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American Modern Figurative Paintings

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Style: American Modern
Preparing the Flag, America's 1784 Golden Girl
Located in Missouri, MO
Preparing the Flag, America's 1784 Golden Girl Arthur Sarnoff (American, 1912-2000) Signed Upper Right 28 x 24 inches 31.5 x 26.5 inches with frame SEE PHOTO: **Used for the Bi-Cen...
Category

20th Century American Modern Figurative Paintings

Materials

Oil, Board

A Charming 1950s Modern Portrait, Girl in White Dress, by Francis Chapin
Located in Chicago, IL
A Charming, 1950s Modern Portrait of a Girl in White Dress by Noted Chicago Artist, Francis Chapin (Am. 1899-1965). Artwork size: 6 1/2” x 5 3/4”. Oil on Masonite. (Framed size: 1...
Category

Mid-20th Century American Modern Figurative Paintings

Materials

Masonite, Oil

The Last Mediterranean Hummingbird
By Joseph Norman
Located in Lake Worth Beach, FL
The Last Mediterranean Hummingbird Size: 51x41 framed under glass 64.5x54.5 x1 Joseph Norman. The artist created this stunning work of art in Spain in the late 80s; it is from a S...
Category

1980s American Modern Figurative Paintings

Materials

Charcoal, Acrylic, Handmade Paper

Africa - Collage Painting in Orange - African American Artist - Spiral Group
Located in Miami, FL
African American artist Alvin Hollingsworth part of the famous Spiral Group , created an inventive and intriguing close-up portrait with figures in the distance. Found objects such as swatches of burlap, plastic spoons, press type and wood shapes are adhered to the surface make this work an object as much as an image. The overall image is bathed in a super hot orange-yellow. This is Hollingsworth interpretation of the soul of Africa. Indistinctly signed lower right in red. The work makes a powerful statement in person. Provenance: The Artist to a personal friend. Private collection Framed dimensions 19 1/4 x 25 1/4 in. Alvin Carl...
Category

1980s American Modern Figurative Paintings

Materials

Fabric, Burlap, Wood, Oil

American Modernist Oil Stick Drawing: Landscape of Gray Barn Red Sliding Doors
Located in Denver, CO
This stunning oil stick on paper titled "Barn Side with Sliding Doors" by renowned American artist George Vander Sluis (1915-1984) depicts a serene...
Category

1980s American Modern Figurative Paintings

Materials

Paper, Oil Pastel

A Fabulous Mid-Century Modern Portrait of a Woman by Noted Artist Francis Chapin
Located in Chicago, IL
A Fabulous Mid-Century Modern Portrait of a Young Woman by Noted Chicago Artist, Francis Chapin (Am. 1899-1965). Depicting a wonderfully fashionable woman dressed in a red sweater, ...
Category

Mid-20th Century American Modern Figurative Paintings

Materials

Masonite, Oil

An Elegant Modernist Portrait of a Young Woman in Red Dress by Francis Chapin
Located in Chicago, IL
An Elegant 1940s Modernist Portrait of a Young Woman a Red Dress by Noted Chicago Artist, Francis Chapin (Am. 1899-1965). A beautifully executed studio portrait, the painting is oil...
Category

Mid-20th Century American Modern Figurative Paintings

Materials

Masonite, Oil

Friends
Located in Los Angeles, CA
Born: New York August 26, 1924. Education : Parsons School of Design Study with Moses Soyer. COLLECTIONS : Albrecht Gallery Musuem Montclair Museum Reading Museum Joslyn Art Museu...
Category

1970s American Modern Figurative Paintings

Materials

Oil

Judy and Rita on Porch at Afton
Located in Los Angeles, CA
Judy and Rita on Porch at Afton, c. 1936, oil on canvas, 24 x 36 inches, title inscribed on tacking margin; “Judy” and “Rita” inscribed verso, NB: purchased together with The New Roa...
Category

1930s American Modern Figurative Paintings

Materials

Canvas, Oil

Mother and Child -- 1949
Located in Mc Lean, VA
Bryon Browne was an important American modernist painter. Signed upper right; signed, dated and situated 'New York' on reverse
Category

1940s American Modern Figurative Paintings

Materials

Canvas, Oil

Painting of New York City Fire Department in New York City by British Artist
Located in Preston, GB
Painting of New York City Fire Department in New York City by Contemporary British Artist, Angela Wakefield. Art measures 36 x 24 inches Frame measures 41 x 29 inches Angela Wake...
Category

