Cory Pohlman

Cory Pohlman Mixed Media "Green Frosting" Pastry Chief Cranbrook MFA

1995 - 2000

“Icarus Suspended” is an extraordinary painting of Ayrton's obsession with flight, myths, mirrors and mazes. This complex piece shows a figure in flight, frozen in action, either swooping down or, perhaps, falling to earth. Named after the Greek mythological figure, Icarus, who along with his father attempted to escape from Crete by means of wings that his father constructed from feathers and wax. Flying too close to the sun the wax melted and both fell to earth. The positioning of Ayrton's figure is reminiscent of "The Fall of Icarus" by Jacob Peter Gowy, Museo Nacional del Prado. This is part of a series of artworks on Icarus some sculptural and some three-dimensional paintings on canvas. Verso contains gallery label Matthiesen Gallery, 142 Bond St., London, England, with a signature and text in upper right corner: "To Morton Schotnick. Bought on the occasion of The Archives of American Arts Tour to London, England. October 10, 1961. Michael Ayrton...

SALE ONE WEEK ONLY The energy and gusto of the applied paint in "Untitled Abstract" appears close to violent except for the calming influence of the circle in the middle. The red circle tempers the movement a little and brings all the strokes and wild directions into a harmony that is bursting with life. This is an extraordinarily expressive painting by Simpson. Simpson became the first African American to receive a prestigious five-year fellowship from the Charleston Scientific and Cultural Education fund and left South Carolina in 1949 for New York City after he finished high school. He attended New York University and Cooper Union while working in the frame shop of Herbert Benevy. Many well-known artists came to the frame shop and in time critiqued Simpson's work and developed a relationship with him. At NYU Simpson became acquainted with Hale Woodruff...

SALE ONE WEEK ONLY "The Banicor" is an exuberant lively piece full of intense color with a subtle coating of sparkles that catch the light in various ways and enhances the vibrant painted surface. It hangs free and explodes into lively movement against the wall. Al Loving...

This untitled abstract work by Constance Powell-Teeples is a stark contrast to her usual work, prints of the Detroit skyline and local monuments and buildings. The work is flushed with colors that are reminiscent of the Detroit Tigers...

SALE ONE WEEK ONLY "Animal Spirit I" is a dynamic expression of McGee's mythical animal spirits. Hand signed and dated lower right front and on the verso signed and titled. Painting and mixed media present a complex scene that incorporates use of graphite and acrylic paint on thick handmade paper. Michelle Oka Doner was invited to participate in McGee's studio in the early 1980s and brought her handmade paper skills to share engaging McGee in this creative pursuit. McGee continued to develop these spiritual creatures throughout his career as can be seen in a piece from 1984, "Noah's Ark: Genesis, 1984," on display at the Detroit Institute of Arts, his brilliant 2005 "Progression" a 45-foot wide aluminum sculpture at Beaumont Hospital, Royal Oak, Michigan, and his stunning 2016 "United We Stand" sculpture at the Charles H. Wright Museum of African American History . His genius can be seen in sculpture installments throughout the city of Detroit. "Animal Spirit I" is signed and dated lower right. Charles McGee was born into a family of sharecroppers. While helping his grandfather tend the land, "he observed firsthand the order and harmony that exists within nature." He had no formal schooling until moving to Detroit at age 10, where he found that "everything was on the move and it hasn’t slowed down yet." in 2017 he observed, "I learned something not being in school — because life is school . . .I learn something every time I move. Every time I go around a corner, something new is revealed to me.” McGee took advantage of the GI Bill to attend classes at the Society of Arts and Crafts, now the College for Creative Studies, Detroit, MI. Other College for Creative Studies faculty and graduates include Richard Jerzy, Harry Bertoia, Doug Chaing (currently director of Lucas Film), Stephen Dinehart (game maker, writer, designer connected with The David Lynch Foundation), Tyree Guyton (international artist), Herb Babcock , Jerome Feretti, Kevin Siembieda (writer, designer and publisher of role-playing games), Renee Radell (American Expressionist formerly from Detroit and New York), Philip Pearlstein, Charles McGee (nationally recognized African American sculptor of animal and dancing spirits), Philip Pearlstein (2000 Honorary Doctorate, Modern Realism style), John Louis Krieger (American Modern) and William Girard (American Modern.) After retiring from the Corps of Engineers, McGee spent 1968 studying art in Barcelona. Despite not knowing the language at the outset, he immersed himself in the culture and opened himself to a whole new range of experience that would play out in his artwork. "If you free yourself, you have this kind of opportunity to have those experiences, horizons, and new vistas." (per interview with Nick Sousanis. He returned to Detroit and curated "Seven Black Artists" at the Detroit Artists Market in 1969, which along with McGee himself, included Lester Johnson, Henri Umbaji King, Robert Murray, James Lee, Allie McGhee...

SALE ONE WEEK ONLY "Obturator Fascia" is a contemporary oil painting depicting relationships between nature, science, technology, and pattern that has always fascinated Brian. A sister piece that is strongly similar, "Epithelium", is owned by The Detroit Institute of Arts. Brian Fekete is an American visual artist, formerly a Brooklyn expat, now living and working in the Mid-Hudson Valley. He received his BFA and MFA from Wayne State University, Detroit, Michigan. Other well-known individuals who taught or studied at Wayne State University and are connected with the arts are Arthur Danto, Dr. Wayne Dyer, Susan Aaron-Taylor, Tyree Guyton, Hughie Lee-Smith, Philip Levine, Casey Kasem, Helen Thomas, Sergio DeGuisti, Stanley...

Collage mixed media on cardboard Udi Cassirer is an Israeli visual and contemporary artist born in 1965 who lives and works in Tel Aviv - Yafo, Israel. H...

Collage mixed media on cardboard Udi Cassirer is an Israeli visual and contemporary artist born in 1965 who lives and works in Tel Aviv - Yafo, Israel. He is graduated from Midrasha...

Dang Bao-Hua is a Chinese artist born in 1977 who lives & works in Beijing, China. He was graduated from the National Academy of Arts in China. For many years of artistic painting pr...

Dang Bao-Hua is a Chinese artist born in 1977 who lives & works in Beijing, China. He was graduated from the National Academy of Arts in China. For many years of artistic painting pr...

Dang Bao-Hua is a Chinese artist born in 1977 who lives & works in Beijing, China. He was graduated from the National Academy of Arts in China. For many years of artistic painting pr...

Dang Bao-Hua is a Chinese artist born in 1977 who lives & works in Beijing, China. He was graduated from the National Academy of Arts in China. For many years of artistic painting pr...