1950s Abstract Drawings and Watercolors

Venice is an original modern artwork realized by Zoran Mušic in 1959. Mixed colored pastel drawing. Includes frame. Hand signed and dated on the lower m...

Louise (McClure) Schatz (1916 – 1997) Born in Vancouver, Canada, Louise Schatz moved with her family at age three to Minnesota. Her father, a stage director, was part of the local Bohemian culture and traveled the theater circuit around the U.S. She earned a Master’s Degree in Fine Arts at the University of California, where she became a skilled water colorist. “My Japanese instructor showed me how to preserve several colors together on paper,” she noted. “Water colors can bleed into the paper, and the paper plays with the colors – some of which can even disappear. I have a great love of texture and what materials do to color. I was very excited to discover what happens to colors and how to achieve what I wanted.” Her interest in astronomy also led Louise to study science at the university. Louise joined the “California Seven” artists in 1945 and for the next three years created prints and textile patterns. During WWII, she earned her living as a sketch artist for ship builders in San Francisco Bay, and it was there she met her future husband, Bezalel. “Then, it was very avant-garde to hire women in ship-building,” she once recounted. “We used to take dimensions from engineers and make sketches. It was very trailblazing and exciting, and the ships were constructed very quickly and launched very quickly. Besides the fact that we contributed to the war effort, it was really beautiful art.” The Bohemian society developing in San Francisco at the time included the novelist Henry Miller, who was then married to Louise’s sister, Eve. “There was a group of artists in Big Sur, all of them poor,” according to Bezalel Schatz’s sister, Zohara. “They were a group of Beatniks before the hippy era of the 1960s. There were novelists, poets, and painters there who lived communally under primitive conditions and were close to nature.” Bezalel and Louise were married in 1948 and moved to Israel. There, together with Zohara, they founded the arts and crafts workshop, “Yad,” with the goal of creating and selling alternative art objects that differed in style from those of the Bezalel School of Art. The couple divided its time between the family home in Jerusalem and a residence in Ein Hod designed for them by the architect David Resnik. Despite her connection to the Schatz family and her active involvement in the Israeli art world at the time, Louise guarded her privacy and rarely granted interviews. As Henry Miller wrote, “Her paintings reflect and reveal the extent of her sensitivity, shyness, and gentleness…” Scenes of Israel were a source of inspiration for Louise, and, in addition to her abstract Bauhaus geometric works, she also painted landscapes, flowers, and other elements of the environment in which she worked. Louise worked mainly in water colors but also created collages, book illustrations, and applied art. Among her outstanding works are murals for Zim’s “Shalom” and “Theodore Herzl” ships (together with Bezalel), El Al’s London office, and Jerusalem’s tenth anniversary exhibition, as well as ceramic walls for Jerusalem’s Midreshet Amalia and Beit Ha’am Library. She was awarded the Silver Medal in 1954 at the tenth Triennale in Milan for her copper designs, and in 1952 she received the “Above Competition” prize for her textile designs at the Bezalel National Museum. She was also awarded the Shen Beit Haomanim Prize in 1970 and the Jerusalem Prize for painting in 1973. Louise took part in many art exhibitions in Israel and abroad. Her works are held by the Israel, Tel Aviv, and Haifa Museums, and in private collections in Israel, the U.S., England, Switzerland, France, and Italy. Following her husband’s death in 1978, Louise continued to live with her sister-in-law, Zohara, at the family home in Jerusalem on Schatz Street. Louise died in Jerusalem in 1997. She has been called in the pages of the Jerusalem Post " the greatest Schatz of all" and "Israel's finest watercolorist" Parts of her work summon up affinities with Paul Klee and Julius Bissier and occasionally even Joan Miro. But she never copied any of them. Her work also bears affinities for Lyonel Feininger and Wassily Kandinsky Between 1937 and 1951, Bezalel resided in the U.S. Near the end of WWII, he worked in a California shipyard, and it was there he met his future wife, Louise. He was also introduced to the novelist Henry Miller in California, and their friendship blossomed into a creative collaboration. The artist May Ray recorded his observations about the two, noting that “I have never encountered such smooth cooperation…” Bezalel produced silkscreen prints for Miller’s novel, Into the Night Life, an innovation for both the art and publishing worlds. In Florence, New Mexico, New York, San Francisco, and other locations, Bezalel exhibited his own work and participated in group shows with some of the greatest artists of his era – Picasso...

