Abstract Drawings and Watercolors

Untitled Pastel on paper, 1922 Signed with the artist's initials in pencil Provenance: Estate of the artist Francis M. Nauman (label) Private collection, NY A very early abstract/cubist work by Kelly. Created while the artist was studying with Arthur Carles in Philadelphia. Leon Kelly (October 21, 1901 – June 28, 1982) was an American artist born in Philadelphia, PA. He is most well known for his contributions to American Surrealism, but his work also encompassed styles such as Cubism, Social Realism, and Abstraction. Reclusive by nature, a character trait that became more exaggerated in the 1940s and later, Kelly's work reflects his determination not to be limited by the trends of his time. His large output of paintings is complemented by a prolific number of drawings that span his career of 50 years. Some of the collections where his work is represented are: The Metropolitan Museum in New York, The Whitney Museum of American Art, the Museum of Modern Art, the Philadelphia Museum of Art, and Boston Public Library. Biography Kelly was born in 1901 at home at 1533 Newkirk Street, Philadelphia, PA. He was the only child of Elizabeth (née Stevenson) and Pantaleon L. Kelly. The family resided in Philadelphia where Pantaleon and two of his cousins owned Kelly Brothers, a successful tailoring business. The prosperity of the firm enabled his father to purchase a 144-acre farm in Bucks County PA in 1902, which he named "Rural Retreat" It was here that Pantaleon took Leon to spend every weekend away from the pressures of business and from the disappointments in his failing marriage. Idyllic and peaceful memories of the farm stayed with Leon and embued his work with a love of nature that emerged later in the Lunar Series, in Return and Departure, and in the insect imagery of his Surrealist work. "If anything," he once said,"I am a Pantheist and see a spirit in everything, the grass, the rocks, everything." At thirteen, Leon left school and began private painting lessons with Albert Jean Adolphe, a teacher at the School of Industrial Art (now the University of the Arts) in Philadelphia. He learned technique by copying the works of the old masters and visiting the Philadelphia Zoo, where he would draw animals. Drawings done in 1916 and 1917 of elephants, snakes and antelope, as well as copies of old master paintings by Holbein and Michelangelo, heralded an impressive emerging talent. In 1917, he studied sculpture with Alexander Portnoff but his studies came to an abrupt halt with the start of World War I. Being too young to enlist, he joined the Quartermaster Corp at the Army Depot in Philadelphia, where he served for more than a year loading ships with supplies and, along with other artists, working on drawings for camouflage. By 1920, the family's fortunes drastically changed. His father's business had failed due to the introduction of ready made clothing and his marriage, unhappy from the beginning, dissolved. Broken by circumstance Pantaleon left Philadelphia to begin a wandering existence looking for work leaving Leon to support his mother and grandmother. He found a job in 1920 at the Freihofer Baking Company where he worked nights for the next four years. Under these circumstances Leon continued to develop his skills in drawing and painting and learned of the revolutionary developments in art that were taking place in Paris. During the day he was granted permission to study anatomy at the Philadelphia School of Osteopathy where he dissected a cadaver and perfected his knowledge of the human figure. He also met and studied etching with Earl Horter, a well known illustrator, who had amassed a significant collection of modern art which included work by Brancusi, Matisse, and Cubist works by Picasso and Braque. Among the artists around Horter was Arthur Carles, a charismatic and controversial painter who taught at the Pennsylvania Academy of Fine Arts. Leon enrolled in the Academy in 1922, becoming what Carles described as, "his best student". In the next three years Leon work ranged from academic studies of plaster casts, to pointillism, to landscapes of Fairmount Park in Philadelphia, as well as a series of pastels showing influences from Matisse to Picasso. Clearly influenced by Earl Horter's collection and Arthur Carles he mastered analytical cubism in works such as The Three Pears, 1923 and 1925 experimented with Purism in Moon Behind the Italian House. In 1925 Kelly was awarded a Cresson Scholarship and on June 14 he left for Europe. Paris The first trip to Europe lasted for approximately three and a half months and introduced Kelly to a culture and place where he felt he belonged. Though he returned to the Academy in the Fall, he left for Europe again a few months later to begin a four-year stay in Paris. He moved into an apartment at 19 rue Daguerre in Paris and began an existence intellectually rich but in creature comforts, very poor. "I kept a cinderblock over the drain in the kitchen sink to keep the rats out of the apartment" he once explained. He frequented the cafes making acquaintances with Henry Miller, James Joyce and the critic Félix Fénéon as well as others. His days were split between copying old master paintings in the Louvre and pursuing modernist ideas that were swirling through the work of all the artists around him. The Lake, 1926 and Interior of the Studio, 1927, now in the Newark Museum. Patrons during this time were the police official Leon Zamaran, a collector of Courbets, Lautrecs and others, who began collecting Kelly's work. Another was Alfred Barnes of the Barnes Collection in Philadelphia. In 1929 Kelly married a young French woman, Henriette D'Erfurth. She appears frequently in paintings and drawings done between 1928 and the early 1930s. Philadelphia The stock market crash of 1929 made it impossible to continue living in Paris and Kelly and Henriette returned to Philadelphia in 1930. He rented a studio on Thompson Street and began working and participating in shows in the city's galleries. Work from 1930 to 1940 showed continuing influences and experimentation with the themes and techniques acquired in Paris as well as a brief foray into Social Realism. The Little Gallery of Contemporary Art purchased the Absinthe Drinker...

