Bernard Goodman (1910-2003) was an American self-taught artist and activist. Goodman’s parents died in 1912, leaving him and his sister orphaned when he was just two years old. He grew up poor in New York but his early life shaped him into a man with a strong sense of social justice. He spent most of his life advocating for the rights of tenants and the homeless in New York.

At age 80, Bernie Goodman was given paints and a canvas for his birthday. His wife was hoping he might slow down a little. Instead, at age 80, he began an art career that included solo exhibitions at the National Artists Club and a residency and exhibition with MOMA at PS 1.

Bernie was very nearsighted and his technique developed by accident. He began his first painting by applying splotches of paint in various colors to the canvas with no design or plan in mind. He remembered having, “no idea what I was doing.” He was quickly discouraged and walked away. When he came back into the room the splotches on the canvas appeared to be moving and interacting. He began to see figures in the splotches and started “bringing them out.” The result was a complex composition filled with a wide diversity of the people he had met along the way, from many places and cultures.