Mid-20th Century Abstract Paintings

This untitled artwork by Stanley Bate was created circa 1960. It is a Modern abstract oil painting on canvas, featuring an earthy palette of sandy brown and umber, light blue, muted ...

Gen Paul French, 1895-1975 Harmonica Player Oil on board 13 by 21 ⅝ in, w/ frame 22 ¼ by 31 ½ in Signed upper left Eugene Paul, known as Gen Paul, was born in 1895 and raised in th...

Artist: William Littlefield, American (1902 - 1969) Title: Still Life and Abstract Year: 1950 & 1954 Medium: Double-Sided Oil on Masonite, signed and dated both sides Size: 22 x 28 i...

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

Pat Adams Extended Alike, 1969 Gouache on Paper Mounted to Canvas (Zabriskie Gallery 25th Anniversary & Contemporary Arts Center, Ohio Exhibition Labels) Signed 'Pat Adams 12.69' upper left front In vintage period frame This unique, hand signed gouache on paper, mounted to canvas by renowned artist and longtime member of the Bennington College art department and National Academician Pat Adams, bears labels verso from the following exhibitions: 'Pat Adams Paintings', The Contemporary Arts Center, Cincinnati Ohio, Dec. 7-Jan. 20th. Adams at Zabriskie '(25th Anniversary Exhibition) Zabriskie Gallery, New York, NY, Dec. 5, 1978-Jan. 6, 1979, Cat. no. 41 and' Zabriskie Gallery, New York, Jan. 6-Jan 24, 1970 Measurements: Framed: 19 1/2" H x 13 1/4" W Artwork: 18" H x 11 1/2" W; Excellent condition, held in a vintage frame PAT ADAMS BIOGRAPHY: Pat Adams Biography: Pat Adams (American, b. 1928) was raised in Stockton, California, and began painting at the age of ten. She studied painting at UC Berkeley from 1945–49, where she first encountered the ideas of Hans Hofmann as she studied under his former students—Worth Ryder and Margaret Peterson O’Hagan, who had arranged for Hofmann’s migration to the States in 1932, among them. During her summers at Berkeley she pursued programs at the California College of Arts and Crafts (1945), the College of the Pacific (1946), and the Art Institute of Chicago (1948). In 1950, following her graduation from Berkeley the previous year, she attended a summer session at Brooklyn Museum Art School, remaining in the city after its completion. She received her first solo exhibition in 1954 at the Korman Gallery—later to be renamed the Zabriskie Gallery, which would continue to represent her through 2018. Her work was greatly motivated by her international travel during the 1950s: in Italy in 1951, after her first husband, painter and printmaker Vincent Longo was awarded a Fulbright scholarship, and in France in 1956, after she received her own Fulbright scholarship. In the fall of 1964 she was invited by professor Paul Feeley to teach at Bennington college, where she joined the social circle of the famous “Green Mountain Boys,” including Kenneth Noland and Jules Olitski. In 1972 she married fellow Bennington professor R. Arnold Ricks, and they set off with her two sons on a four month journey through Egypt, Iran, Turkey, and all of Europe, which impacted her work significantly. She continued teaching at Bennington through 1993. Her lengthy career has also included many teaching appointments at Yale, as both a visiting professor and artist, as well as the Rhode Island School of Design, among numerous other institutions across the country. She has received notable awards from the National Endowment for the Arts, the Academy of Arts and Letters, the National Academy of Design, and the College Art Association. In 1995 she was awarded the Vermont Governor’s Award for Excellence in the Arts. Her work has been the subject of over fifty solo exhibitions. She lives in Bennington, Vermont. -Courtesy of Alexandre Gallery

Artist: John Kinnear, Canadian (1922 - 2003) Title: Highland Figures Medium: Acrylic on masonite, signed lower right Date: circa 1960 Image Size: 22 x 38 ...

Modern warm toned Cubist style still life painting by Texas artist David Adickes. The work features a collection of bottles and fruit displayed on a pedestal against a deep maroon ba...