A 1950s geometric textile design in brown, yellow and pink tones by notable stage and set designer Andre Delfau. Born in Paris, France in 1914, Andre Delfau became an internationally acclaimed stage, set and costume designer who worked world-wide from the 1930s to the 1980s. Delfau was a life long artist and painted independently of his noted design career. His artwork is recognized for it’s vibrant color and form, and a particularly keen use of line. He was highly influenced by the French Modern trends of Cubism and Surrealism, and his artwork is often infused with a dramatic sense of architecture and perspective. Delfau created fashion designs for such major Paris couture houses as Balmain, Jean Patou and Balenciaga. He completed noteworthy set designs and costumes for numerous international operatic and ballet productions, including those at the Royal Danish Ballet, the Royal Ballet of Great Britain, the Paris Opera, the Dance Theater of Harlem, the Ruth Page International Ballet, the Civic Ballet of Chicago, the Chicago Opera Ballet and the Lyric Opera of Chicago, among others. Most notably, Delfau designed the elaborate stage sets and costumes for the 1986 PBS television production of the Viennese operetta, "Die Fledermaus...

'Roofs of Ravello' by Margaret Wentworth, 1959. Mid-Century Abstract, Harvard Fogg Museum, San Francisco Art Association, Carmel, Art Institute of Chicago ------ Initialed lower rig...

Adolfs Zardins (1890 08 II Riga, Latvia – 1967 07 II Jurmala, Latvia), painter. Only in 1990 his relatives give his artistic heritage to publicity. “I am 58, and in five Years my c...

Love is an original drawing in pastels, realized by Novella Parigini (1921-1993). In very good conditions. Hand-signed and the date "1958", on the l...

Untitled (Abstraction) Ink on textured paper, c. 1958 Signed lower right "Scarlett" (see photo) Condition: Excellent Archival framing with OP3 Acrylic Sheet size: 21 3/4 x 30 inches Frame size: 28 1/2 x 36 1/2 inches Note: A rare mid to late 1950s example of the artist's abstract expressionist style. Provenance: estate of the artist Private Collection, Hudson River Valley, New York Rolph Scarlett B. 1889, GUELPH, ONTARIO; D. 1984, WOODSTOCK, NEW YORK Born on June 13, 1889 in Guelph, Canada, and into an artistic family, Rolph Scarlett spent his teenage years as an apprentice in his uncle’s jewelry firm and briefly studied at the Art Students League, New York. While working in the jewelry industry, Scarlett found time to paint and design theatrical sets in his free time, including one for the 1928 world premiere of Eugene O’Neill’s drama Lazarus Laughed (1926). In 1923, while on a business trip to Switzerland, Scarlett had met the artist Paul Klee and soon after abandoned his figurative painting style in favor of an abstract language that suggested more universal, cosmic truths. In 1937, after permanently settling in New York, Scarlett became acquainted with the artist and curator Hilla Rebay, the first director of the Museum of Non-Objective Painting (renamed the Solomon R. Guggenheim Museum in 1952). Rebay provided Scarlett with a Guggenheim Foundation scholarship to paint full-time and obtained several of his paintings for the museum’s collection. From 1940 to 1946, Scarlett served as the museum’s chief lecturer, giving Sunday afternoon talks on art. Through Rebay, Scarlett became acquainted with the nonobjective works of Rudolf Bauer and Vasily Kandinsky and further refined his abstract style. Works from this era such as Yellow Bar (1942) are defined by overlapping geometric planes of bright, primary colors set against mute backgrounds. Scarlett avoided any reference to the outside world and believed that nonobjective painting was an act, in his words, of “pure creation.” During his lifetime, solo shows of his work were held at the Jacques Seligmann Gallery, New York (1949); Sioux City Art Center, Iowa (1951); and Washburn Gallery...

