Lyanne Malamed (1931-2022)
During her six-decade career, Lyanne Malamed (known professionally as Lyanne), invented her own enchanting visual world, firmly rooted in art history, that celebrates the entire cycle of life. As a humanist existing in an often-jaded art world, she followed her own path.
Beginning in 1981, Lyanne shattered one of the last taboos in art by combatting negative stereotypes of elderly women. Although other artists had broached the subject, Lyanne is perhaps the first to immerse herself in painting aging women in a positive and sustained manner. Her beautifully crafted paintings, set against shimmering backgrounds of 23K gold are meant to look old—like the women she depicted. And yet, reminiscent of medieval and Early Renaissance art, her paintings elevate the status of these elders from invisible, as saintly iconic beings who are both ageless and eternal.
DIANE FISCHER, PhD
2024
Born in Iowa, my mother, lived and worked in Cleveland and New York City prior to spending most of her creative life in Central New Jersey. She enjoyed a full career, participating in over 20 solo and about as many group exhibitions. Her work is represented in numerous public and private collections. (See Chronology)
Most artists do anything they can to sell their work, but, Lyanne never wanted to part with her creations. She logged every piece of artwork she created on 600 index cards kept in a galvanized steel box on the top shelf of her coat closet. This has proved an invaluable resource.
Diane Fischer, who wrote the essay in Eternal Woman, came on as a curator and archivist in the Spring of 2023. She has conducted extensive research about my mother’s incredible career. Lyanne’s creativity, courage, and fortitude are apparent in these web pages.
There are about 300 of her pieces remaining in my collection. Lyanne wanted this large body of work to be enjoyed by others. I plan to fulfill her wish by providing access to her art and sharing it with the world.
If you are affiliated with an institution interested in exhibiting or soliciting her work by donation, would like to purchase artwork or publications, or have inquiries, please visit the Contact page for further information.
David Malamed
2024
“Lyanne’s consistent dedication to the artistic exploration of the elderly figure has resulted in work of remarkable depth and integrity. Gradually she has added elements of mythical subject matter such as the bird and the horse, but no matter the subject, her honesty as a painter touches the soul of the observer.”
Toshiko Takaezu (1922–2011)
Statement as curator of Lyanne Malamed: Painting and Drawings, Hunterdon Museum of Art, 2000
“My work has always been about people: lovers, brides and families. In recent years it has focused on the isolation and alienation of the elderly in our society as seen especially in old women. These paintings are not a series of traditional portraits; I do not work from models or photographs. The faces that are presented to the world are often masks that may hide panic and fear. I have tried to show the real dignity and power which is retained by those who grow old in a hostile environment.”
LYANNE MALAMED
Eternal Woman
Radiance, Mystery and a sense of the divine emanate from medieval and early Renaissance European religious paintings, which blended humanity’s frailties with flat, often distorted perspectives and the lavishly gilded backgrounds used to depict the heavenly realms.
No stranger these traditions, Lyanne Malamed revisits the gilded, ceremonial splendors of Byzantium but does so with a unique, modern sensibility. Utterly distinctive, Malamed’s art uses a rich language of symbols and historical techniques to portray the wisdom, isolation, dignity and value of women, especially those with age and experience.
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