Skip to main content
Want more images or videos?
Request additional images or videos from the seller

William O'Connor
THE CATS PATH HOME, Original Contemporary Abstract Expressionist Painting

2020

About the Item

THE CATS PATH HOME, Original Contemporary Abstract Expressionist Painting 40" x 30" x 2" (HxWxD) Oil on Canvas Working in the style of abstract expressionism, artist William O'Connor's use of gestural brushwork and a vibrant color palette are reminiscent to that of Hans Hofmann. The orange and yellow tones are lively and uplifting. Additions of purple, red, green, and black contours create added dimension and visual interest in this decorative abstract expressionist oil painting. Artist Commentary: Our adopted pet cats give endless mystery and enjoyment. We know that there can sometimes be interactions outside when our fur babies cross paths with fox, bobcats, raccoons, skunks, and bear. We don't always know where they have been when they come home, nor where they might go when standing at the door to be opened. Sometimes we do know what they have been doing out there when a dead rat comes home with them! About the Artist: Beginning life in the heartland of America gave William O’Connor a sense of wonderment in the changing landscape and sky. The distinct seasons in Nebraska left indelible images for him to remember as a painter. The inspirations for his work often come from the recall of childhood memories in Lincoln and later on, life in Southern California. After exciting teenage years, there came a hitch in the US Navy serving his country. More images came from days on the open sea and fascinating foreign places. Subjects of his paintings may include: ancient myths; connections with animals and wildlife; historical places; as well as industrial images. The style and technique of his work evolved from the influence of Modernism and Abstract Expressionism as seen by the masters such as Willem de Kooning and Richard Diebenkorn. This type of painting allows William the freedom of expression especially with vibrant color, invented shapes, and fascinating details, to reveal his inner experience. Series are very prevalent in his work as well as triptychs, diptychs, and individual themes. While attending Otis Art Institute, LA Valley College, and Pasadena City College, William gained a fine art background during his studies of figure drawing, print making, sculpture, art history, ceramics, and other fundamental art courses. This experience served to drive him further into a deliberate pathway of eclectic study from several different institutions and by various professional artists. A great many afternoons during “closed to the public” hours, were spent studying and drawing from the Master’s paintings hanging in the Norton Simon Museum in Pasadena. From this formidable background in fine art came the choice to concentrate solely on the traditional medium of oil paint.
  • Creator:
    William O'Connor
  • Creation Year:
    2020
  • Dimensions:
    Height: 40 in (101.6 cm)Width: 30 in (76.2 cm)Depth: 2 in (5.08 cm)
  • Medium:
  • Movement & Style:
  • Period:
  • Condition:
  • Gallery Location:
    Boston, MA
  • Reference Number:
    Seller: 710691stDibs: LU1634210880692
More From This SellerView All
  • LATE AUTUMN, Original Signed Contemporary Abstract Expressionist Oil Painting
    Located in Boston, MA
    LATE AUTUMN, Original Signed Contemporary Abstract Expressionist Painting 30" x 40" x 2" (HxWxD) Oil on Canvas Hand-signed and dated by the artist. A large-format, subdued abstract ...
    Category

    21st Century and Contemporary Abstract Expressionist Abstract Paintings

    Materials

    Canvas, Oil

  • WILD HORSES-2, Original Signed Contemporary Abstract Expressionist Painting
    Located in Boston, MA
    WILD HORSES-2, Original Contemporary Abstract Expressionist Painting, 2021 30" x 40" x 2" (HxWxD) Oil and Newspaper on Canvas Hand-signed by the artist. This large-format oil painting by artist William O'Connor is reminiscent of the abstract expressionist painter Arshile Gorky. With sporadic paint strokes and undulating organic shapes strewn about the canvas, this work has an energy and rhythm that carries the viewer on a journey. A golden yellow covers most of the composition, while shapes of red, blue, purple, and pink bring about moments of rest. Black and white contours...
    Category