"Étoile de Moment" is a black China ink and pencil drawing on paper glued on ivory-colored cardboard, signed and dated by Flor David (1891-1958). The artwork represents an Étoile de...

The Dead Tiger Ink and watercolor on paper, 1955 Signed and dated in ink (see photo) Condition: Aging to the entire sheet (it's 78 years old) Image/Sheet size: 18 1/4 x 23 inches On...

Untitled Abstraction Graphite on paper, c. 1950 Unsigned Signed with the estate stamp verso (see photo) Provenance: Estate of the artist Inherited by his neighb...

Abstract Composition is a contemporary artwork realized the mid-20th century.. Watercolor on paper. Hand-signed on the lower margin. The artwork is created through deft quick stro...

Minotaur is an original painting in watercolor realized by Sergio Barletta in 1946. Hand-signed. In fair conditions with some folding, stains, and tearing on the margins. The artw...

Abstract Composition is an original watercolored drawing on paper realized by a French Anonymous artist in 1957. Dated on the lower. Good conditions. The delicate poetic expressio...

The Pinks and the Blues Watercolor, pen and ink on paper, 1954 Signed and dated in ink lower left, titled in pencil verso. Provenance: Gift of the Artist Privat...

"Abstract With Clouds" is an original ink drawing on paper by Sylvia Spicuzza, stamped with her signature in the lower right. The drawing is done entirely in pink with a combination ...

Peter Macchiarini "Brooch Drawing" c. 1950s Pencil on paper Site 3.5"x3.5" silver carved wood frame 14.75"x16.75" Studio stamp lower left Was born to Italian parents on the Wohler Ranch, a hop yard and vineyard spread on the Russian river near Santa Rosa, Sonoma County on August 27, 1909. I attended grammar school and high schools in Sonoma County until the age of fourteen at which time my parents returned to Italy. There I took preliminary courses in the Italian language and having decided on an artistic career, took the entry examinations for the Art Academy Pietrasanta, Province of Lucca, and was accepted. At the Academy I received basic training in marble carving, clay modeling, architectural drawing and general sciences. In 1928 I returned to the United States and was gainfully employed as a stonecarver with several San Francisco Bay Area firms. I continued my art studies in San Francisco at the California School of Fine Arts, taking night courses. In 1936, I worked on projects under Beniamino Bufano and Ralph Stackpole...

Abstract composition is an original artwork realized by Michel Cadoret. China ink on paper. The monogram of the artist is on the lower center. The back of the artwork is sketched as well. Good conditions. Michel Cadoret (Paris, 1912 – Cerny, 1985) was a French artist. He was a student of Luc Simon...

Preliminary drawing for a sculpture Black crayon on paper, 1959 Signed and dated middle right (see photo) A rare 1950's AbEx drawing. Provenance: Estate of the artist Michael and Ala...

John Levee, an American abstract expressionist, served as a pilot in the United States Army Air Forces during World War II. Following the war, he harnessed the educational opportunit...

Here, Sylvia Spicuzza has taken the opportunity to create a geometric, crystalline composition of color while testing a set of Rembrandt artist's pastels. Her fractured planes of col...

From a series of paintings and drawings by Clifford Ellis and his wife Rosemary. To see them or our other Modern British Art, scroll down to "More from this Seller" and below it clic...

Felt-tip pen and ink and pencil on paper. Dated and extensively annotated in ink on recto. Study for the same-titled steel sculpture, 1956, Yale University Art Gallery, New Haven.

Watercolor painting of a street scene with two females and a man that appears to be a beggar. The work is signed by the artist. It is framed in a black frame with a yellow matte. Dim...

