Skip to main content
Want more images or videos?
Request additional images or videos from the seller
1 of 9

Michael Kelly
Portrait of Louisiana Refugees by Michael Kelly

20th Century

$750
£566.37
€648.44
CA$1,059.20
A$1,156.39
CHF 606.25
MX$14,044.78
NOK 7,571.04
SEK 7,149.08
DKK 4,839.93

About the Item

Michael F. Kelly (American, 1887-1984) Untitled (Refugee Family), c. 1940s Pastel on paper Sight: 25 1/2 x 19 1/2 in. Framed: 27 7/8 x 21 3/4 x 3/4 in. Signed lower right: M.F. Kelly Verso: News clipping from a 1940 edition of the Oregon Statesman out of Salem, OR depicting a homeless Mrs. Anthony Bourdeaux of Coonville, Louisiana, nursing her three month old son while her two year old son awaits food. The family was displaced along with 30,000 others due to a flood. Michael F. Kelly was born on July 9, 1887 in Mount Holly, a rural Westchester, NY area. As a youngster, he quickly realized that his deepest interests were in the visual arts – drawing, woodcarving and painting. Kelly was a 1921 graduate of the Pratt Institute of Fine and Applied Arts, where he became the studio assistant to artist Ezra Winter, and also won a scholarship to travel and study in Europe. Before going abroad Kelly was invited to spend the summer at the Louis Comfort Tiffany Foundation in Long Island. Kelly lived, worked and studied there, and the legendary Tiffany offered valuable criticism and advice. Tiffany urged Kelly to study nature in all its forms, colors and shapes to better understand the mystery of design. In the fall of 1921 Kelly left for Europe, embarking on an extensive survey of museums, galleries, historical landmarks, church art and architecture, and modern art exhibits. He studied in Paris, Florence and Rome. Refreshed by these enriching experiences, Kelly returned to his work as studio assistant to Prix de Rome artist Ezra Winters. Kelly remained an assistant to Winters and others from 1922 through 1939, working on design projects for the Cunard Building in New York City, the Eastman School of Music in Rochester, NY, the United States Chamber of Commerce Building in Washington D.C, and the 1939 New York World’s Fair, among others. During this time he completed his own drawings and paintings that reflected life in the Depression Era. One of Kelly’s own designs reached the finals in a contest sponsored by the 1939 World’s Fair. Perhaps the most significant flowering of Kelly’s talent as a major artist came about during his Gloucester, Massachusetts period from 1939-1941. Kelly was a fascinated and truthful observer of the waterfront area, and his paintings captured the essence of this part of Americana. In these pictures of fishermen and townspeople involved in their everyday life, Kelly perfected the style that would become the hallmark of his career. In 1950 Kelly and his wife Rosa came to Cold Spring, NY and opened their antique shop at 72 Main Street. For the next quarter of a century Kelly painted a record of the life, land, and architecture of the lower mid-Hudson Valley area in and around Cold Spring. He was a familiar figure around town, and in 1977 the Putnam County Historical Society honored Kelly for “his years of dedication and service to the Society and to the community.” Later in his life Kelly began to express political sentiment in his paintings. Depression Era themes of home, farm, workers and architecture are fused together with expressions of a changing world. The Statue of Liberty, Kennedy, Castro, and Khrushchev interact with historical figures, angels, and the devil. The more “modern” lighting, angulation, and subject of these paintings demonstrate Kelly’s continued scope and growth as an artist. Michael Kelly died in Cold Spring in 1984. A comprehensive collection of his work will be offered at this fall’s Rhinebeck Antiques Show at the Dutchess County Fairgrounds on October 8th and 8th and at Jenkinstown Antiques in New Paltz by appointment. Bio sourced from the Archives of AskArt
  • Creator:
    Michael Kelly (1887 - 1984, American)
  • Creation Year:
    20th Century
  • Dimensions:
    Height: 27.875 in (70.81 cm)Width: 21.705 in (55.14 cm)Depth: 0.75 in (1.91 cm)
  • Medium:
  • Movement & Style:
  • Period:
  • Condition:
  • Gallery Location:
    New York, NY
  • Reference Number:
    Seller: RL11stDibs: LU2211212551932