2010s American Modern Figurative Paintings

Materials

Canvas, Acrylic

Woman in Bloom - Figurative Nude Study Oil on Canvas
Located in Soquel, CA
Woman in Bloom - Figurative Nude Study Oil on Canvas A nude woman, seemingly pregnant, sits reclined in a chair with her hands at the base of her belly holding a flower. This striki...
Category

Mid-20th Century American Modern Figurative Paintings

Materials

Canvas, Oil

Riders of Pigeon Hill
Located in Los Angeles, CA
Riders of Pigeon Hill, c. 1940s, oil on canvas, signed lower right, 24 x 36 inches, label verso with title, artist’s name and address; same information inscribed verso; ex-collection...
Category

1940s American Modern Figurative Paintings

Materials

Canvas, Oil

Water Wings, Saturday Evening Post Cover, 1922
Located in Fort Washington, PA
Medium: Oil on Canvas Signature: Signed Lower Left Sight Size 24.00" x 19.00", Framed 32.50" x 27.00" Cover of The Saturday Evening Post, August 26, 1922. Exhibitions: JC Leyendecker...
Category

1920s American Modern Figurative Paintings

Materials

Canvas, Oil

St. Atomic oil and tempera painting by Julio de Diego
Located in Hudson, NY
Julio De Diego’s Atomic Series paintings made an extraordinary statement regarding the shock and fear that accompanied the dawn of the nuclear age. In the artist’s own words, “Scientists were working secretly to develop formidable powers taken from the mysterious depths of the earth - with the power to make the earth useless! Then, the EXPLOSION! . . . we entered the Atomic Age, and from there the neo-Atomic war begins. Explosions fell everywhere and man kept on fighting, discovering he could fight without flesh.” To execute these works, De Diego developed a technique of using tempera underpainting before applying layer upon layer of pigmented oil glazes. The result is paintings with surfaces which were described as “bonelike” in quality. The forms seem to float freely, creating a three-dimensional visual effect. In the 1954 book The Modern Renaissance in American Art, author Ralph Pearson summarizes the series as “a fantastic interpretation of a weighty theme. Perhaps it is well to let fantasy and irony appear to lighten the devastating impact. By inverse action, they may in fact increase its weight.” Exhibited 1950 University of Illinois at Urbana "Contemporary American Painting" 1964 Marion Koogler McNay Art Institute, San Antonio, Texas This work retains its original frame which measures 54" x 36" x 2". About this artist: Julio De Diego crafted a formidable persona within the artistic developments and political struggles of his time. The artist characterized his own work as “lyrical,” explaining, “through the years, the surrealists, the social-conscious painters and the others tried to adopt me, but I went my own way, good, bad or indifferent.” [1] His independence manifested early in life when de Diego left his parent’s home in Madrid, Spain, in adolescence following his father’s attempts to curtail his artistic aspirations. At the age of fifteen he held his first exhibition, set up within a gambling casino. He managed to acquire an apprenticeship in a studio producing scenery for Madrid’s operas, but moved from behind the curtains to the stage, trying his hand at acting and performing as an extra in the Ballet Russes’ Petrouchka with Nijinsky. He spent several years in the Spanish army, including a six-month stretch in the Rif War of 1920 in Northern Africa. His artistic career pushed ahead as he set off for Paris and became familiar with modernism’s forays into abstraction, surrealism, and cubism. The artist arrived in the U.S. in 1924 and settled in Chicago two years later. He established himself with a commission for the decoration of two chapels in St. Gregory’s Church. He also worked in fashion illustration, designed magazine covers and developed a popular laundry bag for the Hotel Sherman. De Diego began exhibiting through the Art Institute of Chicago in 1929, and participated in the annual Chicago Artists Exhibitions, Annual American Exhibitions, and International Water Color Exhibitions. He held a solo exhibition at the Art Institute of Chicago in the summer of 1935. Though the artist’s career was advancing, his family life had deteriorated. In 1932 his first marriage dissolved, and the couple’s young daughter Kiriki was sent to live with friend Paul Hoffman. De Diego continued to develop his artistic vocabulary with a growing interest in Mexican art. He traveled throughout the country acquainting himself with the works of muralists such as Carlos Merida, and also began a collection of small native artifacts...
Category