Manfred Schwartz (American, b. Poland, 1909-1970), Celestial Tondo, Pointillist Composition, Gouache on Paper, apparently unsigned, artist estate stamp to verso, with red dot sticker...

Dorothy Dehner (1901–1994) was an influential American multidisciplinary artist who worked with drawing, painting, printmaking, and most notably sculpture. Despite her artistic cont...

Manfred Schwartz (American, b. Poland, 1909-1970), The Trapezist, Pastel on Paper, 1953, signed in pencil and dated lower left, in mat, unframed. Image: 9" H x 7.5" W; sheet: 12" H x...

"Art Deco Sailboat in Abstract Landscape #740" is an original colorful crayon drawing on paper by Sylvia Spicuzza, signed in pencil in the lower right corner. The sailboat of the title is in the center, set against a deep blue sky upon a dark green sea. It is framed by a abstract shapes of bright color that flow into one another in curving lines. The horizon line is maintained throughout the composition, and the effect is something like looking through a kaleidoscope. Art size: 8 1/2" x 7 1/4" Frame size: 16 1/4" x 14 1/2" Born in 1908, Sylvia Spicuzza was the daughter of noted painter Francesco Spicuzza. Sylvia devoted herself to teaching art to the students of Lake Bluff Elementary School in Shorewood, WI. During this time Sylvia produced a magnificent body of work that was undiscovered until her death. Sylvia's work is rich, diverse and fascinating collection of drawings...

Gen Paul (1895-1955 Fr.) lived in Montmartre, Paris France. He is know for his action painting with quick brush strokes and this work of art was painted around 1955-1960. He was a mu...

In this drawing,"Art Deco Abstract," Sylvia Spicuzza presents the viewer with abstracted biomorphic forms in her elegant modernist style. Dominant in the image are two lilies, their ...

Spray paint on paper. Stamped and framed. Frame dimensions: 68x85 cm Last painter of the school of Nice. This is an important painter, the first school in nice to have exhibited in ...

Abstract landscape watercolor painting on paper that incorporates blue and grey tones. The painting is signed in the lower center and is currently displayed in a beautiful silver fr...

Signed and dated lower right; inscribed, Dated and Signed on Verso Provenance: Ashley John Gallery

This soft toned abstract expressionist watercolor painting, created by Charles Ragland Bunnell (1897-1968), is an exceptional example of his evolution as an artist. Featuring bold sw...

Professor George De Goya. PhD. MA. FRSA. Born In Budapest, 1915-1992, related to the Spanish artist Goya on his mother’s side. Educated in Budapest and France where he received a de...

Composition With Circles is a drawing artwork realized by an Anonymous artist in the 1950s. Pastel on paper. Very Good Conditions. The artworks are re...

Watercolor on heavy paper work is unframed Signed by artist in pencil, lower right verso. Property from the estate of Anne E. C. Porter, with the estate stamp, verso. ...

"Art Deco Interior Abstraction" is a color crayon drawing by Sylvia Spicuzza, signature stamped in the lower right corner. The abstract composition ...

Watercolor and ink on paper Signed and dated lower left This work can be viewed at our New York City showroom by appointment. Hugh Mesibov - Colorful Abstract Expressionist ink...

Dorothy Dehner (1901–1994) was an influential American multidisciplinary artist who worked with drawing, painting, printmaking, and most notably sculpture. Despite her artistic cont...

This abstract artwork is one of a group of over 100 pieces personally selected by the artist, and gifted to a close personal friend in 1969. Please note this painting was never matte...

"Abstract Composition" is an original drawing in watercolor on paper, realized in 1950 by Jean Louttre. (1926) Hand-signed and Dated on the lower right. The state of preservation of ...

