About Henry Koffler

It was January 2013. I had recently turned 90 and was recovering from emergency surgery and a long recuperation. My neighbor Virginia Richardson, knowing of my interest in the arts and my ownership of a tablet, encouraged me to try my hand at art.  When I began using my tablet to do abstract images, I discovered my true medium.

Thus began my artistic career at the age of 90.
All my life I have been a passionate visitor of art museums and galleries, and was drawn early on to abstract art.

As an adult, I created abstract paintings in my head before falling asleep. Sadly, I had little formal instruction in the arts. Instead, I collected the works of others.
I use Autodesk Sketchbook Pro on my iPad. Sketchbook enables me to vary color, size, and opacity with preset “brushes”, giving me almost limitless combinations.

I start with a bare canvas on my iPad screen, carrying my studio with me. Rent is cheap. There are no purchases of canvas, brushes, or paints. There is no waste. I am not exposed to solvents nor must I wait for paint to dry, and there is no need to clean sticky brushes or messy workspaces.

Perhaps most importantly, I can correct mistakes easily. In fact, I can use my eraser tool not only to fix mistakes but also as a carving knife to sculpt shapes. These advantages enable me to work fast and spontaneously.
Henry at 20
Henry at 20
Henry Koffler
Henry at 91
Photograph courtesy of
Blair Phillips Friederich

Almost all my paintings derive from my inner landscape. No doubt I am influenced by my many years as a microbiologist and molecular biologist, when I did research on structure-function relationships at the cellular and subcellular level. At times I cannot tell where my scientific memories end and my imagination begins.


Many people do not enjoy abstract art because they consider it “unreal”. They may not understand that there is a beautiful “real” world out there that they cannot see — either because it is too small or too vast, accessible only with the aid of scientific instruments such as microscopes and telescopes. I intentionally do not name my paintings because I want you to see in them what you see and not what I tell you to see.

I love the world I portray and hope that these images will bring you insights and joy. Is it possible that these images represent reality somewhere and sometime in our evolving universe?
Henry Koffler
Want to learn more about Henry Koffler? Read his bio here.