1940s American Modern Figurative Paintings

Materials

Masonite, Oil, Tempera

Blue and Purple Mountains 2 - Fauvist Landscape
Located in Soquel, CA
Vibrant and playful landscape by California artist Richard "Don" Klopfer (1920-2009). Signed and dated "R. Klopfer 3.86" on verso. No frame. Board size: 13"H x 19"W Richard "Don" Kl...
Category

1980s American Modern Figurative Paintings

Materials

Oil, Masonite

Modernist Portrait of 3 Girls on A Beach by Alice Waugh
Located in New York, NY
Alice Helen Waugh (American, 20th century) Untitled, late 20th century Oil on board 19 3/4 x 23 3/4 in. Framed: 24 x 28 x 2 1/2 in. Signed lower left: Alice Waugh A painter and prof...
Category

Late 20th Century American Modern Figurative Paintings

Materials

Oil, Board

Charming Mid-Century Modern 1950s Portrait of a Young Girl by Francis Chapin
Located in Chicago, IL
A charming, beautifully painted, Mid-Century Modern portrait of a young girl by noted Chicago artist, Francis Chapin. Dating from the 1950s, the painting was exhibited at the famed ...
Category

Mid-20th Century American Modern Figurative Paintings

Materials

Canvas, Oil

Mid Century Modernist Watercolor Landscape with Horse, Cleveland School
Located in Beachwood, OH
William Sommer (American, 1867–1949) Spring Beauty Watercolor on paper Signed lower right 12.5 x 17 inches 18 x 22.75 inches, framed William Sommer is seen as a key person in bringi...
Category

Mid-20th Century American Modern Figurative Paintings

Materials

Watercolor

Nude Figures, Metallic Gold Ground, African American Artist - Black Artist
Located in Miami, FL
Hollingsworth intertwines faces and figures along in black and red on a metallic ground. There are 3 nude figures in total. Black Arts Movement - Dreamy study of faces and nudes floating in a gold metallic sky. In the foreground the is a what appears to be an African figure in a long blue ground with bulbous red hat and then an indication of a mountainous horizon line. The right center is an indication of a sun. Acrylic and metallic paint on board Signed lower right BIOGRAPHY: Alvin Hollingsworth...
Category

1970s American Modern Figurative Paintings

Materials

Acrylic

French Gouache Portrait Study of Navajo Hopi and Apache Figures
Located in Cirencester, Gloucestershire
Title: French Gouache Portrait Study of Navajo Hopi and Apache Figures by Emile GALLOIS (1882-1965, French) Signed: Yes Medium: Original gouache painting on thick unframed paper, Siz...
Category

Mid-20th Century American Modern Figurative Paintings

Materials

Gouache

A Delightful Painting of a Young Boy Sketching in a Boathouse by Francis Chapin
Located in Chicago, IL
A Delightful Painting of a Young Boy Sketching in a Boathouse by Noted Chicago Modern Artist, Francis Chapin (Am. 1899-1965). Painted circa 1958 at the artist's summer house and st...
Category

Mid-20th Century American Modern Figurative Paintings

Materials

Oil, Board

Saturday Evening Post Illustration. “ The Devil’s Stronghold” Original Magazine
Located in Miami, FL
The work is mostly black and white to indicate that this is a night scene. On closer inspection, you will see areas of magenta and ivory throughout The publisher's label on verso ide...
Category

1960s American Modern Figurative Paintings

Materials

India Ink, Gouache, Pencil

A Charming 1950s Modern Portrait of a Young Woman by Francis Chapin
Located in Chicago, IL
A Charming, 1950s Modern Portrait of a Young Woman in a Red Sweater by Noted Chicago Artist, Francis Chapin (Am. 1899-1965). Artwork size: 8” x 6”, Oil on Masonite (Framed size: 11...
Category

Mid-20th Century American Modern Figurative Paintings

Materials

Masonite, Oil

Coastal Scene, 20th Century Seascape, Cleveland School Artist
Located in Beachwood, OH
George Gustav Adomeit (American, 1879-1967) Coastal Scene Oil on canvas Signed lower left 19 x 23 inches 21.5 x 25.5 inches, framed A major painter of American scene subjects, Georg...
Category

20th Century American Modern Figurative Paintings

Materials

Oil

Reclining Nude
Located in Palm Desert, CA
A painting by Joseph Stella. "Reclining Nude" is a figurative painting, oil on canvas in a bright palette of yellows, greens, and tans by American Modernist artist Joseph Stella. The...
Category

