is survived by his wife, D. Joy Howell; his daughter, Karen R. Weir; two grandsons, Rory J. Hoffmeister and Elijah N. Weir. A foundation is being planned to preserve his legacy and to support the visual arts.

In lieu of flowers, please send donations to the Archives of the Albright-Knox Art Gallery, Buffalo, NY.