Oscar Cahén

Oscar Cahén
Life & Work by Jaleen Grove
colour as a “battering ram.”
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Oscar Cahén was unusual in his ability to move from one medium to another and
from representational to abstract idioms with equal success. For instance, he often
illustrated beloved automobiles with elegant curves, staying true to their make and model
—but when painting his own Austin-Healey, he began sketching in pencil the fan,
pistons, and other elements of its engine that, by the time he moved to oils, became an
exuberantly coloured concatenation of forms synesthetically conveying sound. Although
he was quick to absorb myriad sources and could initially seem derivative when
embarking on a new path, he rapidly amalgamated each influence into expressions of his
own and became innovative. As a result, his work never became stale, and he was often
a trendsetter. As critic Robert Fulford surmised, “If any one man can be given credit for
the vitality of Toronto art in the 1950s, the man is Oscar Cahén.”
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Oscar Cahén, Austin Healey 100 Engine, 1954, oil on cradled Masonite, 91 x 122 cm, private collection
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