Italian Modern Abstract Work on Paper Color Field Non-Objective European Mid-Century - "Gonage" Dorazio completed "Gonage" in 1949 when just after the artist had been awarded a stipend by the French government and admission to the Academy Beaux Arts. There he met George Braque who became great friends but also an influence on Dorazio, of which "Gonage" is a living testament. "Gonage" actual size of the drawing measures 12 x 9 1/2 inches. It is signed on the lower right. The work is affixed to a 19 x 15 inch board which includes the artist's signature and date. There is a torn table on the lower left entitling the piece "Gonage". Provenance follows this piece as a gift in 1950 to the artist-colleague Luigi Lucioni, who then gifted it in 1955 to his friend, the uncle of the current owner who has owned the work since 1988. Bio Born in Italy, Piero Dorazio studied architecture in Rome. At the same time his first abstract works were executed. In 1947 he received a scholarship from the Ecole Nationale Supérieure des Beaux Arts in Paris, where he contacted Modern artists, who lived in Paris. He founded the galleries "Age d'Or" in Florence and Rome to represent avant-garde arts in Italy. During a one year stay in the USA he got acquainted with leading artists of Abstract Expressionism such as Marc Rothko...

This piece titled "residence" is an original artwork made from pencil, maker, acrylic paint collage on panel by Miriam Singer. This piece measures 8"h x 8"w. Miriam Singer grew up i...

Fig. 9 BASE MORADO, 2025 by Rodrigo Spinel From The Dibujar el Tiempo Series Indian ink on 350g Strathmore Bristol paper Frame size: 73.4 H x 58.1 W x 3 D cm. Image size: 61 H x 45....

This contemporary geometric abstract drawing has a beautiful, soft mottled texture created with Judge's unique powered pigment technique. Blue Opus Series 8 is a predominately blue m...

Abstract composition is a fine and beautiful watercolor and tempera on paper realized by Mark Tobey in 1960. Signed and dated Tobey lower right. Certificate of authenticity by Mark ...

A Fabulous, 1951 Mid-Century Modern Abstract Male Portrait by Noted Chicago Artist, Harold Haydon (Am. 1909-1994). Artwork size: 12 x 9 1/2 inches. Artwork is unframed, matted / f...

This expressive lion study captures the majestic presence of the king of the savanna with a delicate balance between abstraction and realism. Using fluid ink washes, the artist evoke...

Max Epstein, Canadian (1932 - 2002) - Miss Canada, Year: 1975, Medium: Color Pencil and Graphite on Paper, signed and dated, Size: 24 in. x 21 in. (60.96 cm x 53.34 cm)

Vítor Mejuto introduces a geometric synthesis that breaks down painting into its most structural essence. His work, in which line, stain and shape establish a precise chromatic balan...

Fernando Botero Original drawing of a woman, 1997 Drawing done in marker, signed and inscribed Boldly hand signed, dated and inscribed in black marker Unique This is an original, uni...

Emily Mason So Slight a Film (from the Lehman Brothers art collection), 1978 Oil on paper Abstract Expressionist painting Signed and dated 'Emily Mason '78' bottom right in pencil Fr...