Early 20th Century American Modern Figurative Paintings

Materials

Canvas, Oil

Charming Mid-Century Modern Painting, Children in a Soda Shop by Francis Chapin
Located in Chicago, IL
A charming 1950s Mid-Century Modern painting of two children seated together in a soda shop by the noted Chicago artist, Francis Chapin. Artwork size: 15 1/2” x 21"; Framed size: 17...
Category

Mid-20th Century American Modern Figurative Paintings

Materials

Canvas, Oil

Mid Century Sitting Nude Figurative
By Elmer Albritton
Located in Soquel, CA
Mid Century figurative painting of a pensive sitting nude figure with moody, mid-century color palette in the background. Attributed to Elmer S. Albritton, unsigned (American, 1922-...
Category

1960s American Modern Figurative Paintings

Materials

Canvas, Oil, Cardboard

A Colorful 1950s Painting of a Bull Fight by Artist Francis Chapin
Located in Chicago, IL
A colorful, 1950s oil on canvas painting of a bull fight by artist Francis Chapin in a brown frame. Estate stamped on reverse. Artwork size: 18" x 24". Framed size: 18 1/2" x 24...
Category

1950s American Modern Figurative Paintings

Materials

Canvas, Oil

Over and Above: No. 6, Surreal Cat w/ Fish Bones, 20th Century Cleveland School
Located in Beachwood, OH
Clarence Holbrook Carter (American, 1904–2000) Over and Above: No. 6, 1963 Oil, sand & fish bones on canvas Signed and dated upper left 53 x 31 inches Clarence Holbrook Carter achie...
Category

1960s American Modern Figurative Paintings

Materials

Oil

"Entering the Bus" Expressionist Figurative Composition Original Oil on Canvas
By Jakob Bokulich
Located in Soquel, CA
"Entering the Bus" Expressionist Figurative Composition Original Oil on Canvas Dynamic figurative composition by Bay area Figural, Abstract expressionist and notable Burning Man artist Jakob Bokulich (American, b. 1974). Several figures are crowded together, some of which are nude. Others are wearing typical clothing, and appear to be going out their daily lives. The expressive, slightly distorted faces and close placement of the figures is reminiscent of some of Francisco Goya's paintings. Titled, dated, and signed on verso: "Entering the Bus" May, 1992 Jake Bokulich No frame, but the artist has affixed black tape to the edges. Jakob Bokulich (1974, Santa Cruz, CA) is a self-trained, multi-disciplinary artist known for his paintings and kinetic sculptures. His work is in the collection of the Croatian Embassy in Paris, and he was awarded an Honorarium grant in 2018 by Burning Man for his 21 foot-tall sculpture "Big Pollinator," which was years in the making and involved the work of over 100 volunteers. The son of an auto mechanic, Bokulich began painting at age 12 after a house fire left his family homeless and he stayed temporarily with a local landscape painter. At 17 he left home for Europe - his art education was living in art squats and artist communities, and immersing himself in the museums and galleries of Europe. Drawing inspiration from living in a war zone in Croatia between 1993-1995, he exhibited in galleries in Paris, Saint-Tropez, Chamonix, and Split, Croatia. Transitioning back to the U.S, the artist helped build artist communities in San Francisco and Oakland, being deeply involved in spaces such as Cellspace, The Artship, and The Creamery. In this phase of his practice, Bokulich explored performance and ritual, co-writing and performing in the film Hysteria by Antero Alli. This prompted his stay in LA working in film and set design. In 2015 the seasoned and well rounded artist moved to New York City to return to a studio practice, now informed by his experiences in ritual, meditation, and unconventional self exploration. Bokulich’s work reinforces modes of seeing in a world where the senses have become neglected. Solo Exhibits MICHELE MACK GALLERY New York, 2021 THIRTY SIX GALLERY Beacon, New York, 2020 ARTSHIP Oakland, 2003 LIGHT San Francisco, 2001 LE LION d'OR Chamonix, France, 1994 CROATIAN EMBASSY IN PARIS Paris, 1994 MICHAEL ANGELO GALLERY Santa Cruz, 1994 GALERIE DANS LE KIOSQUE FLOTTANT Paris, 1993 GALERIJA PORTA AUREA Split, Croatia, 1993 LAVOIR PUBLIC VASSEROT Saint-Tropez, France, 1993 Selected Group Exhibits CHASE CONTEMPORARY New York, 2022 SOTHEBY'S New York, 2021 ART MIAMI/CONTEXT (Elizabeth Clement...
Category

