Exhibition Essay
In this body of work, Mait gives color a kind of presence you do not often encounter: immediate, yet earned. Her paintings open across fields of luminous white, where saturated forms gather and dissolve, veiled passages shift in and out of focus, and a single expressive line can hold an entire composition in place.
What sets Mait apart is where she came from. Before abstraction, there was figure. Before painting, sculpture. That background does not announce itself in her work, but you feel it in the sensitivity to balance, in the spatial tension between forms that seem to lean toward one another without ever quite touching.
White, in Mait’s hands, is never simply background. It is light, pause, and breathing room: an active participant in every composition. Against it, a blue passage opens into depth. A note of red arrives with visceral intensity. Pale washes create atmosphere; black anchors it all, giving the work its measure and gravity.
Voice in Color is an exhibition exploring expression as much as restraint: Mait’s paintings are infused with pure emotions but remain controlled, never overwhelmed by them. They ask something of the viewer: a moment of stillness, a willingness to look slowly. For those who do, the work opens up in ways that stay with you.
Featured Works
Selected works from the exhibition.
Click any image to view larger.
Exhibition Checklist
View All Exhibition Works
View the complete selection of works included in Voice in Color.
2 Quartets
acrylic on canvas | 44 x 56 in. | FG© 142154
Provence
acrylic on canvas | 48 x 48 in. | FG© 142155
Blue Zone
acrylic on canvas | 48 x 55 in. | FG© 142156
Soulful
acrylic on canvas | 55 x 42 in. | FG© 142157
Aegean Sea
acrylic on canvas | 49 1/4 x 47 7/8 in. | FG© 142158
Midnight Cowboy
acrylic on canvas | 55 x 43 in. | FG© 142159
All That Jazz
acrylic on canvas | 48 x 48 in. | FG© 142160
Oasis
acrylic on canvas | 55 x 48 in. | FG© 142161
Yachting
acrylic on canvas | 60 x 48 in. | FG© 142162
Gelato
acrylic on canvas | 55 x 45 in. | FG© 142163
Synchronized
acrylic on canvas | 55 x 48 in. | FG© 142164
Victory
acrylic on canvas | 56 1/2 x 46 in. | FG© 142165
Gorgeous Girl
acrylic on canvas | 57 x 48 in. | FG© 142166
Cityscapes
acrylic on canvas | 43 x 55 in. | FG© 142167
Dusk
acrylic on canvas | 46 x 55 in. | FG© 142168
“My works in Voice in Color reflect my use of structure, my emotions, and my expression. I use repeated squares, rectangles, and lines to give me the structure.”
— Janet Mait
Artist Biography
Janet Mait
Janet Mait is a New York-based abstract painter whose work is grounded in a deep understanding of form, balance, space, and color.
Originally trained through the study of the human figure, Mait developed a sensitivity to weight and structure that continues to shape her abstract compositions.
Read full biography
Training And Early Formation
Janet Mait began her formal training at The New School, where she was a protege of Chaim Gross. She also studied at the Art Students League, where she trained under Larry Poons and William Scharf.
At the beginning of her artistic journey, Mait specialized in the human figure. Through years of dedicated practice, she attained mastery over form, weight, and balance.
From Figure To Abstraction
As her artistic exploration evolved, Mait began experimenting with various mediums and ultimately transitioned to acrylic on canvas. This shift marked a significant liberation for the artist.
The freedom and rhythmic potential of the brush allowed her to move beyond representational forms and into the realm of abstract expression.
Color, Space, And Balance
Mait prioritizes fundamental elements such as space, color, and balance in her approach to the canvas. She endeavors to remain as unprepared and unpremeditated as possible at the outset of her creative process in order to preserve an authentic expression.
In these moments of creation, she draws inspiration from a rich internal landscape: a synthesis of visions, dreams, and emotions characterized by spontaneity and executed with meticulous balance.
Use Of White
The vibrancy of Mait’s color palette resonates with the sense of optimism she aims to convey through her work. Equally significant is her strategic use of white; the spatial presence it occupies is essential in defining the overall composition.
Exhibitions
Selected Exhibitions
A selected overview of solo exhibitions, group presentations, art fair appearances, and recent Findlay Galleries exhibitions.
Janet Mait: Voice in Color
Findlay Galleries, Palm Beach, FL.
Janet Mait: Recent Works
Findlay Galleries, New York, NY.
Janet Mait: An American Abstract Expressionist
Findlay Galleries, Palm Beach, FL.
Merit Scholarship Winners Exhibition
Art Students League of New York, New York, NY.
View full exhibition archive
- 1982 Solo Exhibition, Larchmont Library, Larchmont, NY.
- 1990-1996 Group Exhibitions, Mamaroneck Artists Guild, Mamaroneck, NY.
- 1995 White Plains Juried Show, White Plains, NY.
- 2009-2012 Art Students League Gallery, New York, NY.
- 2011 Exhibition at Ligne Roset, Park Avenue, New York, NY.
- 2011 New York Spaces Magazine Event, New York, NY.
- 2011 Solo Exhibition, Spazio 522 Gallery, Chelsea, New York, NY.
- 2011 Armonk Arts Juried Show, Armonk, NY.
- 2012 Squire Sanders, Rockefeller Center, New York, NY.
- 2013 Gerald Bland Inc., Madison Avenue, New York, NY.
- 2015 Art Hamptons, Lawrence Fine Art, Hamptons, NY.
- 2015 Art Southampton, Lawrence Fine Art, Southampton, NY.
- 2015 New Voices, Lawrence Fine Art, East Hampton, NY.
- 2015 Art Miami Project, Miami, FL.
- 2016 July Gallery Exhibition, Lawrence Fine Art, East Hampton, NY.
- 2016 Art Hamptons, East Hampton, NY.
- 2016 Janet Mait: High Wire, Lawrence Fine Art, East Hampton, NY.
- 2016 National Arts Club Group Show, New York, NY.
- 2016 CONTEXT Art Miami, Miami, FL.
- 2017-2018 Phyllis Harriman Group Show, New York, NY.
- 2019 K&P Group Show.
- 2020 Janet Mait: Virtually, Lawrence Fine Art, online exhibition.
- 2020 Hamptons Virtual Art Fair, Lawrence Fine Art, online fair presentation.
- 2023 Merit Scholarship Winners Exhibition, Art Students League of New York, New York, NY.
- 2025 Janet Mait: An American Abstract Expressionist, Findlay Galleries, Palm Beach, FL.
- 2025 Janet Mait: Recent Works, Findlay Galleries, New York, NY.
- 2025 Summer Selections, Findlay Galleries, New York, NY.
- 2026 Janet Mait: Voice in Color, Findlay Galleries, Palm Beach, FL.