Hank Ketcham

'Portrait of a Young Man', Dennis the Menace, Walt Disney, Figural Oil

1990

Signed lower left, 'Goetz' for Jack Goetz (American, born 1919); additionally signed, verso, dated 1998, titled 'Toreador', with artist information. A dramatic figural study of a proud, young toreador shown seated, wearing an embroidered vest and gazing directly towards the viewer. Goetz has painted and exhibited with success for many years and continues to paint at the age of 104. Speaking of himself, the artist says: "I studied arts and languages at Santa Monica College, taking classes in oil and watercolor painting, sculpture, ceramics, art history and music. At the same time, I studied with master painter Sergei Bongart. Because he taught many people in the movie business, I had fun meeting and painting with people...

Signed lower center, "Mancini"; additionally signed verso and painted circa 1975. Figurative oil in crimson, vermilion, jade, and deep blue, showing a young woman wearing a hat with...

Signed lower right, 'Z. Kavin' for Zena Kavin (American, 1912-2003) and dated 1966. Born in Berkeley, California, Zena Kavin studied at the California School of Fine Arts in San Francisco and, privately, with Kravchenko in Moscow. She lived in Berkeley and in Oakland her entire life, except for four years spent in New Mexico in the late 1930s. In 1949, she married artist Jon Cornin and settled with him in Oakland. Under the peudonym Corka, the Cornins produced cartoons for the Saturday Evening Post and the New Yorker. Kavin worked in various media, including wood engraving, lithography and sculpture. She was a member of the San Francisco Artists Association and exhibited with them as well as at the San Francisco Museum of Art Inaugural (1935), the California–Pacific International Exposition, San Diego (1935), the Golden Gate International Exposition (1939). Her work is held in the permanent collections of the Davis Art Center, the New Mexico Museum of Art and the Oakland Museum of California. Reference: Artists in California 1786-1940, Third Edition, Edan Milton Hughes: Crocker Art Museum, Sheridan Books 2002, Vol. 1, page 610; Who Was Who in American Art 1564-1975: 400 Years of Artists in America, Peter Hastings Falk, Sound View Press 1999, Vol. 2, page 1801; Mallett’s Index of Artists, Supplement, Daniel Trowbridge Mallett, Peter Smith...

Signed lower right, 'Paula Melcher' (American, 20th century) and dated 1956.

A Charming, 1960s Mid-Century Modern Portrait of a Young Man by Francis Chapin (Am. 1899-1965). With wonderful expressionist brushwork and a vibrant palette, the painting most like...

Hal Frater's "The Artist as a Young Man" is a striking oil on canvas that captures the essence of the artist himself, rendered in a raw, emotive style. The palette is earthy, with natural browns and creams contrasted against subdued blues and hints of muted red, evoking a sense of both the mundane and the profound. Frater's use of color and form reflect a contemplative mood, a moment of introspection. The artist's gaze is direct and unflinching, suggesting resilience and a deep inner life. This mid-20th-century piece, evocative of American Realism, offers a personal narrative, exploring themes of identity and self-perception. Frater’s technique—visible brushstrokes and a textured application of paint—adds a tangible depth to the work, inviting the viewer to consider the artist's inner world and the time in which he lived. About the Artist: Hal Frater was not just an artist, but a storyteller who left us on February 3, 2008, on the cusp of his 99th birthday. His fifty-year tenure as a commercial artist was a testament to his adaptability and appeal. Yet it was in his private studio where Frater’s true passion lay — painting not for clients, but for his own soul's expression. His work, always striving to capture the nuances of the human spirit, reflected his sharp observational skills. His artistry was honed not in formal schools, but alongside his peers in spontaneous gatherings, painting from life, sharing techniques and critiques that fueled their collective growth. Influenced by the likes of Jack Levine, Raphael Soyer, John Sloan, Thomas Hart Benton, Reginald Marsh, and Phillip Reisman...

"Boy Waiting" is an oil on board portrait painting by Philadelphia born Expressionist painter Bernard Harmon of a young man with somber expression, sitting on a chair. This work features a second environmental portrait on verso. The painting is 41.75" x 35.75" in size and is signed "Harmon" on verso. Figurative expressionism in the style of Alice Neel. Provenance: Estate of the Artist; Gratz Gallery & Conservation Studio, Doylestown, Pennsylvania. Bernard Harmon was born in Philadelphia, Pennsylvania in 1935. Harmon was primarily a portrait painter and a well loved teacher in the Philadelphia area. A graduate of the Philadelphia Museum School and Temples Tyler School of Art, Harmon traveled extensively in Europe and South America. Beloved by many, Harmon taught in the Philadelphia School District for 32 of his 54 years of life. Beginning his career as an art teacher at West Philadelphia High School, in the early 1960s he became one of the district's artists in residence, traveling from school to school to demonstrate for students how an artist works. Returning to the classroom, Harmon joined the art department at Central High School where he taught for 14 years and became an innovator in art curriculum, developing a program offering advanced placement art classes to gifted students. In his final years Harmon became a supervisor, mentoring teachers and overseeing programs in the Philadelphia school systems District #1. During his short life Harmon taught collage preparatory art classes at the Pennsylvania Academy of the Fine Arts, summer classes at the University of the Arts, and a Saturday program for gifted children at Drexel University. Among Harmon's portraits were commissioned by Philadelphia Jazz organist Jimmy Smith and Mayor Richardson Dilworth. Bernard Harmon was active in promoting African American Artist throughout his life time. He organized many early shows such as the "Afro American Artists 1800 - 1969" at the Museum of the Philadelphia Civic Center in 1969. He was considered a Renaissance man by friends and colleagues for his interests not only in art but music and theater as well. He was familiar and friends with many other African American artists such as Doc Thrash, Selma Burke...

"Portrait Boy" Oil Painting 14.5" x 20" inch (1930) by Shaaban Zaki signed & dated Shaaban Zaki came from a lower-middle-class family who was mostly government employees, but he wa...