More From This Seller

View All
Unique Painting By Albert Pels WPA Artist!
By Albert Pels
Located in New York, NY
Albert Pels (1910-1998) Painting of a group of figures, c. 20th century. 12 x 16 in. Framed dimensions: 19 1/2 x 23 1/4 in. Albert Pels was an art educator and painter of figures, genre scenes, urban and rural images, and illustration. He also did murals and worked in the mediums of oil, fresco, and watercolor. He was born on May 7, 1910, in Cincinnati, Ohio and died at the age of eighty-eight on January 25, 1998 in New York City. Albert Pels was the son of Samuel and Frieda Pels. He had two children, Joan Barbara and Richard J.A. with his first wife Gertrude Ethel Jaeckel. He later married Yolanda Zemfler, a painter of impressionist art. While in Ohio, Pels attended the Cincinnati Art Academy in 1931 where he won several scholarships. After moving to New York, he continued his education at the Art Students League, Beaux Arts and the American School. At the Art Students League, Pels studied under Thomas Hart Benton, Kenneth Hayes Miller, and Alexander Brook. Under the tutelage of these mentors, Pels evolved his technique and style. Pels was a member of the National Society of Mural Painters, the Salmagundi Club, and the Society of Independent Artists. He was on the board of directors of the Arts Students League in 1939, as well as, on the board the WPA Artists...
Category

20th Century American Realist Figurative Paintings

Materials

Canvas, Oil

Original Painting by Norwegian-American Artist Michael Hoiland
Located in New York, NY
Michael Hoiland (Norwegian-American, 1901-1994) Untitled (Church, Possibly Chicago), 20th century Oil on board 13 1/2 x 17 1/2 in. Framed: 18 3/4 x 21 3/4 in. Signed lower left: Mich...
Category

20th Century Modern Figurative Paintings

Materials

Oil, Board

William Fisher Classic American Illustration on Canvas
Located in New York, NY
William Fisher (American, 1891-1985) Untitled, 20th Century Oil on canvas/illustration 23 3/4 x 29 3/4 in. Framed: 31 x 37 1/4 x 1 in. Signed lower right: William Fisher William Fis...
Category

20th Century American Modern Figurative Paintings

Materials

Canvas, Oil

Modern Surrealist Painting by Richard Ericson
By Richard Ericson
Located in New York, NY
Richard Joseph Ericson (American, 1922-2010) Untitled, 1950 Oil on canvas 36 x 25 in. Signed lower right: RJE '50 Richard Joseph Ericson (b. October 22, 1922-d. November 21, 2010), born in Chicago, Illinois. Son of Claire (b. 1899) and Arthur Ericson (b. 1899). His father was an accountant for a food products company and the family moved to Mount Vernon, Westchester County, New York, when he was a young child. Ericson, a twin, first began to draw at age five and took up painting in oils at age twelve. He studied at the Art Students League in New York City in 1941, where he received an honorable mention during the annual scholarship competition held that year. During this period he worked as a commercial artist. After America's entry in World War II Ericson enlisted in the Army in 1942, where he served as a warrant officer. He saw service in North Africa, France, and Germany. While overseas, he did many drawings of the places in which he was stationed. He eventually found himself guarding Italian prisoners of war who had been captured in Sicily and southern Italy. While performing his duties during 1943 and 1944 he found time to paint several important, large scale portraits of the prisoners who were happy to pose for him. As the war concluded he was able to visit Holland to study. After nearly three years overseas, Ericson returned to America and traveled back to his home town of Chicago where he furthered his studies at the Art Institute of Chicago. He married in 1948 and moved his young family to Mexico, where he attended Mexico City College. He studied art and exhibited while living there, receiving his Master of Arts degree, cum laude, in 1953. For a time after his return to the United States he taught art in Dutchess County, New York, where he and his wife built their own house by hand. Eventually the family, which would come to include seven sons, settled in Hicksville, Long Island, New York. Ericson joined the staff of Hicksville High School as the art teacher in 1962, a position he would hold until his retirement in 1983. As a teacher, Ericson was open to all fields and styles of art, constantly experimenting and experiencing new forms and styles. He had started printmaking in the late 1940's and continued to work in this medium for many years, producing mezzotints, etchings, and wood block prints. He also continued to paint, creating portraits, scenes in southern Dutchess County, and Long Island landscapes - for which he would become well known. Ericson grew to love the area in which he lived, and depicted it quite often in his paintings. He became enamored with the historic village of Cold Spring Harbor...
Category

