1940s Abstract Paintings

Charming mid century still life of fruit, vase and black cat by Monterey artist Joseph Tanous (American, b. 1925), c. 1940-50. Signed lower left corner. Presented in rustic painted w...

Rare Hawaiian landscape of coastal Maui. Oil on canvas. Framed. Signed. Oil on canvas. Image size, 20"H x 24"L.

Erik Ortvad (Danish, 1917 - 2008) Abstract Landscape, 1946 Oil on canvas Signed and dated lower right 32 X 37.5 inches 35 x 40.5 inches, framed Born in 1917 in Copenhagen, Erik Ortvad was a surrealist painter and a founding member of the COBRA art...

Vintage signed large abstract oil painting. Oil on canvas. Signed.

A important American Impressionist painting by Isabella Howland (1895-1974), "Ocho Rios", Jamaica, 1940. Howland was active in both Boston & New York, this impressionistic painting d...

Edward Zutrau Toucan, 7/29/1949 Dated on verso Oil on linen 30 x 23 inches Edward Zutrau (1922–1993) was an American painter whose career spanned from the 1940s through the early 1...

Impressive early American impressionist cityscape painting. Oil on canvas. Framed. Apparently not signed. Image size, 20H x 24L.

Antique American modernist abstract oil painting by Arnold Aaron Friedman (1874 - 1946). Oil on canvas. Signed on verso. Framed.

Antique American modernist nocturnal view of the Brooklyn Bridge. Oil on board. Signed verso. Framed.

Very well done and interesting vintage Italian impressionist painting. Oil on canvas. Framed. Signed.

This superb British 1940's abstract expressionist oil painting is by noted founder member of the Borough Group artist, Miles Peter Richmond. Painted in 1947 it has another unfinished...

Symbolic Hawaiian nocturnal figurative of whispy angel figures with mountains and bridge by Marguerite Louis Blasingame (American; 1906-1947), circa 1940-45. Marguerite and her husband Frank Blasingame...

Impressive early American modernist central park, new york city oil painting. Framed. Oil on canvasboard . Image size, 18H by 24L.

Impressive early American modernist abstract oil painting by Louis Wolchonok (1898 - 1973). Framed. Oil on board. Signed. Image size, 24H by 18L.

Work on cardboard Golden wooden frame 41 x 50.5 x 6 cm

Antique American modernist signed abstract tropical oil painting. Oil on board. Framed.

Antique American school abstract expressionist painting. Oil on board. Signed. In excellent original condition. Nicely framed in a period wood molding. Excellent condition, read...

Antique American abstract mixed media painting. Oil gouache and crayon on board. Signed. Framed. Measuring 24 by 29 inches overall and 15 by 20 painting alone.

Oil on canvasboard. Framed. Image size, 20H x 30L. Signed.

Antique oil on board. Signed. Framed. Measuring 26 by 32 inches overall and 24 by 30 painting alone. In excellent original condition. Excellent condition, ready to hang and enjoy.

Seymour Franks Tempole, 1948 Signed lower right; signed, dated, titled on verso Oil on canvas 35 x 42 inches American painter and designer, Seymour Franks, was born in New York Ci...

Gerome Kamrowski Untitled, circa 1944 Signed lower right Oil on canvas 35 3/4 inches x 47 3/4 inches Gerome Kamrowski was born in Warren, Minnesota, on January 19, 1914. In 1932 he...

Nicely painted mid century abstract oil painting. Great color. Framed.

Antique American modernist interior scene oil painting. Oil on canvas. Framed.

Antique American school modernist watermelon still life pastel painting. Pastel on paper. Signed. Framed. Measuring 18 by 22 inches overall and 16 by 20 painting alone.