1990s American Modern Figurative Paintings

Materials

Canvas, Oil, Stretcher Bars

"Rosemary" with Feather Boa - Bay Area Figurative Movement Study Oil on Canvas
Located in Soquel, CA
"Rosemary" with Feather Boa - Bay Area Figurative Movement Study Oil on Canvas A dark-haired woman with a feather boa sits propped on a stool surrounded by bright textures and patte...
Category

Mid-20th Century American Modern Figurative Paintings

Materials

Canvas, Oil

Groovy Lucille Ball, original painting for TV Guide cover
Located in Miami, FL
Bob Peak's Lucille Ball, TV guide cover is a seminal work. With its stylized design and use of punchy color, this work constitutes a powerfully innovative pai...
Category

1960s American Modern Figurative Paintings

Materials

Mixed Media, Gouache

A Wonderful 1950s Mid-Century Modern Portrait of a Young Woman Seated at a Table
Located in Chicago, IL
A wonderful 1950s Mid-Century Modern portrait of a young woman seated at a table by famed Chicago artist, Francis Chapin (Am. 1899-1965). Great color palette and expressive, contemp...
Category

Mid-20th Century American Modern Figurative Paintings

Materials

Canvas, Oil

A Charming, 1950s Mid-Century Modern Portrait of a Young Boy in Blue Hat
Located in Chicago, IL
A Charming, 1950s Mid-Century Modern Portrait of a Young Boy in Blue Hat by Noted Chicago Artist, Francis Chapin (Am. 1899-1965). Artwork Size: 9 x 6 1/4” (Framed size: 11 1/2” x...
Category

Mid-20th Century American Modern Figurative Paintings

Materials

Masonite, Oil

Still Life with Apples and Skull, Figurative Oil Painting by Ohio Artist
Located in Beachwood, OH
Clarence Holbrook Carter (American, 1904-2000) Still Life with Apples, 1940 Oil on canvas Signed and dated upper right 18 x 24 inches Clarence Holbrook Carter achieved a level of national artistic success that was nearly unprecedented among Cleveland School artists of his day, with representation by major New York dealers...
Category

1940s American Modern Figurative Paintings

Materials

Oil

A Cheerful 1950s Modern Portrait of a Young Woman by Francis Chapin
Located in Chicago, IL
A Cheerful, 1950s Modern Portrait of a Young Woman with Blonde Hair by Noted Chicago Artist, Francis Chapin (Am. 1899-1965). Artwork size: 7 1/2” x 5 1/4”, oil on masonite (Framed ...
Category

Mid-20th Century American Modern Figurative Paintings

Materials

Masonite, Oil

Fresno Crema - Southwest Inspired Pop Art Original Painting
Located in Los Angeles, CA
Will Beger and his contemporary-minimalist paintings, take on an entirely unique approach to southwest art. Influenced by his youth and inspired by nature, he effortlessly captures a...
Category

21st Century and Contemporary American Modern Figurative Paintings

Materials

Mixed Media, Acrylic, Wood Panel

A Delightful Mid-Century Modern Painting of Mother and Child by Francis Chapin
Located in Chicago, IL
A Delightful Mid-Century Modern Painting of Mother and Child by Noted Chicago Artist, Francis Chapin (Am. 1899-1965). Artwork size: 5 3/4” x 4” (Framed size: 9 3/4” x 8 1/2”) Estat...
Category

Mid-20th Century American Modern Figurative Paintings

Materials

Masonite, Oil

1950s "Curled Up Cubist" MidCentury Figurative Gouache University of Paris
Located in Arp, TX
Donald Stacy "Curled Up Cubist c.1950s Gouache on paper 24" x 18" unframed Unsigned Came from artist's estate Donald Stacy (1925-2011) New Jersey Studied: Newark School of Fine Art The Art Students League Pratt Graphic Arts Center University of Paris 1953-54 University of Aix-en-Provence 1954-55 Faculty: Art Department of the New School Museum of Modern Art School of Visual Arts Stacy Studio Workshop Exhibitions: Grand Central Moderns George Wittenborn The New School Print Exhibitions, Chicago University of Oklahoma Honolulu Museum Monclair Museum Wisconsin State College Louisiana Art Commission Philadelphia...
Category

