Press Release

RICHARD  PIONK, PRESIDENT OF
  SALMAGUNDI CLUB, DIES AT 71

     NEW YORK: Richard Pionk, the much-loved President of the Salmagundi Club died, Tuesday, June 5^th, in New York City.  He was 71.  Pionk, a talented artist, a revered teacher and engaging wit, guided the Club for the past 13 years.

     Born April 26, 1936 in Moose Lake, MN to Ester and Ignatz Pionk of Kerrick, MN, Pionk died after a long battle with cancer in New York City at the NYU Medical Center. Before moving to New York, Pionk studied briefly in a Franciscan monastery in Missouri and served in the United States Navy.

   Pionk learned the qualities of classical still life by spending hours in museums from Brooklyn to Paris, studying the works of Chardin, Vollon, and Fantin-Latour. He was educated at The Art Students League of New York City on scholarships and the G.I. Bill.

     Featured in many magazines, exhibitions and books, and a recipient of over one hundred awards,   Pionk, in 1984, was named a master pastelist by the Pastel Society of America for Exceptional Merit. In 1997, he was inducted into the Pastel Hall of Fame.  His portrait of an Asian woman hangs in the permanent collection of the Butler Institute of American Art, Youngstown, Ohio.

     Gary Erbe, an Honorary Member of Salmagundi, noted Pionk’s love of art…but particularly his love of teaching. “He mastered many mediums, but his language of painting was simple. So his students learned quickly.” His classes at the Salmagundi Club, The Art Student’s League and the Pastel School at the National Arts Club were regularly over-subscribed. 

     Pionk has been featured in the Artist Magazine (April 1988, April 1993), “Classical Still Life Painting” and “Unlocked Potential of Pastel,” both by Carol Katchen. Commenting on his personal techniques and school of painting,  Pionk said: "I prefer to work exclusively in my studio where I am able to set up the subject and work directly from life, which gives me maximum control of the choice of objects, placement and lighting. I choose my studio because of the north window, which provides a source of unchangeable light. The lower part of the window is blocked out so as to give the light a downward direction as if it were coming from a skylight. In chiaroscuro painting, the eye follows the light, going from one section to another, and the shadows structure the painting. I usually let the light come in from the left to the focal point. The background is dark and the light on objects gradually gets brighter as it moves to the right."

     He was profiled twice in the International Artist magazine (February - March 2001), and his work has been published in over 10 art books including Carol Katchen's “Creative Painting in Pastel (North Light)” and “Dramatize Your Paintings with Tonal Value (North Light).”  His latest book appearance was in Best in Pastel II (Rockport Publications).

     Mr. Pionk also exhibited with the Pastel Society of America in Still Life Painters of the 20th Century at the Hermitage Museum, Norfolk Virginia; the Monmouth Museum, New Jersey; The Queen's Museum; The Chapellier Galleries; The Oak Tree Gallery, New York; Portraits Incorporated; Lever House; Union Carbide, New York; Grand Central Art Gallery, New York; and the Society of Pastelists, Lille, France; The Butler Institute; among others.  He is represented in collections in New York, Vienna, Germany, England, France, Brazil, and throughout the United States.

      In 1994 he was included in the exhibition titled Contemporary Pastel Artists in Taiwan and a book by the same title was published in January 1994 in Chinese and English. In 1998 he took part of a pastel travel exhibition that toured through several cities in China.

     His memberships, other than Salmagundi, included: Allied Artists of America - Board of Directors; The Art Students League of New York; Hudson Valley Art Association; Knickerbocker Art Association; The Pastel Society of America – Trustee; Artist Fellowship – Trustee; National Arts Club; Audubon Artists – Trustee; American Artists Professional League; Dutch Treat Club.

  Richard Pionk's passing is a major loss to the art community at both the Salmagundi Club and for all students of art in the city.  A formal memorial is now being planned for September 2007 at the Salmagundi Club, 47 Fifth Avenue, New York, NY 10003. For more information, please call 212 255-7740.

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Following a tradition of over 130 years, Salmagundi Art Club continues to serve as a center for fine artists from New York and around the country -providing exhibitions of paintings, sculpture and photography, conducting art classes and painting demonstrations and art auctions throughout the year. All this is done in an atmosphere of conviviality that encourages discussions on art and other topics and leads to lasting friendships among both lay and artists members. While members are mainly residents of New York, Salmagundians are to be found throughout the United States and Canada, as well as such faraway places as London, Amsterdam and Lisbon.

     Originally formed as the New York Sketch Club in 1871, the Club adopted its present name a hundred years ago after Washington Irving published his potpourri of wit and wisdom called "The Salmagundi Papers." The name also serves as the club dining room's famous "Salmagundi Stew".

Through the years the Club has been the singular gathering place for such great artists as Childe Hassam, William Merritt Chase, Howard Pyle, N.C. Wyeth, Charles Dana Gibson, Ogden Pleisner and many others. Honorary members have included such luminaries as Sir Winston Churchill, Buckminister Fuller, Paul Cadmus, Al Hirschfeld, Thomas Hoving and Schuyler Chapin.

     Note:  a future issue of our club publication, “Stew” will invite reflections by friends of Richard Pionk.  Those who have personal and professional memories to share are encouraged to write them down and email them to Annemarie@artbymaley.com

View more about Richard Pionk here: http://www.richardpionk.org