Julian Lethbridge’s paintings embody a disciplined form of expressivity, where the energy of gesture is carefully structured without being diminished. Each work begins with a first layer of paint, applied with a palette knife to introduce texture and create a terrain on which subsequent layers can respond. This initial disruption establishes a subtle unrest at the foundation of the picture. Through a deliberate, step-by-step painting process, Lethbridge builds his compositions in layers, keeping the canvas open and dynamic, often in the form of a finely articulated grid. His brushstrokes form a structured lattice from which a certain coolness emerges—playful yet slightly disorienting. This measured tension between order and spontaneity nods to the rhythm of Abstract Expressionism and the New York School, while acknowledging the impossibility of fully recapturing the ambitions of their classic era.
Lethbridge’s work has been exhibited widely in the United States and Europe, with solo exhibitions at venues such as Paula Cooper Gallery, New York (2021), and Berggruen Gallery, San Francisco (2013).
Born 1947 Colombo, Sri Lanka
Lives and works in New York
Selected solo exhibitions
2022
Julian Lethbridge, Paula Cooper Gallery, Palm Beach, USA
2021
Julian Lethbridge, Paula Cooper Gallery, New York, USA
2018
Julian Lethbridge, Berggruen Gallery, San Francisco, USA
2017
Inside Out, Contemporary Fine Arts, Berlin, Germany
Paula Cooper Gallery, New York, USA
2013
Julian Lethbridge, John Berggruen Gallery, San Francisco, California
Julian Lethbridge, Paula Cooper Gallery, New York, USA
2009
Julian Lethbridge, Paula Cooper Gallery, New York, USA
2007
Paula Cooper Gallery, New York, USA
2003
Julian Lethbridge, Marcel Sitcoske Gallery, San Francisco, California, USA
Julian Lethbridge, Paula Cooper Gallery, New York, USA
1999
Julian Lethbridge, Paula Cooper Gallery, New York, USA
1997
Adelson Gallery, Aspen Institute, Aspen, Colorado, USA
1996
Schmidt Contemporary Art, Saint Louis, Missouri, USA
1995
Recent Paintings, Paula Cooper Gallery, New York, USA
1993
Julian Lethbridge, Karsten Schubert LTD, London, UK
1992
Julian Lethbridge, Stuart Regen Gallery, Los Angeles, California, USA
Recent Paintings, Paula Cooper Gallery, New York, USA
1989
Julian Lethbridge, Paula Cooper Gallery, New York, USA
Daniel Weinberg Gallery, Los Angeles, California
1988
Julian Lethbridge, Julian Pretto Gallery, New York, USA (Paintings)
Julian Lethbridge, Julian Pretto Gallery, New York, USA (Drawings)
Selected group exhibitions
2023
Works in Black and White, Berggruen Gallery, San Francisco, USA
Vicolo della Penitenza 11/A, Museum of Contemporary Art of Rome, Italy
2022
Summer Group Show, Berggruen Gallery, San Francisco, CA
A Form of Magic, Móran Móran, Mexico City, Mexico
2021
Julian Lethbridge / Carl Andre, Berggruen Gallery, East Hampton, NY
The Red Show, James Barron Art, Kent, CT
Carte Blanche: A Changing Exhibition, Paula Cooper Gallery, Palm Beach, FL
Shaken, not Stirred, Contemporary Fine Arts, Berlin, Germany
2019
Ballad of a Thin Man, Contemporary Fine Arts, Berlin, Germany
2018
Adam McEwen Selects: Exhibition and Sale to Benefit the Foundation for Contemporary Arts, Gladstone Gallery, New York, NY
2017
Salon des Fidèdeles, Contemporary Fine Arts, Berlin, Germany
2016
Material Considerations, John Berggruen Gallery, San Francisco, California, USA
2013
Julian Pretto Gallery Show, MINUS SPACE, Brooklyn, New York, USA
2011
Three Artists: Julie Mehretu, Julian Lethbridge and Wayne Gonzales, John Berggruen Gallery, San Francisco, California, USA
2007
Looking Back: The White Columns Annual, selected by Clarissa Dalrymple, White Columns, New York, USA
Contemporary Art at the Colby College Museum of Art: Gifts From the Alex KatzFoundation, Colby College Museum of Art, Waterville, Maine, USA
2005
Works on Paper – 2005, Schmidt Contemporary Art, St. Louis, Missouri, USA
2004
New Faculty-Spring, Carpenter Center for the Arts, Harvard University, Cambridge, Massachusetts, USA
Julian Lethbridge, Devin Borden Hiram Butler Gallery, Houston, Texas, USA
2003
Site and Insight: An Assemblage of Artists, Curated by Agnes Gund, P.S.1, New York, USA
2001
Locating Drawing, Doug Lawing Gallery, Houston, Texas, USA
2000
Drawings & Photographs, Matthew Marks Gallery, New York, USA
1999
Four Painters, New Spring Faculty, Carpenter Center, Harvard University, Cambridge, Massachusetts, USA
Powder, Aspen Art Museum, Aspen, Colorado, USA
Drawn from Artists’ Collections, The Drawing Center, New York, USA
Prints from the 1990s: Universal Limited Art Editions, James Kelly Contemporary, Santa Fe, New Mexico, USA
Mixed Bag: Summer Group Show, Schmidt Contemporary Art, St. Louis, Missouri, USA