Mid-20th Century American Modern Figurative Paintings

Materials

Paper, Gouache

"Reclining Nude" Arthur B. Carles, Abstracted Nude, Early American Modernism
Located in New York, NY
Arthur B. Carles Reclining Nude, circa 1920 Inscribed "Mercedes Matter" on the overlap Oil on canvas 32 x 51 inches Provenance The artist’s estate Mercedes Matter, the artist’s daug...
Category

1920s American Modern Figurative Paintings

Materials

Canvas, Oil

Knucks Down
By Karl Witkowski
Located in New York, NY
Signed upper left: Witkowski
Category

Late 19th Century American Modern Figurative Paintings

Materials

Canvas, Oil

Interior with Figures
Located in Dallas, TX
Arthur Osver studied at Northwestern University and the Art Institute of Chicago. Osver was awarded the Prix de Rome in 1952. He taught at the Brooklyn Museum Art School, Columbia Un...
Category

1930s American Modern Figurative Paintings

Materials

Canvas, Oil

Cicada, Mid-century Figural Surrealist Cleveland School Painting, 1960s
Located in Beachwood, OH
Clarence Holbrook Carter (American, 1904-2000) Medieval Heads, 1966 Acrylic on scintilla Signed and dated upper right 23.5 x 30 inches Clarence Holbrook...
Category

1960s American Modern Figurative Paintings

Materials

Watercolor

"One Thousand Words" - Surreal Figurative
Located in Soquel, CA
Bold figurative work by Richard Cronin (American, b. 1952). Two figures stand on a patio, turned away from each other. The figures and scene are rendere...
Category

1970s American Modern Figurative Paintings

Materials

Canvas, Oil

I'll Be There
Located in Lexington, MA
“I’ll Be There” by Craig Greene is a compelling 20 x 16 inch oil on canvas that captures quiet strength, emotion, and human connection through a modern figurative lens. Executed in G...
Category

2010s American Modern Figurative Paintings

Materials

Canvas, Oil

Carry me away
Located in Lexington, MA
“Carry Me Away” is a 24 x 20 inch oil painting by contemporary artist Craig Greene, blending figurative portraiture with abstract expression. This emotionally charged work features a...
Category

2010s American Modern Figurative Paintings

Materials

Canvas, Oil

Cowgirl in the Studio - Figurative Study in Oil on Canvas
Located in Soquel, CA
Cowgirl in the Studio - Figurative Study in Oil on Canvas A woman in a vest, cowboy hat, and boots by American painter, Patricia Gren Hayes (b. 1932). The model is sitting on a stoo...
Category

1970s American Modern Figurative Paintings

Materials

Canvas, Oil

"In Foreign Parts" Eugene Higgins, Southwestern Pueblo, Modern Figurative
By Eugene Higgins
Located in New York, NY
Eugene Higgins In Foreign Parts, circa 1913 Signed lower right Watercolor on paper Sight 17 x 13 inches Born William Victor Higgins in 1884 to a Shelbyville, Indiana farm family where the only art Victor was aware of as a child was his father's love of flowers. "He loved their forms and their colors, and he tended his garden as a painter might work a canvas." At the age of nine, Victor met a young artist who traveled the Indiana countryside painting advertisements on the sides of barns. He purchased paints and brushes so the young Higgins could practice his own artwork on the inside of his father's barn. He also taught Victor about art museums and especially about the new Chicago Art Institute. This information never left the young artist, and he saved his allowance until his father allowed him at the age of fifteen to attend Chicago Art Institute. He worked a variety of jobs to finance his studies both there and at the Academy of Fine Arts. Victor Higgins traveled to New York in 1908, where he met Robert Henri, who became a significant influence by depicting every-day scenes and stressing the importance of the spirit and sense of place as important factors in painting. Higgins was also greatly affected by the New York Armory Modernism Show of Marsden Hartley in 1913. While Victor Higgins was in Chicago he met former mayor and avid collector Carter H. Harrison who was to prove instrumental in the growth of Higgins career for several years. Harrison agreed to support Higgins for four years to go to Paris and Munich and paint and study in the great museums in Europe. While at the Academie de la Grande Chaumier in Paris (1910-1914) he met Walter Ufer, who was another Chicago artist being sponsored by Carter Harrison. This meeting was not only a life-long friendship, but the beginning of a great change in the way Higgins looked at "American" art. He decided that America needed it's own authentic style rather than the 19th Century classic style he was taught in Europe. Very soon after returning to Chicago in 1914, Harrison sent him and Walter Ufer on a painting trip to Taos, New Mexico for a year in exchange for paintings. Higgins made other similar agreements and was able to support himself with his painting. This trip was a life-changing experience and introduced Higgins to the authentic America he had been looking for. In 1914 Taos was an isolated village about twelve hours from Santa Fe on an impossible dirt road. But the colorful life of the pueblo people and the natural beauty drew a collection of artists who became the Taos art colony, from which the Taos Society of Artists was founded in 1915. Victor Higgins became a permanent resident within a year of his arrival and a member of the society in 1917, exhibiting with Jane Peterson in 1925 and with Wayman Adams and Janet Scudder in 1927. The members would travel around the country introducing the Southwest scenes with great success. He remained a member until the Society's dissolution in 1927. Higgins was the youngest member of the group of seven. Other members were Joseph Henry Sharp, Bert Phillips...
Category