Julio De Diego’s Atomic Series paintings made an extraordinary statement regarding the shock and fear that accompanied the dawn of the nuclear age. In the artist’s own words, “Scientists were working secretly to develop formidable powers taken from the mysterious depths of the earth - with the power to make the earth useless! Then, the EXPLOSION! . . . we entered the Atomic Age, and from there the neo-Atomic war begins. Explosions fell everywhere and man kept on fighting, discovering he could fight without flesh.” To execute these works, De Diego developed a technique of using tempera underpainting before applying layer upon layer of pigmented oil glazes. The result is paintings with surfaces which were described as “bonelike” in quality. The forms seem to float freely, creating a three-dimensional visual effect. In the 1954 book The Modern Renaissance in American Art, author Ralph Pearson summarizes the series as “a fantastic interpretation of a weighty theme. Perhaps it is well to let fantasy and irony appear to lighten the devastating impact. By inverse action, they may in fact increase its weight.” Bibliography Art in America, April 1951, p.78 About this artists: Julio De Diego crafted a formidable persona within the artistic developments and political struggles of his time. The artist characterized his own work as “lyrical,” explaining, “through the years, the surrealists, the social-conscious painters and the others tried to adopt me, but I went my own way, good, bad or indifferent.” [1] His independence manifested early in life when de Diego left his parent’s home in Madrid, Spain, in adolescence following his father’s attempts to curtail his artistic aspirations. At the age of fifteen he held his first exhibition, set up within a gambling casino. He managed to acquire an apprenticeship in a studio producing scenery for Madrid’s operas, but moved from behind the curtains to the stage, trying his hand at acting and performing as an extra in the Ballet Russes’ Petrouchka with Nijinsky. He spent several years in the Spanish army, including a six-month stretch in the Rif War of 1920 in Northern Africa. His artistic career pushed ahead as he set off for Paris and became familiar with modernism’s forays into abstraction, surrealism, and cubism. The artist arrived in the U.S. in 1924 and settled in Chicago two years later. He established himself with a commission for the decoration of two chapels in St. Gregory’s Church. He also worked in fashion illustration, designed magazine covers and developed a popular laundry bag for the Hotel Sherman. De Diego began exhibiting through the Art Institute of Chicago in 1929, and participated in the annual Chicago Artists Exhibitions, Annual American Exhibitions, and International Water Color Exhibitions. He held a solo exhibition at the Art Institute of Chicago in the summer of 1935. Though the artist’s career was advancing, his family life had deteriorated. In 1932 his first marriage dissolved, and the couple’s young daughter Kiriki was sent to live with friend Paul Hoffman. De Diego continued to develop his artistic vocabulary with a growing interest in Mexican art. He traveled throughout the country acquainting himself with the works of muralists such as Carlos Merida, and also began a collection of small native artifacts...

Very nicely painted American modernist still life oil painting. Framed. Oil on canvas. Signed. Image size, 24H by 12L.

"Two Seas and a Moon" Surrealism American Scene WWII Modern WWI Denver WPA Era Arnold Ronnebeck (1885 - 1947) Two Seas and a Moon 30 x 22 1/2 inches Oil on Canvas, c. 1943 Signed u...

Antique American modernist abstract painting. Oil on board, circa 1940. Signed. Image size 22L x 30H. Housed in a period modern frame.

Nicely painted early American modernist abstract landscape. Oil on canvas. Framed.

M R Webb Abstract Form 21 x 26 cm Signed to lower right Provenance: Family of A. E. Halliwell Little is known about A Searle beyond the fact that he studied under A E Halliwell, th...

Antique American school signed seascape painting. Oil on board. Signed. Framed. Image size, 24L x 18H.

Abstract Gouache on Paper by Minnesota/Chicago artist Richard Koppe (1916-1073). Simply titled “Woman,” the work is an excellent composition by the artist created 1941. The painting ...

Impressive early American modernist cityscape oil painting. Framed. Oil on canvas. Image size, 30H by 26L.

Large and impressive modernist landscape painting. Oil on canvas. Framed. Signed illegibly.

Vintage modernist abstract expressionist painting. Oil on board. Housed in a period frame. Image size, 16L x 20H. Signed.

Evening on the Pier, a stunning landscape by Marguerite Louis Blasingame and Frank Blasingame (American, 1906-1947), circa 1940-45. Marguerite and Frank were two of five artists in H...

D Ollard Ribbons of Memory Gouache and photographic collage 20 x 26 cm Signed to reverse Provenance: The family of A. E. Halliwell Little is known about D Ollard other than the fac...