    21st Century and Contemporary Abstract Expressionist Abstract Paintings

    Materials

    Newsprint, Canvas, Oil

  • WILD HORSES-3, Original Signed Contemporary Abstract Expressionist Painting
    Located in Boston, MA
    WILD HORSES-3, Original Contemporary Abstract Expressionist Painting, 2021 30" x 40" x 2" (HxWxD) Oil and Newspaper on Canvas Hand-signed by the artist. This large-format oil painti...
    Category

    21st Century and Contemporary Abstract Expressionist Abstract Paintings

    Materials

    Newsprint, Canvas, Oil

  • WILD HORSES-1, Original Signed Contemporary Abstract Expressionist Painting
    Located in Boston, MA
    WILD HORSES-1, Original Contemporary Abstract Expressionist Painting, 2021 30" x 40" x 2" (HxWxD) Oil and Newspaper on Canvas Hand-signed by the artist. This large-format oil painti...
    Category

    21st Century and Contemporary Abstract Expressionist Abstract Paintings

    Materials

    Canvas, Oil, Newsprint

  • FIRST LIGHT (3 of 3), Signed Contemporary Abstract Expressionist Painting
    Located in Boston, MA
    FIRST LIGHT (3 of 3), Original Contemporary Abstract Expressionist Painting, 2020 40" x 30" x 2" (HxWxD) Oil on Canvas Hand-signed by the artist. The first work comprising William O...
    Category

    21st Century and Contemporary Abstract Expressionist Abstract Paintings

    Materials

    Canvas, Oil

  • FIRST LIGHT (2 of 3), Signed Contemporary Abstract Expressionist Painting
    Located in Boston, MA
    FIRST LIGHT (2 of 3), Original Contemporary Abstract Expressionist Painting, 2020 40" x 30" x 2" (HxWxD) Oil on Canvas Hand-signed by the artist. Framed with a 1/2" white wood frame....
    Category

    21st Century and Contemporary Abstract Expressionist Abstract Paintings

    Materials

    Canvas, Oil

You May Also Like
  • Diving for Pearls
    Located in New York, NY
    Diving for Pearls, 1986 Oil on canvas 88 x 76 in. (223.5 x 193 cm) Signed, dated, and titled, verso
    Category

    1980s Abstract Expressionist Abstract Paintings

    Materials

    Canvas, Oil

  • James Joyce's Smile
    Located in New York, NY
    James Joyce's Smile, 1984 Oil on canvas 66 x 87 in. (167.6 x 221 cm) Signed, dated, and titled, verso
    Category

    1980s Abstract Expressionist Abstract Paintings

    Materials

    Canvas, Oil

  • Large Scale Mid-Century Earth-tone Horizontal Abstract by Joseph Vasica
    By Joseph Vasica
    Located in Soquel, CA
    Large Scale Mid-Century Earth-tone Horizontal Abstract by Joseph Vasica Very large scale (70"H x 160"W) (5.8'H x 13.3'L) mid-century abstract with soft edge, grey and burnt sienna...
    Category

