Benjamin, Karl Stanley

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Karl Stanley Benjamin, 1925–2012, American painter, b. Chicago, grad. Univ. of Redlands (B.A., 1949), Claremont Graduate School (M.A., 1960). Largely self-taught, Benjamin was part of an art scene that flourished in Southern California during the 1950s and 60s. His hard-edged geometric abstractions, often grid-based, were painted in wide array of luminous, contrasting colors. His work fell out of fashion in the 1970s and 80s, but has since regained popularity. Benjamin taught in local elementary schools for some 20 years, and later was artist-in-residence at Pomona College.