Collection: David Kassan

David Kassan

David Kassan is an American realist painter known for psychologically intimate portraits that explore memory, identity, and human presence. He has exhibited widely in the United States and internationally, with solo and group exhibitions at major museums and institutions, including the National Portrait Gallery in Washington, D.C. and London. His work has been featured in publications such as The New York Times, The Los Angeles Times, and American Artist, and is held in numerous private and public collections.

Kassan is the creator of the ongoing Facing Survival series, a body of life-size portraits of Holocaust survivors accompanied by a feature-length documentary film of the same name. The project has been exhibited at museums across the country and serves as both an artistic and educational effort to preserve testimony and confront rising antisemitism through portraiture.

Alongside this work, Kassan has developed a parallel body of Western-themed paintings, including portraits of cowboys, Native American subjects, and contemporary figures of the American West. These works extend his interest in identity, tradition, and lived experience, often focusing on overlooked or quietly resilient individuals.

In addition to his studio practice, Kassan is a dedicated educator, teaching workshops internationally and maintaining a large online following through lectures, demonstrations, and publications. His work is grounded in classical draftsmanship while remaining deeply contemporary, emphasizing observation, empathy, and the lived experience of his subjects.