Seymour Franks Duo, 1947 Signed and dated lower right Oil on canvas 44 x 37 inches Seymour Franks, 1916-1981, originated from New York City, where he was born in 1916. At just 16 y...

Really impressive early American modernist painting. Oil on board. Framed.

Vintage modernist abstract expressionist painting. Oil on canvas. Housed in a period frame. Image size, 24L x 36H. Signed.

Rare and well executed modernist wall plaque by Richard Kuehne. Paint on gesso plaque. Signed. Silver leaf incorporated frame as photographed.

Julio De Diego’s Atomic Series paintings made an extraordinary statement regarding the shock and fear that accompanied the dawn of the nuclear age. In the artist’s own words, “Scientists were working secretly to develop formidable powers taken from the mysterious depths of the earth - with the power to make the earth useless! Then, the EXPLOSION! . . . we entered the Atomic Age, and from there the neo-Atomic war begins. Explosions fell everywhere and man kept on fighting, discovering he could fight without flesh.” To execute these works, De Diego developed a technique of using tempera underpainting before applying layer upon layer of pigmented oil glazes. The result is paintings with surfaces which were described as “bonelike” in quality. The forms seem to float freely, creating a three-dimensional visual effect. In the 1954 book The Modern Renaissance in American Art, author Ralph Pearson summarizes the series as “a fantastic interpretation of a weighty theme. Perhaps it is well to let fantasy and irony appear to lighten the devastating impact. By inverse action, they may in fact increase its weight.” Exhibited 1964 Marion Koogler McNay Art Institute, San Antonio, Texas This work retains its original frame which measures 54" x 42" x 2" About this artist: Julio De Diego crafted a formidable persona within the artistic developments and political struggles of his time. The artist characterized his own work as “lyrical,” explaining, “through the years, the surrealists, the social-conscious painters and the others tried to adopt me, but I went my own way, good, bad or indifferent.” [1] His independence manifested early in life when de Diego left his parent’s home in Madrid, Spain, in adolescence following his father’s attempts to curtail his artistic aspirations. At the age of fifteen he held his first exhibition, set up within a gambling casino. He managed to acquire an apprenticeship in a studio producing scenery for Madrid’s operas, but moved from behind the curtains to the stage, trying his hand at acting and performing as an extra in the Ballet Russes’ Petrouchka with Nijinsky. He spent several years in the Spanish army, including a six-month stretch in the Rif War of 1920 in Northern Africa. His artistic career pushed ahead as he set off for Paris and became familiar with modernism’s forays into abstraction, surrealism, and cubism. The artist arrived in the U.S. in 1924 and settled in Chicago two years later. He established himself with a commission for the decoration of two chapels in St. Gregory’s Church. He also worked in fashion illustration, designed magazine covers and developed a popular laundry bag for the Hotel Sherman. De Diego began exhibiting through the Art Institute of Chicago in 1929, and participated in the annual Chicago Artists Exhibitions, Annual American Exhibitions, and International Water Color Exhibitions. He held a solo exhibition at the Art Institute of Chicago in the summer of 1935. Though the artist’s career was advancing, his family life had deteriorated. In 1932 his first marriage dissolved, and the couple’s young daughter Kiriki was sent to live with friend Paul Hoffman. De Diego continued to develop his artistic vocabulary with a growing interest in Mexican art. He traveled throughout the country acquainting himself with the works of muralists such as Carlos Merida, and also began a collection of small native artifacts...

Mid Century Hawaiian Symbolism -- Stairway to Destiny Symbolic figurative abstract with climbing stairway in bright spring colors by Marguerite Loui...

Very nicely painted American school abstract landscape painting. Framed in a period modernist wood molding. Oil on board. Image size, 24H by 29L.

Oil on board. Framed. Signed. Exhibited at the Butler Art Institute.

Antique American modernist abstract expressionist painting. Oil on board, circa 1940. Image size, 24L x 20H.

Original mid-century modern abstract oil on canvas painting by the well known Russian/American artist Nahum Tschacbasov. Signed lower right and dated 1945. Condition is very good. P...

Wonderful early American modernist sunset seascape painting. Oil on canvas. Framed. No signature found. Measuring 22 by 24 overall and image size, 20 by 18 inches.