Vítor Mejuto introduces a geometric synthesis that breaks down painting into its most structural essence. His work, in which line, stain and shape establish a precise chromatic balan...

This is an exclusive handprinted limited edition cyanotype. "Hollywood Pool House Glow" shows the shimmering reflections of a Hollywood, California swimming pool. Details: + Title: ...

Charles Hinman Untitled Minimalist Drawing (Mid-Century Modern), 1980 Pastel on off-white wove paper Signed in pencil and dated by the artist on the lower-right front. Jeffrey Fuller...

"NY Street Signs" Mid-20th Century WPA 1938 Modernist Abstract Realism Pop Art Stuart Davis (American, 1892-1964) "Street Signs" Modernist gouache and traces of pencil on paper in the proto-pop art style Davis is celebrated for, 1938, signed to lower right, framed. Image: 11 1/4 x 15 1/4 inches. Frame by Bark: 18 1/2 x 22 inches. LITERATURE: A, Boyajian, M. Rutkowski, Stuart Davis, A Catalogue Raisonne, Vol. 2, New Haven, Connecticut, 2007, vol. II, p. 632, no. 1232, illustrated. EXHIBITIONS: ACA Galleries, New York American Artists' Congress: Group Exhibition of Paintings and Sculpture, Dec. 3-16, 1939 (SDAB I, 12/3/39, p. 129). Outlines Gallery, Pittsburgh, Stuart Davis, Mar. 3-16, 1946. Coleman Art Gallery, Philadelphia, 5 Prodigal Sons: Former Philadelphia Artists: Ralston Crawford, Stuart Davis, Charles Demuth, Julian Levi, Charles Sheeler, Oct 4 - 30, 1947 (pamphlet), no. 12. PROVENANCE: The artist; Mr. and Mrs. Frank Bowles, New York, Apr. 3, 1956; thence by descent, Private Collection, New York. NOTES: According to the Catalogue Raissonne, "the title 'Street Signs' is recorded in the artist's account books...

Butterfly and Heart Drawing in black felt pen over color screenprint 'spot' composition Signed in full (bottom edge) and dedicated (top edge) Dedicated by the artist Annotated in fe...

Charles Burchfield Drawing Study Graphite on paper 5 1/2 x 8 inches Charles Ephraim Burchfield (1893–1967) was an American painter, best known for his watercolor landscapes. Burchfi...

In carefully drawn dots and lines in soft shades of indigo blue with pink, green, yellow and dark red details, this intricate composition is inspired by patterns in nature. This cont...

A sophisticated and marvelous work for any forward interior. It both gives a sense of space, calm, playfulness and it actually pulls you in as a focal point work of art. Framing is ...

Black And White Minimal Painting is an original artwork realized by TUSET in 2017. The work is unframed but has a rigid support on the back. The title of this works is "From the A...

TUSET (1997, A Coruña, España) Mixed media painting on paper Ready to frame One-of-a-kind Signed on back Includes certificate of authenticity 2021 65 x 50 cm. It belongs to the ser...

'Cubist Still Life', gouache on paper, from the Italian School of artists (circa 1940s). Surely this very attractive piece was inspired by Juan Gris (1887-1927) and Georges Braque's ...

This semi-abstract floral painting, titled "Sweet Summer Roses," captures the delicate beauty of pink roses and was inspired by the summer floral landscapes of Provence, South of Fra...

Delicate strokes and natural hues shape Shiri Phillips' watercolor, ink, and colored pencil artworks, showcasing her exploration of minimalism and organic forms. Departing from her u...

Clinton Hill (1922-2003), created quintessential mid-century images, but figures are unusual in his work. This is from a very early period. From 1949 to 1951 Hill attended the Brookl...

This piece titled "residence" is an original artwork made from pencil, maker, acrylic paint collage on panel by Miriam Singer. This piece measures 8"h x 8"w. Miriam Singer grew up i...

Blue Landscape Original artwork on Paper 50x70 cm certificate of authenticity by Marilina Marchica,. 2024 This unique abstract painting explores the relationship between humanity a...

Abstract Expressionist Composition by Jacques COULAIS (1955-2011) gouache painting on board unframed: 11.75 x 15 inches condition: excellent provenance: all the paintings we have fo...

