Skip to main content
Want more images or videos?
Request additional images or videos from the seller
1 of 5

Charles F. Ramsey
"Poker Chip Construction"

c. 1950

$9,950
£7,640.64
€8,765.02
CA$13,980.92
A$15,657.75
CHF 8,169.96
MX$191,252.63
NOK 103,945.60
SEK 97,981.19
DKK 65,412.28

About the Item

Jim’s of Lambertville is proud to offer this artwork. Signed lower right. Charles Frederick Ramsey (1875 - 1951) Charles Frederick Ramsey is considered as important a leader among the New Hope Modernists, as Lathrop among the New Hope Impressionists. Ramsey, the son of prominent Philadelphia artist, Milne Ramsey, was born in Pont-Aven, France. He began his art studies at the Pennsylvania Museum School of Industrial Art in 1893. From 1896 to 1898, he studied in Paris at the Academie Julian with Laurens, Benjamin-Constant, Ferrier, and Bouguereau. He then enrolled at the Pennsylvania Academy of the Fine Arts with William Merritt Chase, Cecilia Beaux, and Henry McCarter. The Academy awarded him the Cresson Traveling Scholarship in 1904. In 1903, Ramsey made his first visit to New Hope and was soon spending summers there. He became particularly friendly with artists William Lathrop and Charles Rosen. From 1909 until 1912, he shared studio space in New Hope with Robert Spencer at the old Huffnagle Mansion. At this time, Ramsey was curator of schools for the Pennsylvania Academy. He temporarily moved to Pittsburgh in 1912, where he had been appointed curator at the Carnegie Institute, a position he held until 1916. The same year he accepted a position as director and lecturer at the Minneapolis School of Art. However, this position would be short-lived as he was fired after admitting that he was a socialist and a member of the I.W.W. (Industrial Workers of the World or “Wobblies”). In 1917, he and his family moved to New Hope permanently. In his early years, Ramsey exhibited at the Pennsylvania Academy of the Fine Arts (1902-03, 1910-12), although he preferred not to participate in competitive salons. He made rare exceptions however, such as the Philadelphia Art Alliance (1940) and the Phillips Mill near New Hope. Ramsey exhibited regularly in New Hope with the Modernists groups, New Group and the Independents. Ramsey’s early style owed much to the traditional impressionists working in New Hope. However, after the First World War, Ramsey became intrigued by contemporary stylistic innovations and turned increasingly to abstract forms of expression. At this time, he was sharing a studio with Arthur Carles. By 1919, Ramsey had created the first two abstracts painted in New Hope--“The New Hope-Lambertville Bridge” and “The Cloud”. In the 1920s, Ramsey opened New Hope’s first art gallery, the Blue Mask. Ramsey also began to teach at the nearby Solebury School, and organized a summer art school. During this period, Ramsey collaborated with Ethel Wallace, designing batiks and textile wall hangings. After fellow modernist Lloyd Ney was rejected from entry to the Phillips Mill Annual Exhibition, it became apparent that artists with a more modernist outlook needed a venue where they could exhibit their work and attract customers. Ramsey founded the New Group in 1930, where artists could exhibit artwork of their own choosing in a non-judgmental environment. By 1932 the New Group had reorganized as The Independents. In the late 1930s, Ramsey became close friends with Charles Evans and Louis Stone. He persuaded them to join him teaching summer classes in non-objective painting. Soon a history-making collaboration began. In 1937, meeting in Evans’ studio at the rear of Cryer’s Hardware Store on Main Street, a decision was made to establish the Cooperative Painting Project. They were intrigued by the cooperative “ad-lib” process by which jazz musicians created music. Believing this to be the quintessential American contribution to music, Ramsey theorized that a similar result might be obtainable with art, a visual “jam session”. The objective was to jointly collaborate in the creation of a painting as well as apply collective criticism during its creation. By creating forward movement by general consent, they believed they could produce a higher level of beauty. By consensus it was decided that the subject matter would be non-objective. Up to eight people would participate and stop when the painting “felt” finished by common agreement. These paintings were signed with the name “RAMSTONEV”. Ramsey continued to paint on his own, creating Modernist works even as the movement lost momentum in New Hope. He passed away in 1951 at the age of seventy-six. Sources: -New Hope for American Art by James M. Alterman -Charles F. Ramsey Father of New Hope Modernism, Dr. Thomas C. Folk, Allentown, PA: Allentown Art Museum, 2003 -New Hope Modernists, Roy Pedersen and Barbara Wolanin, New Hope, PA: New Hope Modernist Project, 1991
  • Creator:
    Charles F. Ramsey (1875 - 1951, American)
  • Creation Year:
    c. 1950
  • Dimensions:
    Height: 19 in (48.26 cm)Width: 16 in (40.64 cm)Depth: 1 in (2.54 cm)
  • Medium:
  • Movement & Style:
  • Period:
  • Condition:
  • Gallery Location:
    Lambertville, NJ
  • Reference Number:
    Seller: JOL762016011stDibs: LU3741135873