Antique American modernist abstract painting. Oil on canvas, circa 1940. Housed in a vintage frame. Image size, 18L x 24H.

Symbolic figurative abstract of wispy figures surrounding a heart by Marguerite Louis Blasingame (American; 1906-1947), circa 1940-45. Marguerite and her husband Frank Blasingame...

Vintage American modernist abstract cubist oil painting by Irving Resnikoff (1897 - 1988). Oil on canvas. Framed. Signed. Measuring: 29 by 23 inches overall, and 28 by 22 painting a...

Nice modernist American school painting. Oil and watercolor and gouache on board. Signed. Framed. Image size, 18L x 23H.

Antique Canadian modernist landscape oil painting. Oil on board. Framed. Measuring 15 by 17 inches overall and 10 by 12 painting alone.

6000 Antique birch trees land scape, oil on artist board displayed in a wood frame.Signed lower left by Mori.Image size 9.5 H x 7.5 W

Four women with puppets. 1947, paper, mixed media, 16.3x11 cm Adolfs Zardins (1890 08 II Riga, Latvia – 1967 07 II Jurmala, Latvia), painter. Only in 1990 his relatives give his art...

A Painting depicting an amusement park exploding in vibrant colors. The painting is signed "William Wright" lower right. Oil on Canvas. 20 x 24. Nicely framed.

Important cubist still life oil painting by Douglas Warner Gorsline (1913 - 1985). Oil on canvas. Framed. Signed.

This stunning Scottish Abstract Expressionist oil painting is by noted Scottish artist William Gear. Painted in 1949 it is an early and significant painting which dates to the early part of his career. Entitled Abstract Landscape with Red and Green it was painted during Gear's time in Paris and involvement with COBRA. Mostly red and green shapes are incased in black on a vivid yellow background. A really pleasing composition to the eye and perfectly housed in an ebonised frame, it is an excellent example of Gear's work. Signed and Dated '49 lower right. Inscribed, titled and dated verso. Provenance: Cornish collection. Condition. Acrylic on canvas 25 inches by 20 inches and in good condition. Frame. Housed in an ebonised frame, 30 inches by 25 inches and in good condition. Few British painters have played an active role in the modern abstract movement of post-war Europe. William Gear was the most passionate and committed exception. He continued the tradition of the Edinburgh-Paris axis established by J.D. Fergusson, Samuel Peploe and others, spending vital years between 1947 and 1950 living and working in Paris. Significantly, in recent years, he received the greatest acclaim in France, Germany and the Netherlands. He was born in 1915 in Methil, Fife, into a mining family; the particular landscape of "pitheads, the sea, rocks, castles, trees, storms and poverty" marked his earliest identity with a place and probably remained the most influential to his art. Years later he recalled as a schoolboy visiting the local art gallery in Kirkcaldy and seeing 12 colourful still-lifes by Peploe. Art-history lessons during student years at Edinburgh College of Art, in particular Byzantine classes under David Talbot Rice, also influenced his concern for structure. This had as much to do with the formal language of painting as sheer delight in the medium itself. Gear never missed an opportunity to show people the merits of a well-constructed painting. On a travelling scholarship in 1937, he chose to study with Fernand Leger, described by Gear as "a keystone for me, seldom abstract, rather a degree of abstraction". The Second World War interrupted these formative years and, by 1940, Gear had joined the Royal Corps of Signals. Dispatched to the Middle East, he still had the discipline to paint - mostly works on paper of damaged landscapes - with exhibitions in Jerusalem, Tel Aviv, Cairo as well as Siena and Florence. His naturally robust and tenacious temperament was profoundly affected by visiting Bergen-Belsen, and this certainly influenced the later experiments with the black armature. As the British officer in Celle, working for the Monuments, Fine Arts and Archives Section of the Control Commission, he focused on securing the safety of the Berlin Art Collection in Schloss Celle, and organised an important series of modern art exhibitions, including the rejected work of Karl Otto Gotz...

This beautiful oil on linen canvas painting, entitled "Rail Crossing: Middletown, was executed by the esteemed artist Jules Halfant (American, 1909-2001)...