Dorothy Dehner (1901–1994) was an influential American multidisciplinary artist who worked with drawing, painting, printmaking, and most notably sculpture. Dehner's legacy has been overshadowed for many years by her ex-husband, the acclaimed sculptor David Smith. Stifled by their tumultuous relationship, Dehner only fully committed to her practice after divorcing him in 1951. This break was highly fruitful for her artistic output and reputation in the following years. After the divorce, Dehner refined her artistic voice and expanded her practice to include printmaking and sculpture. Her new-found independence and renewed ambition led to a pivotal relationship with the esteemed printmaking studio Atelier 17. Working there she formed a close and enduring friendship with Louise Nevelson. Today Dehner has been re-embraced and repositioned in the American art canon. Her work is best understood and appreciated in the context of not only David Smith but other artists dedicated to sculpture including Lee Bontecou, Louise Bourgeois, and of course Louise Nevelson. This energetic and hypnotic work on paper is somewhat of a departure from Denher's structured and intricate approach. Bold, frenetic strokes of ink loop chaotically across the surface, revelling in a sense of fluid dynamism that is in contrast with the artist's architectural arrangements. While it is notably looser and bolder then some of the drawings we expect from this era, we find the artist creating forms that are a harbinger of the muscular sculpture she would create in the following decade. Click here to see an example of a bronze sculpture from 1966 sold at Wright auction house...

Composition is an original drawing in watercolor on paper in 1950 ca. Hand-signed and at bottom right. Unreadable signature. sheet dimension: 32 x 24 Good conditions. Passepartout...

Composizione is a beautiful mixed media (china ink and watercolor) on cream-colored paper, realized in the middle of the XX century by the Italian artist Arturo Peyrot (1908 - 1993)....

Abstract composition is an original artwork realized by Michel Cadoret. Penmarker on paper. The monogram of the artist is on the lower right corner. ...

Dorothy Dehner (1901–1994) was an influential American artist who worked with drawing, painting, printmaking, and most notably sculpture. Despite her artistic contributions, Dehner'...

One of a group of over 100 works personally selected by the artist and gifted to a close personal friend in 1969, this work was never matted, framed, glued, taped or exposed to light...

Professor George De Goya. PhD. MA. FRSA. Born In Budapest, 1915-1992, related to the Spanish artist Goya on his mother’s side. Educated in Budapest and France where he received a de...

Art: 9-1/2"x12-1/2" Frame: 17-1/4"x 20-1/4" Abstract black marker on cream sketchbook paper. Signed Sylvania lower right. Silk lined matting and glazed in UV Clear Glass that filte...

Dorothy Dehner (1901–1994) was an influential American multidisciplinary artist who worked with drawing, painting, printmaking, and most notably sculpture. Dehner's legacy has been ...

Dorothy Dehner (1901–1994) was an influential American multidisciplinary artist who worked with drawing, painting, printmaking, and most notably sculpture. Despite her artistic cont...

Pierre MONTHEILLET (1923-2011) Composition in green and yellow Mixed media on paper - monotype Signed and dedicated “pour mes amis Sallaz” lower right Dimensions of the work: 28.5 x ...

In this small work, we can see Sylvia Spicuzza experimenting with watercolor, trying to achieve a jagged, rock-like texture. The image is dominated by warm ochres and browns. 5.75 x...

Dorothy Dehner (1901–1994) was an influential American multidisciplinary artist who worked with drawing, painting, printmaking, and most notably sculpture. Despite her artistic cont...

Jim’s of Lambertville is proud to offer this artwork by: Lloyd R. Ney (1893 – 1964) Called “Bill” by his friends, Lloyd Ney was one of the pioneers of Modernist art in New Hope. Ne...

One of a group of over 100 works personally selected by the artist and gifted to a close personal friend in 1969, this work was never matted, framed, glued, taped or exposed to light...

Gallery tags on verso. Work is frame an in very good condition.

Spray paint on paper. Stamped and framed. Frame dimensions: 75x94 cm Last painter of the school of Nice. This is an important painter, the first school in nice to have exhibited in...

The artist Pinajian signed lower right with ink. it is ink on paper.

Legendary Graphic designer Paul Rand was also a Fine Artist/Painter. In the present work, " Untitled: Asian Calligraphic Shapes Over Biomorphic Forms," Paul explores the relationship...