Harry Brodsky
Harry Brodsky (1908 - 1997) was born in Newark, New Jersey, and studied at the Philadelphia College of Art and the University of Pennsylvania. He became known for his finely composed lithographs and paintings depicting scenes of American life—city streets, industrial landscapes, and working people, rendered with a sensitive balance of realism and design.
Brodsky’s career spanned much of the twentieth century, and his work reflects both the social concerns of the Depression era and the formal experimentation of mid-century modernism. His prints were exhibited widely, including at the Whitney Museum of American Art, the Library of Congress, and the Carnegie Institute. He received numerous awards, such as the Brooklyn Museum Purchase Award (1947), the Philadelphia Print Club Award (1948), and Audubon Artists Prizes in 1986 and 1996.
His lithographs, such as The City and Stevedore, capture the rhythm and dignity of everyday labor, while later works move toward more abstract and lyrical compositions. Brodsky lived and worked in Philadelphia, where he continued to paint and teach until his death in 1997.
His work is held in major collections including the National Gallery of Art, Brooklyn Museum, and Crystal Bridges Museum of American Art, and he remains admired for his commitment to the expressive and democratic potential of printmaking.
Right: The Homeless Man, lithograph by Harry Brodsky, printed at Corridor Press..
