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

John R. Grabach
"After the Storm"

circa 1940

About the Item

Signed LL John Grabach was a highly regarded New Jersey artist, teacher and author of a classic text, How to Draw the Human Figure. He was born in Massachusetts, and with his widowed mother, moved to Newark, New Jersey, when he was eleven. Starting out as a die-cutter for a silverware firm, Grabach also designed important works of sterling silver hollow ware and Art Deco glass designs for several high-end retail manufacturers. He designed United States stamps for the Treasury Department and designed holiday greeting cards for several firms. Grabach enrolled in courses at the Art Students League in his spare time, studying under George Bridgman, Frank Dumond, Kenyon Cox and H. August Schwabe. Considered a leading figure in the Newark School of Painters, his powerful Ashcan style paintings depicting scenes of New York City and Newark are truly American masterpieces. He captures the expressions and mood of his subjects in these complex compositions on par with any of the highly regarded Ashcan painters of this period. Similar in many ways to his contemporary, George Bellows, Grabach was gifted in portraying the everyday events of working class folks, and translating their ordinary daily routines into something extraordinary to look at. Whether it be his native blue-collar Newark neighborhood, a crew of gruff dockworkers or something as regular and uninteresting as men eating soup, John Grabach had the ability to turn virtually any subject into appealing and worthy art. From the 1920s through the 1960s, Grabach was the subject of numerous one-man exhibitions in prestigious galleries and institutions across the country. In 1980, The Smithsonian Institute, in Washington, D.C., honored Grabach with a solo retrospective show of his work. This was an unusual tribute for a still living artist. Grabach was a dedicated and beloved teacher at the Newark School of Industrial Design for many years and among his favorite students was Henry Gasser. Grabach’s work is in the permanent collections of the Smithsonian, the Corcoran Gallery of Art, the Art Institute of Chicago, and the Philadelphia Art Alliance, among many others.
  • Creator:
    John R. Grabach (1886 - 1981, American)
  • Creation Year:
    circa 1940
  • Dimensions:
    Height: 49 in (124.46 cm)Width: 45 in (114.3 cm)Depth: 3 in (7.62 cm)
  • Medium:
  • Movement & Style:
  • Period:
  • Condition:
  • Gallery Location:
    Lambertville, NJ
  • Reference Number:
    Seller: LAM00941stDibs: G13022115724

More From This Seller

View All
"The Gentleman"
By Carle John Blenner
Located in Lambertville, NJ
Ashley John is proud to offer this artwork by: Carle Blenner (1862 - 1952) Carle Blenner was born in Richmond, Virginia, and received his education in Marburg, Germany. Blenner re...
Category

Early 20th Century Impressionist Figurative Paintings

Materials

Canvas, Oil

"Swimming Pool"
By Martha Walter
Located in Lambertville, NJ
Signed LR Born in Philadelphia, Martha Walter was a well-known Philadelphia Impressionist who specialized in light hearted, colorful beach ...
Category

20th Century Impressionist Landscape Paintings

Materials

Watercolor

"Jazz Club"
By Jane Gibbs
Located in Lambertville, NJ
Signed Lower Left
Category

20th Century Ashcan School Figurative Paintings

Materials

Canvas, Oil

"St. Ives, Cornwall, England"
By Hayley Lever
Located in Lambertville, NJ
Born in Adelaide, Australia, Hayley Lever was known for his town-shore landscapes and still-life painting in a style that combined impressionism with vivid colors and strong lines of...
Category

Early 1900s Impressionist Landscape Paintings

Materials

Oil, Panel

"Boats in Harbor"
By Hayley Lever
Located in Lambertville, NJ
Born in Adelaide, Australia, Hayley Lever was known for his town-shore landscapes and still-life painting in a style that combined impressionism with vivid colors and strong lines of...
Category

20th Century Landscape Paintings

Materials

Oil, Panel

"Nantucket"
By Paul Crosthwaite
Located in Lambertville, NJ
Signed Lower Left Paul Crosthwaite (1911 - 1981) Paul Crosthwaite was a respected member of the New Hope art community. He was born in Pelham Manor, New York and after studying in architecture for two years decided upon a career as an artist. With that in mind he enrolled in the Art Students League in New York City studying under John Sloan, Raphael Soyer, Yasuo Kunioshi and Morris Kantor. In the mid-thirties he and artist John Sharp...
Category

20th Century Realist Landscape Paintings

Materials

Oil, Panel

You May Also Like

Modernist Oil Painting the Shop Window NYC 1940s WPA era
By Maurice Becker
Located in Surfside, FL
the Shop Window New York City, 1940s 17.75X25 sight size. Maurice Becker (1889–1975) was a radical political artist best known for his work in the 1910s and 1920s for such publica...
Category

Early 20th Century Ashcan School Landscape Paintings

Materials

Oil, Board

New York scene done by John Grabach Artist "Trinity Church - Wall Street"
Located in Rockport, MA
Great Wall Street piece by John R. Grabach (March 2, 1886 – March 17, 1981) with expressive colors and figures. Grabach was a renowned American painter, best known for his evocative...
Category

1920s Ashcan School Figurative Paintings

Materials

Oil

Hubs Landing
By Carl Bretzke
Located in Sag Harbor, NY
"Hubs Landing" is an oil painting of a marina. Painted en plein air, by Carl Bretzke. Painting Dimensions: 12 x 16 inches Framed dimensions: 17 x 21 inches Carl Bretzke is a rep...
Category

2010s American Realist Landscape Paintings

Materials

Oil, Panel

"Sag Harbor Pier" American Realist landscape of boats and a sunset in small town
By Carl Bretzke
Located in Sag Harbor, NY
"Sag Harbor Pier" is an American Realist oil painting; a seascape of boats and a sunset in small town Sag Harbor, Long Island. Framed. Signed. Carl Bretzke is a representational pa...
Category

21st Century and Contemporary American Realist Landscape Paintings

Materials

Oil, Panel

"Cityscape Study 2", (2023) Original Oil Painting by Calvin Lai
By Calvin Lai
Located in Denver, CO
Calvin Lai's (US based) "Cityscape Study 2" is an original, handmade oil painting that depicts cars with bright city lights. This painting is framed and ready to hang. Artist Bio: ...
Category

2010s Contemporary Figurative Paintings

Materials

Canvas, Oil, Wood Panel

5:00 - Contemporary Beach Landscape Peach Pink Clouds Sky Ocean Shore, 2022
By David Konigsberg
Located in Kent, CT
In this contemporary beach landscape in oil on canvas mounted on panel, figures in the distance can be seen along the shore of a beach, gazing out at the deep, dark navy blue ocean, ...
Category

2010s Contemporary Figurative Paintings

Materials

Canvas, Oil, Panel

Recently Viewed

View All