Simon Samsonian (1912 - 2003) Colorful Geometric Abstraction, 1981 Oil on paper 16 x 22 inches Signed and dated lower right Provenance: Estate of the artist This survivor of the Armenian genocide wound up in a Cairo orphanage in 1927. He rose to fame as one of Egypt’s great modernists, but after moving to Long Island late in life he withdrew into anonymity. Now his compelling story is being told. Art historians are finally beginning to realize that the power of abstraction in its early years was a zeitgeist not limited to the major European centers of the avant-garde — Paris, Munich, and Moscow — but one that quickly rippled to major cities throughout the world. Within a few decades that original shock of a new vision had inspired thousands of artists from different cultures — particularly those the Middle East — whose translations were not slavish imitations of works by seminal figures like Picasso, Braque, Malevich, and Kandinsky but creative variants colored by their respective cultures. This essay focuses on an extraordinary Armenian artist, his harrowing survival of the genocide, his rise to fame in Cairo, and his creation of a unique style of abstraction. Art historians have typically formed a chorus that teaches the history of abstraction like this: Just before and during the World War I era, several avant-garde artists emerged to create shockingly different new forms by which artists could express themselves. In Paris, Picasso and Braque broke out with cubism, quickly followed by Mondrian. In Moscow, Malevich created Suprematism, the ultimate hard-edge geometric abstraction. And in Munich, Kandinsky emerged as the father of Abstract Expressionism. Within these few short years a zeitgeist was sensed throughout the art world. American pioneers, too — particularly Stanton Macdonald-Wright and Morgan Russell — felt this explosive freedom of expression. When Europe was recovering after World War I it became clear that Paris would retain its title as capitol of the art world, lasting through the Roaring Twenties and even through the Great Depression. But the end of World War II changed everything. A parallel war had been won by a group of irascible young Abstract Expressionists in New York — led by Pollock, Rothko, DeKooning, and Kline. No sooner had Paris been liberated from the Germans than Picasso, Matisse, Breton, and Duchamp surrendered to the Americans. From that point on New York would be the epicenter of the art world. But a lens that focuses myopically on the war between the avant-garde of Paris and New York misses the wider narrative of multiple aesthetic modernities that developed in the several decades following World War I. For Armenian artists the matter is even more complex owing to the genocide of 1915 where more than 1.5 million people — seventy-five percent of Armenians in the Ottoman Empire — were massacred. Those not shot on the spot were sent on death marches through the Mesopotamian desert without food or water. Frequently, the marchers were stripped and forced to walk naked under the scorching sun until they dropped dead. As a child Samsonian witnessed the murder of his parents and most of the members of his family. Soon thereafter, his older sister, Anahid, quickly shepherded him into a line of children being rescued by Greek nuns. But they became separated and he lost her, too. He was sent to a Greek orphanage in Smyrna (now Izmir), on Turkey’s west coast. Because he only knew his first name, the orphanage gave him a last name based on the place where they found him — Samsun — a major port on Turkey’s north coast on the Black Sea. His birth date was unknown, too. According to Samsonian’s vague recollections he assumed he was about three or four years old at the onset of the genocide, which would place his birth year in 1911 or 1912. In 1922, when Samsonian was about 10, the Turks ended their war with the Greeks by putting Smyrna to the torch in what has been called the “Catastrophe of Smyrna.” Once again, the child was on the run, escaping the fire and slaughter. He found temporary refuge in Constantinople, but within a year that major port would fall to the Turks, too, and become renamed as Istanbul. This time, Samsonian was whisked away to an orphanage in Greece founded by the American charity, Near East Relief — which is credited with saving so many Armenian orphans that the American historian Howard M. Sachar said it “quite literally kept an entire nation alive. Any understanding of Samsonian’s approach to modernism requires careful consideration of the impact of his early years because his art is inseparable from the anguish he experienced. In 1927, when he was a teenager, he was transferred to Cairo, Egypt, then a cosmopolitan city hosting a sizable portion of the Armenian diaspora. There he lived with thirty-two other children on the top floor of the Kalousdian Armenian School. Upon graduating in 1932 he won a scholarship to attend the Leonardo da Vinci Art Institute — an Italian art school in Cairo — where he won first prize in final examinations among one hundred students. He found work with an Armenian lithographic printer and he returned to the Kalousdian Armenian School to teach drawing. In 1939 he married one of his students, Lucy Guendimian. The Cairo in which Samsonian matured as an artist was home to many prominent art collectors after World War I. In this receptive environment Samsonian exhibited widely and won many awards. Beginning in 1937 and for the next thirty years he exhibited annually at the prestigious Le Salon du Caire hosted by the Société les Amis de l’Art (founded in 1921). After World War II he hit his stride as a modernist in Cairo, counting among his peers other artists of the Armenian diaspora such as Onnig Avedissian, Achod Zorian, Gregoire Meguerdichian, Hagop Hagopian...

