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

Stephen Basso
Shoe repairman, colorful, character

2012

About the Item

*ABOUT Stephen Basso Stephen Basso's highly original pastels and oil paintings are romantic, yet thought provoking fantasies. His whimsical works are alive with boundless imagination, wry wit and fearless color. His shrewd social observations often translate into eerily humorous figurative scenes and narratives. Mr. Basso’s works evoke a high level of inquiry. The fanciful, yet keenly observed characters are unpredictable and evocative. The viewer vacillates between surprise, delight, and consternation. A Brooklyn native, much of Basso's wildly imaginative artwork was inspired by travel to Jamaica, Puerto Rico, and especially Mexico. Basso is particularly drawn to Latin American art, channeling its mix of Western and African influences and imagery into his vibrant, often surrealistic work. Combining a New York and a Mexican sensibility, he says of his work, "There is a natural surreal quality to Mexico that can collide with its harsh realities. One might call it bittersweet. It is often bawdy, but rarely vulgar, and images are everywhere. Love, hate, fear desire and of course, humor, never go out of style.” And he adds, " I like mixing high ideals with American irreverence." The elements of mystery, escapism, and humor blended with reality define his art. It is of a personal nature consisting of a cast of characters that inhabit the stage between the extreme highs and lows of life, a state of limbo where dreamlike scenarios are often pulled back to the reality of daily existence. Of his process, Mr. Basso says, "The paintings and drawings begin with objects around my home and studio, photos from various sources, and people I know, have known, or have yet to meet." By in large, Basso is self taught. (After initially attending the School of Visual Arts for Illustration, he realized painting was more engaging for him.) Seeking emotional honesty, he looked to the work of several "mentors": Max Beckmann, Francisco Goya, Willem de Kooning , Philip Guston , Marsden Hartley and Albert Pinkham Ryder - artists that spoke to the human condition.
  • Creator:
    Stephen Basso (1953, American)
  • Creation Year:
    2012
  • Dimensions:
    Height: 24.02 in (61 cm)Width: 18 in (45.7 cm)Depth: 0.99 in (2.5 cm)
  • Medium:
  • Movement & Style:
  • Period:
  • Condition:
  • Gallery Location:
    Brooklyn, NY
  • Reference Number:
    1stDibs: LU133915700481

More From This Seller

View All
Crown Jewels, colorful, figurative, outsider, narrative, three women, hats
By Stephen Basso
Located in Brooklyn, NY
Oil n canvas Stephen Basso's highly original pastels and oil paintings are romantic, yet thought provoking fantasies. His whimsical works are alive with boundless imagination, wr...
Category

2010s Outsider Art Portrait Paintings

Materials

Oil, Canvas

Hollywood, colorful, playful, narrative, outsider,
By Stephen Basso
Located in Brooklyn, NY
Oil on canvas Stephen Basso's highly original pastels and oil paintings are romantic, yet thought provoking fantasies. His whimsical works are alive with boundless imagination, w...
Category

2010s Outsider Art Portrait Paintings

Materials

Canvas, Oil

Brand New Harold, colorful abstract figure and text
By C. Dimitri
Located in Brooklyn, NY
Portrait, figure, narrative, interior. Oil on canvas.
Category

2010s Outsider Art Portrait Paintings

Materials

Canvas, Oil

purple hat, social observation, portrait of woman with red hat,
By Stephen Basso
Located in Brooklyn, NY
*ABOUT Stephen Basso Stephen Basso's highly original pastels and oil paintings are romantic, yet thought provoking fantasies. His whimsical works are alive with boundless imagina...
Category

2010s Outsider Art Portrait Paintings

Materials

Canvas, Oil

Mask, bold graphic colorful pointillist patterns text global currency
Located in Brooklyn, NY
Ghanaian 20000 Cedi Note, Oil On Canvas, 48" Round Jenna Lash specializes in global currency featuring animals, portraiture in a neo pointillist style
Category

2010s Pointillist Figurative Paintings

Materials

Canvas, Oil

No Foe Shall Gather Our Harvest bright pointillist patterns text global currency
Located in Brooklyn, NY
No Foe Shall Gather Our Harvest Australian 10 Dollar Note, Acrylic On Canvas, 60" x 48" Jenna Lash specializes in global currency featuring animals, portra...
Category

2010s Pointillist Figurative Paintings

Materials

Canvas, Oil

You May Also Like

Mixed-Media Red Hair Portrait by Christopher Mark Brennan
By Christopher Mark Brennan
Located in Pasadena, CA
The artist used very thick oil paint strokes to feature the blazing red hair of a girl and drew her face finely with a crayon. The contrast between the 2 media is striking! Christopher Mark Brennan...
Category

21st Century and Contemporary Outsider Art Figurative Paintings

Materials

Crayon, Oil

Voodoo Devils Take the Sick - The Fight of Good vs Evil - Vodou
By Wilson Bigaud
Located in Miami, FL
Devils depicted. Artist Wilson Bigaud paints a graphic narrative of mid-century life in Haiti without modern medicine. A man is dying yet there is no doctor present. In the struggle...
Category

1950s Outsider Art Figurative Paintings

Materials

Masonite, Oil

Victory by abandonment Julien Wolf Contemporary art painting expressionnist
By Julien Wolf
Located in Paris, FR
Oil paint on canvas Hand-signed on the back by the artist “At first glance, we are invited to a colorful carnival. Everything is movement here! As if Julien Wolf had tried to captur...
Category

2010s Outsider Art Figurative Paintings

Materials

Canvas, Oil

Filipina Girl Playing the Harp
Located in Soquel, CA
Vibrant portrait of a Filipino girl playing a harp by an unknown artist (20th Century). This piece is done in the style of traditional Filipino art, with ...
Category

1970s Outsider Art Figurative Paintings

Materials

Canvas, Acrylic, Wood Panel

Perfect Moment
By Therese James
Located in Brecon, Powys
Acrylic on canvas. Signed. Ready to hang
Category

2010s Outsider Art Figurative Paintings

Materials

Canvas, Acrylic

Jin in the parallel world Mohammad Ariyaei 21st Century Iranian outsider art
By Mohammad Ariyaei
Located in Paris, FR
Acrylic paint on paper Signed lower right by the artist
Category

2010s Outsider Art Figurative Paintings

Materials

Paper, Acrylic

Recently Viewed

View All