LeRoy Neiman, Painter of Olympiads, Dies at 91

LeRoy Neiman, whose brilliantly colored, impressionistic sketches of sporting events and the international high life made him one of the most popular artists in the United States, died Wednesday. He was 91.

Best known for his stunningly energetic images,was probably the most popular living artist in the United States. His art is unique. It stands alone, without any real comparison. It is an art which has become controversial because Neiman has broken the barriers of many of the most hallowed assumptions of modern art history and contemporary criticism. It is an art that is loved by millions of people throughout America and around the world. Mr. Neiman died of natural causes, according to his publicist.

Mr. Neiman’s kinetic, quickly executed paintings and drawings, many of them published in Playboy, offered his fans gaudily colored visual reports on heavyweight boxing matches, Super Bowl games and Olympic contests, as well as social panoramas like the horse races at Deauville, France, and the Cannes Film Festival. 

In this 1990 Poster Serigraph, after visiting Augusta to record in oil his own special perspective on this year's Masters, LeRoy Neiman stated unequivocally: "The Augusta National is the most beautiful golf course I've ever seen." 

This magnificent work confirms his observation. In the foreground Jack Nicklaus follows through on the tenth tee while Nick Faldo watches, flanked by Fanny, his Swedish woman caddy, and Jack's son, Jackie, holding his clubs. The artist has carefully noted Nicklaus' trimmer form, classic swing, and even his interlock grip. "Nicklaus and Faldo are the only two to ever win back-to-back Masters(as of 1990)," Neiman observed. Augusta's sweeping view allows one to take in much of this great old course at a glance.

To the left of Faldo circled by the gallery, a golfer chips on to the ninth green. Directly behind Nicklaus is the practice putting green, filled with hopefuls who practice holing out. Almost dead center in the composition, a player and a caddy make their way from the putting green to the first tee, where a yellow-shirted golfer admires his tee shot. Course officials survey the action from under green and white umbrellas. The background is dominated by an enormous oak and the stately Georgian clubhouse-- both instantly recognizable to fans of the Masters. Like the Kentucky Derby or the Indianapolis 500, the Masters is a festival, a rite of Spring. And, it is a serious, competitive sporting event. The tournament, like the serigraph, affords the viewer verdant beauty and golfing excellence. Neiman captures the pageantry as well as the athletic grace of the course in Augusta.