Unknown

Archangel Michael

1958

'Chinatown, San Francisco', gouache on fine art paper, by Edward Wilson Currier (1903). Spofford Alley in San Francisco's Chinatown is best known for an address (number 36) where Dr. Sun Yat-Sen plotted the overthrow of China's last dynasty. During Prohibition, it was the site of turf battles over local bootlegging and protection rackets. Today it is lined with seniors' community centres. However, the quiet alley livens up in the evenings when a Chinese orchestra strikes up a tune, mah-jongg games begin with a cascade of clicking tiles, and barbers and florists use the pretence of sweeping their doorsteps to gossip. In this artist's depiction, a man smokes a long-stemmed Chinese pipe under the awning and colourful lanterns hanging from the wooden supports while a child looks on. The artwork is interesting from several standpoints including architectural, cultural and historical. Shortly after this work was painted, the neighbourhood was completely destroyed in the 1906 earthquake that levelled most of the city. From 1910 to 1940, Chinese immigrants were detained at the Angel Island...

'Emile's Tavern', gouache on paper (circa 1930s), by Lucien Génin. A tavern in French is called a 'guinguette'. With the rise in living standards from the 1860s along with the develo...

'The Church of Saint-Nicolas du Chardonnet, Paris', gouache on art paper by Lucien Génin (circa 1930s). In Paris' 5th Arrondissement the site in which Saint-Nicolas du Chardonnet is ...

'Sacré-Coeur, Montmartre at Willette Square, Paris', gouache on art paper (circa 1930s), by Lucien Génin. Created by the Director of Public Ways and Promenades under Napoleon III, Sq...

'The Final Stretch', pastel on weighted art paper, by Maurice Empi (circa 1980s). One can almost feel the excitement of the horse race from this exuberant and colourful work of art. ...

'Cherry Blossoms in Japan', pencil, ink and gouache on card stock, French School (Mid 20th Century). Cherry blossoms (Sakura) symbolise springtime, a time of renewal and the fleeting...

Dean was born in 1934 of Jewish parents in a Berlin, Germany, that was falling prey to the Nazis. The family immigrated to New York City in 1938, and Dean was raised in the refugee community in Inwood. Dean's first show (ironically, in retrospect) was given him by the USIA in Brazil. In 1959, he returned to New York to work six months on, six months off in soil engineering and made art in the interims. He tried, and failed, to get into a Tenth Street Gallery. Studying painting at night with Andre Girard at City College pushed him over the edge, and in 1969 he committed himself to painting full time. Artists who impressed him in the '60s were Robert Beauchamp, Lester Johnson, Jan Muller...

Surrealist, figurative large scale pastel of a deconstructed head and other elements by Gordon Muir. With original exhibition title label. Presented in fine silvered wood and fabric custom frame, under glass. A magnificent and truly monumental work of a 'deconstructed' head and three other triptych elements. Influenced by the paintings of Francis Bacon and Salvador Dali the work is intriguing and arresting at the same time. We can see how Muir gained such success later for his sculptural pieces as he is even in this work thinking in three dimensions. On closer inspection the details reveal themselves, the eyeball reminiscent of the shell of a horse chestnut, the furry surface to the tongue all in soft pastel shades. The three upper elements, in monochrome revealing the development of man. A really intriguing and strong painting that would grace any interior and be the talking point of any collection. It is very unusual to find a pastel of these proportions. The medium itself gives the work a softness creating an intriguing juxtaposition to the subject itself. Sculptor, born in Hawick, Gordon Muir was educated at art colleges in London, Scotland and the University of New Mexico, after which he spent time working with woodblock artists in Japan. He has more recently concentrated his artistic endeavours on sculpture, much of this in collaboration with the Paul Hogarth...

ANDRE LHOTE "LA PLAGE" PASTEL, SIGNED FRANCE, C.1927 17.75 X 24 INCHES André Lhote 1885-1962 Lhote was born in Bordeaux, France in 1885. H...

Amy Londoner Beach at Atlantic City, circa 1922 Signed lower right Pastel on paper Sight 23 x 18 inches Amy Londoner (April 12, 1875 – 1951) was an American painter who exhibited at...

Amy Londoner Beach at Atlantic City, circa 1922 Signed lower right Pastel on paper Sight 23 x 18 inches Amy Londoner (April 12, 1875 – 1951) was an American painter who exhibited at...

Amy Londoner Musical Conductor, 1922 Signed and dated lower right Pastel on paper Sight 18 x 23 inches Amy Londoner (April 12, 1875 – 1951) was an American painter who exhibited at ...