McArthur Binion (b. 1946, Macon, MS; lives and works in Chicago, IL) combines collage, drawing, and painting to create autobiographical abstractions of painted minimalist patterns ov...

Work realized with watercolor and a little pastels on watercolor paper. It is the memory of blooming gladiolas and lilies in the artist's garden. The result is a lively, energetic, g...

A large minimal abstract painting on paper by Yasmin Brandolini. Artist: Yasmin Brandolini d'Adda, South African/Italian (1929 - ) Title: B Year: 1984 Medium: Tempera on Paper, sig...

Abstract Expressionist Composition by Jacques COULAIS (1955-2011) gouache painting on paper/ card unframed: 12.75 x 9.75 inches condition: excellent provenance: all the paintings we ...

Larry Poons Midget Racer, 1963 Colored Pencil on Graph Paper Signed, titled, and dated by the artist on the lower right front Original frame with gallery label included Provenance: H...

Abstract Expressionist Composition by Jacques COULAIS (1955-2011) gouache painting on paper/ card unframed: 10.75 x 8.5 inches condition: excellent provenance: all the paintings we h...

"Conversation" intertwines the raw, emotive qualities of charcoal with the fluidity of watercolor. The juxtaposition of the two mediums and dimentions creates a dynamic interplay of ...

Clinton Hill (1922-2003), created quintessential mid-century images, but figures are unusual in his work. This is from a very early period. In 1951 Hill studied at the Academie de la...

Abstract Expressionist Composition by Jacques COULAIS (1955-2011) gouache painting on paper/ card unframed: 12.75 x 9.75 inches condition: excellent provenance: all the paintings we ...

Fig. 9 BASE NARANJA, 2025 by Rodrigo Spinel From The Dibujar el Tiempo Series Indian ink on 350g Strathmore Bristol paper Frame size: 73.4 H x 58.1 W x 3 D cm. Image size: 61 H x 45...

This artwork makes part of my series dedicated to the scenes of a summer period. This floral painting called "Sweet memories" is done in an expressive impressionist style. Floral ...

Joan Miro. original pencil, pen and marker drawing on paper 11/12/1964 Certificate per Jaques Dupin. Paris 7 septembre 91. Jacques Dupin, along with others, founded ADOM (the Associa...

Abstract Geometric Composition Date: Second half of the 20th century Medium: Gouache on paper Dimensions: H 50 cm x W 65 cm approx. Description: Modular geometric structure with ove...

In carefully drawn dots and lines in soft shades of indigo blue with pink, green, yellow and dark red details, this intricate composition is inspired by patterns in nature. This draw...

Late Art Deco Period, Cubist watercolour of a nautical harbour scene painted by Yan Bernard Morel (dit Yan Bernard Dyl ) in 1939. Yan B. Morel, born on June 18th 1887, was a French painter, landscape designer, decorator, illustrator and film maker. Morel was a friend of Robert Delauney...

This Fortunato Depero wionderful serigraphy is a multiple of 250 specimens printed by the authorization of Museum of Depero in Rovereto (Italy). This i...

This brightly colored mixed media artwork titled "Mask On, You’re Happy Now" is an original artwork by Kelly Kozma made of hand embroidery, latex paint, marker and handmade sequins o...

Friederike Oeser, a contemporary abstract painter, lives and works in Munich, Germany. For Oeser there is no hierarchy of visual value. It all has import—whether it be a trickle of w...

Untitled Abstrraction Gouache, watercolor and pigments on paper, c. 1960 Signed lower right in pencil (see photo) Image: 17 x 22 inches Sheet: 25 1/4 x 29 3/4 inches Frame: 25 1/4 x ...