Antique American modernist signed abstract oil painting. Oil on canvas. Signed. Framed.

Oil on board. Signed. Framed. Image size, 24H x 30L

Antique American modernist oil painting. Oil on board, circa 1950. Housed in a vintage frame. Image size, 16L x 11H. Signed.

Antique American modernist abstract oil painting by Adele Becker. Oil on canvas. Framed. Signed.

Mid Century Modern, American Abstract Expressionist Painting on Masonite. This wonderful work in hues of blue comes house in a contemporary natural wood frame presentation.. The ar...

Blue Navy Abstract, Size: 31x36.5 framed 32x37.7 Walter Swyrydenko was born in Sloviansk, Ukraine in 1942. A graduate of Kent State University, receiving a B.S. in Art Education and an M.A. in Painting. Studied in Paris, France. Professor of Art at Lakeland Community College. He was awarded the rank of Professor Emeritus in 2002 by Lakeland Community College, and held a retrospective of his work, "A Look Back 1965-2001," at the LCC Gallery in 2003. Listed in Marquis’ “Who’s Who Dictionary of International Biography,” “ Leaders of America,” “Who’s Who in the Arts, 1971-1972,” Artists/USA, 1972-1973, 1974-1975,” “Outstanding Young Men of America,”1971,” International Who’s Who in Art and Antiques, 1972,” Annuaire De L’Art International, 1974-1975, 1975-1976,” “Library Of Human Resources...

Dynamic mid century cyan abstract by Erle Loran (American, 1905-1999). Signed "Erle Loran" and dated "51" lower right. Presented in silver toned metal frame with mat sans glass. Image size: 21.75"H x 15"W. Framed size: 25"H x 18"W. Erle Loran was born in Minneapolis, Minnesota. He studied at the Minneapolis School of Art under the direction of Cameron Booth...

Road Less Traveled Hawaii Surrealist Mid Century Figurative Abstract Landscape Symbolistic and romantic Surrealist 1940s figurative abstract landscape with a figure journeying down a path in an idyllic landscape by Marguerite Louis Blasingame circa 1940-45. Signed Blasingame lower right corner; from a collection of her work. Unframed. Condition: Excellent; professionally cleaned and UV varnished. Image, 30"H x 20"W. Marguerite and her husband Frank Blasingame...

Donald Stacy "Red Sun" c.1950s Gouache and oil pastel on paper 13.75" x 17" unframed Unsigned Came from artist's estate *Custom framing available for additional charge. Please expect framing time between 3-5 weeks. Donald Stacy (1925-2008) New Jersey Studied: Newark School of Fine Art The Art Students League...

Mid century modern abstract by artist Tommie (Thomas) Olson a student of Robert Preusser, when he was 16 and attending John Deagan High School in Houst...

Vintage American modernist landscape oil painting. Oil on canvas, circa 1940. No signature found. Displayed in a period modern frame. Image, 20"L x 16"H.

Amazing surreal cloudscape modernist oil painting. Framed. Oil on canvas.

Lyman Kipp Original Mid Century Modern Painting on paper, 1969 Acrylic on paper painting Hand signed and dated by the artist on the front F...

Presenting an original oil and sand on canvas by Italian artist Gastone Breddo, "L'Universo.". Born in Italy in 1915, Breddo worked throughout his life as an abstract/futurist art...

Artist: C. Stone Title: Accent Marks Year: circa 1960 Medium: Acrylic and Sand on Canvas, Signed l.l. Size: 30 x 36 inches (76 x 91.5 cm)

This stunning mid-century modern abstract 3-D painting was created by Denver modernist Angelo Di Benedetto (1913-1992), circa 1950. The piece features a shaped, three-dimensional can...

"Rectangle Abstraction" Mid 20th Century American Abstract 1960s Color Field James Daugherty (1887 - 1974) Rectangle Abstraction 13 1/4 x 8 1/2 inches Oil on canvas, c. 1960s Signe...