1998
Drawings & Prints from the Paula Cooper Gallery, Visual Arts Gallery, New York, USA
Travel and Leisure, Paula Cooper Gallery, New York, USA
Artists on Line for ACOR, Gagosian Gallery, New York, USA
Universal Limited Art Editions, Fay Gold Gallery, Atlanta, Georgia, USA
Amnesty International Benefit Drawing Show, Paula Cooper Gallery, New York, USA
1997
Masterworks: New York on Paper, Baumgartner Galleries, Washington, D.C., USA
Leo Awards Benefit, Independent Curators Incorporated, exhibition and silent auction, 1950 Gallery
1996
On Paper II, Schmidt Contemporary Art, Saint Louis, Missouri, USA
Carroll Dunham, Julian Lethbridge, Terry Winters, Susan Sheehan Gallery, New York, USA
Turner Runyon Gallery, Dallas, Texas, USA
ULAE Publications Preview: Rauschenberg, Johns, Winters, McClelland, Hammond,
Lethbridge, Murray, Smith, Dunham and Jensen, Thomas Segal Gallery, Baltimore, Maryland, USA
unconditionally ABSTRACTION, Schmidt Contemporary Art, Saint Louis, Missouri, USA
1995
From Here, Karsten Schubert LTD, London, UK
Contemporary Art Society at Butler Gallery, Kilkenny Castle, Kilkenny, Ireland
Contemporary Drawing: Exploring the Territory, curated by Mark Rosenthal, Aspen Art Museum, Aspen, Colorado, USA
Prints: To benefit the Foundation for Contemporary Performance Arts, Brooke Alexander, New York, USA
1994
The Inward Eye: Ross Bleckner, Richmond Burton, Julian Lethbridge, Laura Carpenter Fine Art, Santa Fe, New Mexico, USA
In the Field, Margo Leavin Gallery, Los Angeles, California, USA
46th Annual American Academy Purchase Exhibition, The American Academy of Arts and Letters, New York, USA
Holiday Exhibition, Paula Cooper Gallery, New York, USA
1993
I Am the Enunciator, Thread Waxing Space, New York, USA
Merce Cunningham Dance Company Benefit Art Sale, 65 Thompson Street, New York, USA
Exhibition to Benefit, The Robert Mapplethorpe Laboratory for AIDS Research New UK
Deaconess Hospital, Barbara Gladstone Gallery, New York, USA
The Rome Project, David Winton Bell Gallery, List Art Center, Brown University, Providence, Rhode Island, USA
Black and White, Schmidt Contemporary Art, St. Louis, Missouri, USA
Recent Acquisitions: Sculpture, Painting & Works On Paper, John Berggruen Gallery, San Francisco, California, USA
Works On Paper, Jack Hanley Gallery, San Francisco, California, USA
25 Years (Part II), Paula Cooper Gallery, New York, USA
1992
5th Anniversary Show, Karsten Schubert Ltd., London, UK
The Vertical Flatbed Picture Plane – En Valise, Turner and Byrne Gallery, Dallas, Texas, USA
Group Exhibition, Mars Gallery, Tokyo, Japan
Julian Lethbridge and Sam Reveles Drawings, Paula Cooper Gallery, 149 Wooster, New York, USA
Drawn in the Nineties, (organized by Independent Curators Inc.) The Katonah Museum of Art, Katonah, New York, traveled to: Illingworth Kerr Gallery, Calgary, Alberta, Canada; Huntsville Museum of Art, Huntsville, Alabama, USA
Drawings and Works on Paper, Anthony Ralph at Earl McGrath Gallery, West Hollywood, California, USA
Small Works, Julian Pretto Gallery, New York, USA
1991
Drawings, Karsten Schubert LTD, London, UK
Object Lessons, Portland Art Museum, Portland, Oregon, USA
Paintings and Drawings, Daniel Weinberg Gallery, Santa Monica, California, USA
Drawings and Watercolors, Paul Kasmin Gallery, New York, USA
Act up Benefit Exhibition, Matthew Marks, New York, USA
1990
In Memory of James 1984-1988: The Children’s Aids Project, Daniel Weinberg Gallery, Santa Monica, California, USA
Waterworks, ULAE, New York, USA
Act Up Auction for Action, Paula Cooper Gallery, New York, USA
1989
Works on Paper, Annina Nosei Gallery, New York, USA
Painting Show, Lorence Monk Gallery, New York, USA
Drawings, Lorence Monk Gallery, New York, USA
Abstract Options, University Art Museum, Santa Barbara, California, USA
1988
25th Anniversary Exhibition for the benefit of the foundation for Contemporary Performance Arts, Inc., Leo Castelli Gallery and Brooke Alexander Gallery, New York, USA
Changing Group Exhibition, Paula Cooper Gallery, New York, USA
Group Exhibition, Robbin Lockett Gallery, Chicago, Illinois, USA
Works on Paper, Gabrielle Bryers Gallery, New York, USA
Almost White, Gabrielle Bryers Gallery, New York, USA
1987
Art Against Aids, Cable Gallery, New York, USA
1985
Selections, Artists Space, organized by Kay Larson, New York, USA
1984
Sex, Cable Gallery, New York, USA
1982
New Drawing in America, The Drawing Center, New York, USA; exhibition travelled to UK and Italy
1980
Foundation for Contemporary Performance Arts Exhibition, Leo Castelli Gallery, New York, USA
Drawings of a Different Nature, Portland Center for the Visual Arts, Portland, Oregon
1979
Choices, The Drawing Center, New York, USA