"Through the Trees" Watercolor Mid-20th Century Modern Excellent Provenance Arthur Dove (1880-1946) "Through the Trees" 5 x 7 Watercolor on paper, 1938 Singed lower center Framed: 1...

This contemporary geometric abstract drawing has a beautiful, soft mottled texture created with Judge's unique powered pigment technique. Poptic 09 is a predominately yellow, orange ...

Friederike Oeser, a contemporary abstract painter, lives and works in Munich, Germany. For Oeser there is no hierarchy of visual value. It all has import—whether it be a trickle of w...

Ink on paper 50.00 cm. x 65.00 cm. 19.69 in. x 25.59 in. (paper) LCD6765

Black Neoexpressionist Painting. This is an original artwork realized by TUSET in 2018. We can frame it in natural wood or black on request. The dimensions of the painting are 65 x ...

Paula Valenzuela Botanical Experiment #3, 2025 Watercolor and alcohol inks on paper 12 x 9 inches This one-of-a-kind work on paper comes unframed and ships in a tube. External, visi...

Watercolor on brightly colored paper, signed Gibor, with wooden frame mis.cm.h.65x56

Untitled #7, 2016 Wax crayon on paper 78 7/10 × 59 1/10 in 200 × 150 cm Signed on reverse Berszán tries to bring forward the moment of the brutal unbinding between “I” and the “oth...

"Unfolding #3" is an original piece by Yoonmi Nam made from pressure printed monotypes featuring layers of unfolded package outlines, creating dimension and abstraction. This piece m...

Interior design paintings. Abstraction art, made in black, orange, yellow on white foam board. Also, you can read name Sasha in Russian at the middle of the painting. Can be as a s...

Early modern black and white sketch by iconic Houston based artist David Adickes. Pulled from a collection of previously undiscovered sketchbooks, this work serves as a peak behind t...

Roy Lichtenstein, ‘St. Macarius Before His Monastery,’ circa 1951: Included in the Roy Lichtenstein Foundation, Roy Lichtenstein: A Catalogue Raisonné - this unique, rare early sket...

Renowned for his stunning ability to capture the essence of Mexican culture, Gustavo Montoya’s drawings offer a powerful narrative through minimalistic yet emotive lines. His works, ...

A view over the loch by Natalie Bird [2022] original Pastel Image size: H:36 cm x W:28 cm Complete Size of Unframed Work: H:25 cm x W:20 cm x D:0.5cm Sold Unframed Please note that ...

Friederike Oeser, a contemporary abstract painter, lives and works in Munich, Germany. For Oeser there is no hierarchy of visual value. It all has import—whether it be a trickle of w...

Abstract Expressionist Composition by Jacques COULAIS (1955-2011) gouache painting on paper/ card unframed: 19 x 15.5 inches condition: excellent provenance: all the paintings we hav...

his striking gouache costume design, titled "Stars" and created by the legendary Art Deco artist Erté, showcases his signature blend of elegance, drama, and celestial whimsy. Rendere...

Clinton Hill (1922-2003), created quintessential mid-century images. He lived in SoHo, New York, and was a frequent Gallery visitor. Born in Idaho and raised on a working ranch, ...

Abstract Expressionist Composition by Jacques COULAIS (1955-2011) gouache painting on thick board unframed: 8 x 8 inches condition: excellent provenanc...

Modern abstract ink and watercolor drawing by Houston born artist Arthur Turner. The work features energetic black lines accented with blocks of purple. Signed and dated along the ri...

This small original abstract watercolor painting by Nealy Hauschildt features a palette that combines washes of varying blue and turquoise tones. It ...

Tom Holland Artists in the Spotlight: Celebrating the 50th Anniversary of San Francisco Museum of Modern Art (SFMOMA), 1985 Acrylic and mixed media with stencil on paper Signed and d...

This blue, red, and white wall-hanging artwork titled "DANGER!" is an original artwork by Jim Houser made of acrylic and collage on canvas. This piece measures 10"h x 10"w. Jim Hous...

Red Landscape mineral oxide on paper (canson Paper 300gr) 30x40 cm Original Art Authenticity certificate one of a kind Marilina Marchica, born in 1984, was born in Agrigento, where...