Roy Conn (1931–2018) 'Grater', 1968 23.5 x 41.0 cm Frame: 43.0 x 59.5 cm Painter, born in London. Trained as a structural engineer, he was mainly self-taught...

Antique American abstract expressionist mixed media painting by Bernyce Alpert Winick 1922-2022. Watercolor and collage paper. Signed. Framed. I...

Edward Zutrau Untiled, 4/1963 Signed and dated on stretcher bar Oil on linen 35 1/2 x 51 inches Edward Zutrau is among the American artists who worked within the whirlwind of diver...

Antique American modernist abstract oil painting. Oil on canvas, circa 1960. No signature found. Displayed in a period frame. Image, 30"...

Nicely painted mid century abstract expressionist oil painting by Erwin Wending (1914 - 1993). Great color and composition. Framed. Signed. Exhibition and museum labels verso.

Lyman Kipp Untitled Minimalist Painting, 1964 Ink roller on paper Hand signed and dated by Lyman Kipp on the front; inscribed on the back to Gene Baro (the distinguished critic and c...

Very well painted period cubist still life. Oil on canvasboard. Framed. No signature found.

Vintage modernist abstract oil painting by Anton Sipos (Born 1938). Oil on canvas. Framed. Signed.

'Characters in a Surrealist Landscape', oil on canvas, by Lucien Coutaud (1931). A couple entwine with the male character seemingly in grief, the female not returning with a comforting embrace. In the distant landscape a sole character meanders. This painting seems to be a creation of the artist's dreams, perhaps reflecting events in his personal life. It seems there is a relationship problem. In the world of Surrealists, there is a focus on the unconscious mind through Freudian methods of free association, trance-like states or dreams. Some Surrealists practiced psychic 'automatism' which was automatic writing or drawing, turning off the conscious mind and producing streams of words or images directly from the unconscious. In unlocking the unconscious in this way, Surrealism was individually expressed (Ref. 'The Short Story of Art...

