BIOGRAPHY

Virginia Todd Wylie was an early member of the abstract expressionist movement. She was born in Little Rock, Arkansas. Wylie lived in the Hamptons, New York for most of her life, where she participated in numerous exhibitions.

Wylie attended the the School of the Art Institute of Chicago in the early 1940s. She became a lifetime member of the Art Students League. Throughout the '40s and '50s she studied at the league under Robert Brackman, Yasuo Kuniyoshi and Harry Sternberg. She was also a member of the National Association of Women Artists.

The Hamptons in Long Island had an active art colony since the 1920s. During the 1950s East Hampton became an epicenter of painting for the abstract expressionists. The rural seaside setting of East Hampton was an escape from the chaotic social scene of New York City. The area attracted many artists including Jackson Pollock, Lee Krasner, Willem de Kooning, Adolph Gottlieb, Franz Kline, Roy Lichtenstein, Larry Rivers, Perle Fine, Mary Abbott, and many others.

In the late 1940s and through the 1950s Wylie regularly participated in exhibitions at the renowned Guild Hall including in 1949 with Jackson Pollock and Lee Krasner. She also exhibited with Mary Abbott, James Brooks, Perle Fine, John Little, Buffie Johnson, Alfonso Ossorio, Charlotte Park and Miriam Shapiro. Another staple of the fine art scene was the Robert Keene Gallery in Southampton. Keene had been married to Grace Hartigan for a brief time. Wylie was included in group exhibitions at the Keene Gallery including a group show with Mary Abbott. The Parrish Hall Museum was also a venue for the painters of the region.

Wylie and her husband E. A. Gill Wylie Jr. became fixtures in the community and social scene of Amagansett. Even though she continued to paint, Wylie ultimately chose to concentrate on her family life. She became known as an expert in formal gardening at her Devon area home. Many of her paintings are inspired by her love of gardens.