More From This Seller

View All
"Collage Composition"
By Dwinell Grant
Located in Lambertville, NJ
Jim’s of Lambertville is proud to offer this artwork by: Dwinell Grant (1912 – 1991) Non-objective artist, Dwinell Grant, was born in Springfield, Ohio in 1912. His interest in the...
Category

20th Century Abstract Mixed Media

Materials

Paper, Mixed Media

"Study for Wall Construction"
By Burgoyne Diller
Located in Lambertville, NJ
Signed Lower Right Burgoyne Diller (1906-1965) Recognized as the first American painter to embrace the tenets of Neo-Plasticism, Burgoyne Diller made an important contribution to ...
Category

1950s Abstract Mixed Media

Materials

Paper, Crayon, Graphite

"Collage"
By Dwinell Grant
Located in Lambertville, NJ
Jim’s of Lambertville is proud to offer this artwork by: Dwinell Grant (1912 – 1991) Non-objective artist, Dwinell Grant, was born in Springfield, Ohio in 1912. His interest in the...
Category

20th Century Abstract Mixed Media

Materials

Mixed Media

"Number Two Surrounded"
By Joseph Amar
Located in Lambertville, NJ
Jim’s of Lambertville is proud to offer this artwork by: Joseph Amar (1954 – 2001) Joseph Amar was born in Casablanca, Morocco in 1954 to a Sephardic Jewish father and a Spanish mo...
Category

1970s Abstract Mixed Media

Materials

Paper, Mixed Media

"Pinpoint Abstraction"
By Charles F. Ramsey
Located in Lambertville, NJ
Jim’s of Lambertville is proud to offer this artwork by: Charles Frederick Ramsey (1875 - 1951) Charles Frederick Ramsey is considered as important a leader among the New Hope Modernists, as Lathrop among the New Hope Impressionists. Ramsey, the son of prominent Philadelphia artist, Milne Ramsey...
Category

1940s Abstract Abstract Paintings

Materials

Canvas, Oil

"Red Eight"
By Joseph Amar
Located in Lambertville, NJ
Jim’s of Lambertville is proud to offer this artwork by: Joseph Amar (1954 – 2001) Joseph Amar was born in Casablanca, Morocco in 1954 to a Sephardic Jewish father and a Spanish mo...
Category

1970s Abstract Mixed Media

Materials

Paper, Mixed Media

You May Also Like

For Wally
By Gerald Johnson
Located in San Francisco, CA
This artwork titled "For Wally" 1974 is a collage on paper by New York artist Gerald Johnson, 1944-2000. It is hand signed, titled and dated in pencil by the artist. The artwork size is 24.5 x 18.15 inches, sheet size is 27.35 x 21 inches. It is in good condition, the paper is originally wavy as it show on the pictures. About the artist: Gerald Johnson [b.1944-2009] played a dynamic role in the Brooklyn art scene from the late 1960’s through the late 1980’s. After graduating from Pittsburgh State, he established a studio on Green Street and became right-hand to Steve Poleskie at the famed Chiron Press in 1967. There he formed creative relationships with the artists he was in charge of bringing to life; Andy Warhol, Roy Lichtenstein, Thomas Wesselman...
Category

Late 20th Century Abstract Geometric Mixed Media

Materials

Mixed Media

Sans Titre
By Albert Chubac
Located in PARIS, FR
Collage by Swiss artist Albert Chubac, signed and numbered 7/8, measuring 127cm x 87cm.
Category

Mid-20th Century Abstract Geometric Mixed Media

Materials

Acrylic, Cardboard

News Reel
Located in New York, NY
Uri Aran News Reel, 2018 Enamel, oil pastel, pen, graphite, and mixed media on MDO 21 x 8 1/4 inches 26 1/8 x 13 1/2 x 2 1/2 inches (frame) Signed verso
Category

2010s Abstract Geometric Mixed Media

Materials

Enamel

Cubist abstract composition
Located in Wilton Manors, FL
Robert Lepper (1906-1991) . Cubist composition, 1931. Cut copper, brass and steel sheeting tacked to masonite panel. Panel measures 14.5 x 24 inches. Total framed measurement 20 x 29...
Category

1930s Cubist Mixed Media

Materials

Brass, Copper, Stainless Steel

Geometric Figure #25
By Dave Fox
Located in San Francisco, CA
Artist: David Fox (American, 1920-2011) Title: Geometric Figure #25 Year: 2002 Medium: Acrylic on paper Paper: Watercolor paper Image size: 8 x 12...
Category

21st Century and Contemporary Cubist Abstract Paintings

Materials

Acrylic

Hku. 09, Mixed Media on Wood Panel
By Mark Mazurczyk
Located in Yardley, PA
Abstract mixed media piece created with oil and latex paint, wood and metal on plywood board. 12.5"x9.5"x1.5" :: Mixed Media :: Abstract :: This piece comes with an official cert...
Category

2010s Abstract Mixed Media

Materials

Mixed Media