Jichak Pressburger, Painter. b. 1933, Bratislava, Czechoslovakia. A concentration camp survivior. Came to Israel aboard the ship, "The Exodus". 1964 Went to Paris. In 1979 Returned as new immigrant. Education Tel Aviv University, B.A. in art, with Marcel Janco and Isidor Ascheim at Avni art school. Beaux Arts, Paris with Professor Coutaud. Itzchak Pressburger Stays in Paris from 1963 – 1979, Resident of the “Cité des Arts” 1969-1972. Lives and works in Jerusalem since 1979. One-Man Exhibitions 1963 Gallery Dugit, Tel-Aviv 1968 Cultural Center Enkhuizen, Netherlands 1968 Gallery Zunini, Paris (chosen by the art critic of « Opus : Jean-Jacques Lévèque) 1970 Gallery Zunini, Paris 1973 Gallery Maitre Albert, Paris. Cultural Center Verfeil sur Seye, France 1974 Gallery Maitre Albert, Paris 1976 Gallery Mundo, Barcelone 1980 Artists’ House, Jerusalem 1981 Gallery Alain Gerard, Paris Group Exhibitions 1966 Rathaus Charlottenburg, Berlin. (The first show of Israeli painters in Germany Artists Center of Silvarouvres, Nantes, Ffance XXXth Salon of Finances at “l’Hotel des Monnaies”, Paris 1969 Maison de Culture, Le Havre, France 1968 Gallery Zunini, Paris (chosen by the art critic of « Opus : Jean-Jacques Lévèque) Salon « Grands et Jeunes d’Aujourd’hui », Paris Museum of Fine Arts, Nantes, France Cultural Center Vitry, France Gallery Il Giorno, Milan Cité des Arts, Paris 1972 Salon “Grands et Jeunes d’Aujourd’hui”, Paris Salon de Mai, Paris 1973 Städtische Galerie, Siegen, Germany 1974 Jewish Cultural Center, Paris Publicis, Paris 1975 Réalitiés Nouvelles, Paris 1976 Salon de Mai, Paris 1977 “Perspectives Israeliennes”, Grand Palais, Paris 1981 Salon Alain Gerard, Paris 1984 Artists’ House, Jerusalem Publication 1990 Haggadah Yom Kippour (Hebrew/French) Abraham Bliah (private edition), Paris Acquisitions 1968 The City of Paris 1972 The State of France The Yitzchak Pressburger artist was born in Bratislava – known for centuries by its German name of Pressburg – but the outbreak of World War II found him and his family in Prague. His father realized they had to escape from the Nazi occupiers and tried to get the family across the border into Hungary. However, they were caught near the crossing point, arrested and incarcerated overnight at the nearby railway station. The Czechs put them on a train to Hungary early the next morning. That was their first miracle in their quest for survival. They survived with relative ease until late 1943, when the father was taken away to a forced labor camp. He subsequently died in a death march. Things became even more precarious in early 1944, when the Holocaust made its full-blown presence felt in Hungary. “It wasn’t the Germans, it was the Hungarian Nazis who did the dirty work,” Pressburger points out. The family lived in so-called “safe houses” that were protected by Switzerland, Finland and Sweden. The havens were dismantled in late 1944, and the Pressburgers moved into one of the two Jewish ghettos in Budapest. The Nazis had found two houses with Jews, including the one where we had been, and took them all out and shot them next to the Danube. Today there is a monument by the river [called Shoes on the Danube Bank]. We should have been with the Jews who were killed by the river,” he says. After the war, Pressburger and his siblings were farmed out to various orphanages run by the Jewish Agency, and things took a decidedly better turn. “We finally had food to eat,” he recalls. “After a while we were put on trains that were protected by the Jewish Brigade [of the British Army], and we were sent to Austria, and then to Germany.” “My uncle was a famous artist, and I learned a lot from him,” he says. While in Germany, Pressburger also took some lessons with a local artist. His mother managed to get him and two of his siblings berths on the Exodus, which set sail from Marseilles for Palestine in July 1947. Pressburger was 13 at the time and clearly recalls the aborted attempt to get to the Promised Land. “It was so crowded on the boat. This was a ship that was made to ply rivers in the United States, with a few hundred people on board, and we had over 4,500 passengers crammed in.” As we know, the British prevented the Exodus from docking in Palestine, and the passengers were shipped – in three far more seaworthy vessels – back to France. After the French government refused to cooperate with the British, Pressburger and the others found themselves back in Germany. The teenager eventually made it here in 1948, just one month before the Declaration of Independence. After a short furlough in Tel Aviv, during the first lull in the fighting in the War of Independence, he moved to Kibbutz Kfar Ruppin, where he worked in the cowshed. All the while he continued feverishly drawing and honing his artistic skills, which he says came in handy when he joined the IDF. After completing his military service, which included a spell as one of the founding members of the Flotilla 13 naval commando unit, he worked in Sdom for a while at the Dead Sea Works before starting his formal arts training in earnest. I was in the first group of students at the Avni Institute [in Tel Aviv],” he says. “There was quite a famous bunch of students and teachers like Moshe Mokadi and Isidore Ascheim and Aaron Giladi.” In such illustrious company, one might have thought Pressburger was set to unleash his burgeoning talents on art connoisseurs across the globe, but it was a while before that happened. Pressburger arrived in the French capital in 1964 and spent close to 15 years there, with a short interlude in Germany, before returning to Israel. His time in Paris was a professionally rewarding period of his life, and he also found love. “[Avni Institute teacher] Yochanan Simon gave me the name and address of a French-Israeli family in Paris, but when I got to the house, a young woman opened the door and told me the family was on vacation in Israel,” he explains. Despite missing his expected hosts’ welcome, he and the German-born young lady who greeted him soon fell for each other, and romance quickly led to wedding bells. By all accounts, Pressburger did well in Europe. He secured a rare three-year berth at Cité Internationale des Arts, where artists are normally provided with accommodation and studio space for between two months and a year. He was also accepted to the prestigious Beaux Arts academy of fine arts, mounted solo exhibitions, and took part in group shows all over Europe. One of these last was a group exhibition at Rathaus Charlottenburg in Berlin in 1966 – the first exhibition of Israeli artists in Germany after the Holocaust. When he arrived in Berlin, the lineup for the Israeli show was already signed and sealed, but somehow his work came to the attention of the German culture minister, who arranged for him to join. The Pressburgers’ year-long sojourn came to an abrupt end following an encounter he had one day while walking through the crowded Berlin streets...