    Mid-20th Century Abstract Expressionist Abstract Paintings

    Materials

    Canvas, Oil

  • "Manhattan Night Life"
    By Vaclav Vytlacil
    Located in Lambertville, NJ
    Jim’s of Lambertville is proud to offer this artwork by: Vaclav Vytlacil (1892-1984) He was born to Czechoslovakian parents in 1892 in New York City. Living in Chicago as a youth, he took classes at the School of the Art Institute of Chicago, returning to New York when he was 20. From 1913 to 1916, he enjoyed a scholarship from the Art Students League, and worked with John C. Johansen (a portraitist whose expressive style resembled that of John Singer Sargent), and Anders Zorn. He accepted a teaching position at the Minneapolis School of Art in 1916, remaining there until 1921. This enabled him to travel to Europe to study Cézanne’s paintings and works of the Old Masters. He traveled to Paris, Prague, Dresden, Berlin, and Munich seeking the works of Titian, Cranach, Rembrandt, Veronese, and Holbein, which gave him new perspective. Vytlacil studied at the Royal Academy of Art in Munich, settling there in 1921. Fellow students were Ernest Thurn and Worth Ryder, who introduced him to famous abstractionist Hans Hofmann. He worked with Hofmann from about 1922 to 1926, as a student and teaching assistant. During the summer of 1928, after returning to the United States, Vytlacil gave lectures at the University of California, Berkeley, on modern European art. Soon thereafter, he became a member of the Art Students League faculty. After one year, he returned to Europe and successfully persuaded Hofmann to teach at the League as well. He spent about six years in Europe, studying the works of Matisse, Picasso, and Dufy. In 1935, he returned to New York and became a co-founder of the American Abstract Artists group in 1936. He later had teaching posts at Queens College in New York; the College of Arts and Crafts in Oakland, California; Black Mountain College in North Carolina; and the Art Students League. His paintings exhibit a clear inclination toward modernism. His still lives and interiors from the 1920s indicate an understanding of the art of Cézanne. In the 1930s, his works displayed two very different kinds of art at the same time. His cityscapes and landscapes combine Cubist-inspired spatial concerns with an expressionistic approach to line and color. Vytlacil also used old wood, metal, cork, and string in constructions, influenced by his friend and former student, Rupert Turnbull. He eventually ceased creating constructions as he considered them too limiting. The spatial challenges of painting were still his preference. During the 1940s and 1950s, his works indicated a sense of spontaneity not felt in his earlier work. He married Elizabeth Foster in Florence, Italy, in 1927 and they lived and worked in Positano, Italy for extended periods of time. Later on, they divided their time between homes in Sparkill, New York and Chilmark, Massachusetts, where Vyt, as he was affectionately called, taught at the Martha's Vineyard Art...
    Category

    1930s Abstract Expressionist Abstract Paintings

    Materials

    Canvas, Oil

  • Red Composition by TOSHIMITSU ÏMAI - Contemporary, Abstract, Oil on canvas
    By Toshimitsu Imai
    Located in London, GB
    *PLEASE NOTE UK BUYERS WILL ONLY PAY 5% VAT ON THIS PURCHASE. Red Composition by TOSHIMITSU ÏMAI (1928-2002) Oil on canvas 80.2 x 55.3 (31 ⅝ x 21 ¾ inches) Signed, TOSHIMITSU IMAÏ, dated, 1963 Paris and inscribed in Japanese on the reverse Provenance Private collection, USA Born in Kyoto, Japan in 1928 Imai was part of the 20th century Japanese avant-garde. He began his formal education at the Tokyo State Art Academy where he took up painting. His early works are characterised by colourful abstractions, reminiscent of Favuism. In 1951 Imai was awarded the Kansai-Shinseisaku Prize and in 1952 the prize for the best new artist at the 15th Shinseisaku Salon. Imai relocated to Paris in 1953, the same and subsequent year he exhibited at the Salon de L’Art Sacré. Meanwhile, he attended the Académie de la Grande Chaumière and the Sorbonne to read medieval history and philosophy. In 1955, Imai completely abandoned representational art in favour of abstraction. After meeting the art critic Michel Tapié via the artist Sam Francis, Imai was the first Japanese artist to join the Art Informel movement. In 1956 Imai was called upon by the Japanese artist Taro Okamoto to curate an exhibition entitled The World: Today’s Art in Tokyo. Artists such as Jean Dubuffet, Jean Fautrier, Lucio Fontana, and Karel Appel gained important exposure in Japan. It was also in 1957, when Imai arranged for Tapié and the artists Georges Mathieu and Sam Francis to travel to Japan, that a connection between Art Informel and Gutai occurred. The Ashiya-based Gutai Art Association formed in 1954 was proclaimed a kindred spirit by Tapié which he subsequently promoted internationally. Founding members included Yoshihara Jiro, Kanayma Akira, Murakami Saburo, Shiraga Kazuo and Shozo Shimamoto...
    Category

    1960s Abstract Expressionist Abstract Paintings

    Materials

    Canvas, Oil

  • Untitled
    By Roland Petersen
    Located in Palm Desert, CA
    A painting by Roland Petersen. This Untitled, oil on canvas, abstract painting is executed in thick and lush impasto, in colors primarily of greens, blues, teals, white, red, ochre a...
    Category

    1960s Abstract Expressionist Abstract Paintings

    Materials

    Canvas, Oil

Recently Viewed

View All