February 20-21 2003

Vera Klement talking with students in the Abner Hershberger Gallery,
Feb 2003

Vera Klement has been making and exhibiting art for over 50 years. After graduating from The Cooper Union School of Art and Architecture in New York, Klement moved to Chicago. There she taught painting at the University of Chicago from 1969 to 1995. She quickly established herself in the Chicago art scene as a member of the Rebellious Five. These figurative imagists served as a distinctive counterpoint to the prevailing Chicago 1960's ironic narrative figurative imagists, such as those represented in the Hairy Who exhibitions of the late ‘60s. With her distinctive style, Klement established herself as a nationally recognized figurative abstractionist.

Vera Klement's work has been displayed in numerous significant venues across the United States. Recently the Chicago Cultural Center honored her with a solo exhibition, "Vera Klement: Paintings 1965-1999". Then in 2001, on the heels of the Culture Center show, the Fassbender Gallery of Chicago organized a traveling exhibition of her paintings titled "Vera Klement" for The Fort Wayne Museum of Art, Fort Wayne, Ind.; The University of Arizona Museum of Art, Tuscon, Ariz.; and the Mary & Leigh Block Museum, Northwestern University, Evanston, Ill. Extensive catalogues were written for both of these major exhibitions. Klement has received numerous grants and awards.