Michael Knigin Abstract 1 Orange and Yellow 1967 Ink brush and watercolor on paper 8.25"x11" unframed Signed and dated in ink lower right Came from artist's estate *Custom framing a...

Discover a stunning 1950s mid-century modern abstract oil painting by renowned Colorado modernist artist Eve Drewelowe (1899–1989). Titled "Alpha – The Beginning," this textured mixe...

Artist/Designer; Manufacturer: Ram Kumar (Indian, 1924-2018) Marking(s); notes: signed; 1961 Materials: oil on canvas Dimensions (H, W, D): 35"h, 27"w image; 45"h, 37"w canvas (work ...

Waterline Fine Art, Austin, TX is pleased to present the following work: Oil on canvas. Signed lower right, signed and dated verso. 62.25 x 56.25 in. 64 x 58 in. (framed) Custom framed in a natural cherry wood floater. Provenance Washburn Gallery, New York Behnke Doherty Gallery, Washington Depot, CT Born in 1908 in Chicago, John Opper moved with his family to Cleveland, Ohio, in 1916. In high school, he began studying art and attending classes at the Cleveland Museum of Art. After graduation, he enrolled in the Cleveland School of Art (now Cleveland Institute of Art), only to withdraw after a year and move to Chicago, where he took classes at the Art Institute of Chicago. He eventually returned to Cleveland, enrolling at Western Reserve University (now Case Western Reserve), receiving his bachelor’s degree in 1931. The Depression has taken hold during this period, so Opper found work by teaching metalworking and sketching classes at the Karamu Settlement House, the oldest African American theater in the United States. In 1933, Opper traveled to Gloucester, Massachusetts, eventually connecting with the artist Hans Hofmann, who was teaching at the school run by Ernest Thurn. Hofmann encouraged Opper to work “in a more modern vein and start finding what it’s all about.” Heeding this advice, Opper relocated to New York, co-founding a mail-order club of American and British prints for dissemination to schools and museums. By the mid-1930s, he joined the Works Progress Administration (WPA) Easel Division, and also began attending the 57th Street school that Hans Hofmann had established after leaving the Art Students League. Looking back at his time at the school, Opper felt that beyond Hofmann’s teaching, most advantageous was his contact with fellow artists, including Byron Browne, Rosalind Bengelsdorf, and George McNeil. At the time, he also met Giorgio Cavallon and the sculptor Wilfrid Zogbaum. In 1936, Opper became a founding member of the American Abstract Artists, along with Balcomb and Gertrude Greene. The organization was formed to provide an opportunity for artists to show abstract works at a time when such opportunities were scarce. This led to his first solo show in 1937 at the Artists’ Gallery in New York. During his summer in Gloucester in 1933, Opper came to know Milton Avery. Painting in Avery’s informal studio in New York City the following winter, he became acquainted with Adolph Gottlieb and Mark Rothko. Opper participated in a couple of shows during the 1930s of the American Artists Congress Against War and Fascism, whose president was Stuart Davis. About the same period, Opper joined the Artists’ Union and served as the business manager of its publication, Art Front. During World War II, Opper worked for a ship design company creating drawings for piping systems used in PT boats...

Jean Baier (Swiss, 1932-1999) "Composition" 1960 An original enamel composition on metal wall mount art. This post war contemporary work features geometric abstract designs character...

Impressive early American modernist urban backyard scene. Framed. Oil on board. Signed. Image size, 18H by 24L.