1950s Surrealist Portrait Paintings

Materials

Canvas, Oil

American Modernist Street & Diner Scene, Signed Kittredge
Located in New York, NY
Mystery Artist (Possibly William A. Kittredge, illustrator) Untitled (Diner), c. Mid-20th century Oil on board Sight: 8 x 10 in. Framed: 9 3/8 x 11 3/8 x 7/8 in.
Category

Mid-20th Century American Modern Figurative Paintings

Materials

Oil, Board

Portrait Of A Lady by NY Artist Marion Maas
Located in New York, NY
Marion Maas (American, b. 1930) In The Attic, c. 1970s Oil on canvas Framed: 30 1/2 x 24 1/2 x 1 1/2 in. Signed lower left Titled verso on stretcher bar 19...
Category

Late 20th Century Contemporary Figurative Paintings

Materials

Canvas, Oil

You May Also Like

Large American Modernist Post Impressionist Framed Portrait Oil Painting
Located in Buffalo, NY
Vintage American modernist oil painting. Oil on canvas. Framed. No signature found.
Category

1950s Modern Landscape Paintings

Materials

Canvas, Oil

Antique Modernist Abstracted Southern School Cubist Woman Portrait Oil Painting
Located in Buffalo, NY
Very impressive and a rare early work by Frederick E. Conway (1900 - 1973). Oil on board. Incredibly framed. Signed.
Category

1940s Cubist Abstract Paintings

Materials

Canvas, Oil

Large Figurative Expressionist Oil Painting Rediscovered New York City Artist
By Jonah Kinigstein
Located in Surfside, FL
Jonah Kinigstein (b. 1923) is an American Postwar & Contemporary painter. He works in a figurative expressionist style. His works are featured in the Smithsonian American Art Museum,...
Category

20th Century Expressionist Portrait Paintings

Materials

Oil, Board

American Modernist Black Woman Artist New Orleans Family Portrait Oil Painting
Located in Buffalo, NY
Vintage American modernist southern school painting. A family portrait on a New Orleans porch. Beautiful detail in the wrought iron. Brilliant color palette here. Signed verso. ...
Category

1950s Abstract Portrait Paintings

Materials

Canvas, Oil

Early Signed, two sided figurative painting with portraits by renowned painter
By Alfred Jensen
Located in New York, NY
Alfred Jensen Untitled two sided painting, 1947 2-sided gouache painting on board (one portrait is vertical; the other horizontal) 29 × 23 7/20 inches Signed and dated in paint on th...
Category

Mid-20th Century Modern Portrait Paintings

Materials

Oil, Gouache

South American Family, Modern Oil on Paper by Biagio Civale
Located in Long Island City, NY
Biagio Civale, Italian/American (1936 - ) - South American Family, Year: circa 1975, Medium: Oil on Paper, signed u.r., Size: 28 x 19 in. (71.12 x 48.26 cm), Frame Size: 35 x 26 ...
Category

1970s Modern Portrait Drawings and Watercolors

Materials

Oil