Early work on canvas by Italian artist Oscar Piatella titled "La Lunga Strada" which translates as "The Long Way" executed in 1958. Bio: (Source: Brun Fine Art) Oscar Piattella wa...

James Johnson (American, 1925-1963) M-62, c. 1950s Oil on canvas 46 x 46 inches In the late 1950s, Johnson moved with his wife Marjorie and their new born son from Berkeley Californ...

Mid Century Textural Color-Field Abstract in Royal Blue-Purple by Peter Witwer A striking mid-century textural color-field abstract in a bold color palette of royal blue-purple by San Francisco artist Peter Witwer (American, 1928-1968). This highly textured mixed media piece, c.1960's, uses a monochromatic palette that is divided into two areas of varying textural depths. The lower part of the canvas verges on sculptural, as the textured surface becomes almost three-dimensional and haunting forms emerge from the abstract purple-blue plane. Unsigned. From a collection of the artist's works. Displayed in a painted wood slate frame. Frame has been painted by the artist and is considered part of the artwork. Linen size: 26"H x 22"W. Framed size: 27"H x 23"W x 1.2"D Unsigned, but was acquired with a collection of the artist's work. Provenance: Without a will and a family that had little interest in his art, nearly all of his possessions and close to 100 paintings were turned over to SF’s Conservators Office. His friend, Albert Richard Lasker, purchased all of Peter’s possessions (including the art) and has taken care of them until this day, always sensing there was something remarkable about the collection. Wanting Peter’s work to finally be seen, Richard came to Lost Art Salon with Peter’s story after reading about the new gallery in a July, 2005 issue of the SF Chronicle. Born George Peter...

Nicely painted mid century impressionist painting of New York. Great color and composition. Framed. No signature found.

Cubist Still Life Composition French School, mid 20th century oil on canvas, framed framed: 22 x 26 inches canvas: 18 x 21.5 inches provenance: private collection, Paris condition: v...

Oil on canvas, signed lower left Sabine Hettner (born 4 October 1907 in Florence; died October 1985 in Paris) was a French modernist painter. Life Sab...

Really impressive mid 1900s American school painting of Central Park. An amazing piece with hints of abstraction. Framed. No signature found.

This striking conceptual abstract oil painting is by British artist Penelope Ellis. It was painted in 1963. A superb image and ahead of the conceptual ideas of the swinging sixties a...

Structure XXIII is an original contemporary artwork realized by Nato Frascà in 1964. Acrylic painting on canvas. Title, signature and date on the back of...

Gloria Dudfield Red at Top Abstract 1960s Oil Pastel and Gouache on Paper 36"x32" unframed Gloria (Fischer) Dudfield July 12, 1922 – May 27, 2015 Came from a portfolio of her work ...

A dreamy and expertly painted abstraction by this noted American/Asian artist. Presented in a contemporary and high quality silvered leaf float frame which allows it to breath. Wave of Ur...

Antique American modernist abstract oil painting. Oil on canvas, circa 1950. Signed on verso. Displayed in a period frame. Image, 18"L x 20"H.

This Modern abstract oil painting on canvas by Modernist artist Stanley Bate features a geometric composition and a soft palette. The white and creme colors are complemented by earth...

Clarence Holbrook Carter (American, 1904-2000) Rockefeller Center, 1962 Acrylic and sand on scintilla Signed and dated lower left 25 x 20 inches Clarence Holbrook Carter achieved a ...

Clarence Holbrook Carter (American, 1904-2000) Seeing Egg No. 2, 1965 Acrylic and collage on scintilla Signed and dated upper right 30 x 22 inches 34 x 29 inches, framed A surrealis...

An original ink on canvas by Theodore Mendez who played an important role in the Post War British art movement and the Post Modern art movement. This simple yet stunning work, circa ...

Clarence Holbrook Carter (American, 1904-2000) Neon Ovoids, c. 1960s Acrylic on paper 9 x 12 inches Mid-Century Abstract neon orange, green, pink acrylic painting. Clarence Holbroo...

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