1910s American Modern Figurative Paintings

Materials

Paper, Watercolor

Dreamy Vintage Watercolor of Two Figures by Artist Gertrude Klares Bedell
Located in Chicago, IL
A dreamy watercolor of two figures in repose Gertrude Klares Bedell. Artwork size: 18" x 13 1/2". Framed size: 26 1/2" x 22". Biography from Askart: An Austrian countess born i...
Category

1940s American Modern Figurative Paintings

Materials

Paper, Watercolor

“Reclining Nude”
Located in Southampton, NY
Oil on canvas Signed verso
Category

1960s American Modern Figurative Paintings

Materials

Canvas, Oil

A Wonderful Mid-Century Boxing Scene of a Standing Prize Fighter by Rudolph Pen
Located in Chicago, IL
A Wonderful Mid-Century Boxing Scene of a Standing Prize Fighter by Noted Chicago Artist, Rudolph T. Pen. This energetic sporting scene, painted in the 1960s, exemplifies the abstra...
Category

Mid-20th Century American Modern Figurative Paintings

Materials

Canvas, Oil

"Pond in Back of Her House" Virginia Berresford, Modernist, Abstract Landscape
Located in New York, NY
Virginia Berresford Pond in Back of Her House Signed and titled on the reverse Oil on board 23 1/2 x 17 1/2 inches Virginia Berresford was an underrated American modernist who had ...
Category

1950s American Modern Figurative Paintings

Materials

Oil, Board

Red Head Madame- Original 1975 Acrylic on Canvas
Located in Soquel, CA
Red Head Madame- Original 1975 Acrylic on Canvas Modern portrait of a nude red head woman by Bay Area artist Patricia Gren Hayes (American, 1932). The woman is seated on a chair, nu...
Category

1970s American Modern Figurative Paintings

Materials

Canvas, Oil, Stretcher Bars

Godzilla like Dinosaur Monster, SciFi, Science Fiction Cover Illustration
By Paul Wenzel
Located in Miami, FL
Beautiful Godzilla like monster illustration from 1961. Wenzel was a prolific Disney Artist for decades. The work is beautifully matted and framed and lookes better in person.
Category

1960s American Modern Figurative Paintings

Materials

Mixed Media, Gouache

Portrait of an Old Man with Cane, Important Chicago Modernist WPA Artist
Located in Surfside, FL
Portrait of an Old Man with Cane, by American artist William S. Schwartz, c. 1940, gouache painting, signed l.l, framed. William S. Schwartz (February 23, 1896 – February 10, 1977) was an American artist who lived and worked in Chicago. Schwartz was born in Smorgon in Belarus, then in the Russian Empire in 1896. His parents were Samuel Schwartz and Tauba Reznikoff. At the age of thirteen, he moved to the nearby city of Vilna to attend art school. Four years later, he emigrated to the United States and eventually enrolled in the School of the Art Institute of Chicago. After graduating, he put his art career on hold to concentrate on a budding career as an opera singer. When Schwartz returned to painting, he distinguished himself with dreamy, symbolist works and abstractions that tended to bewilder viewers. He also scandalized conservative audiences with numerous lithographs of nude women. During the Great Depression, Schwartz became an artist on the Federal Art Project (WPA) payroll painting murals. He was one of the seven WPA artists who contributed to a mural at Riccardo's, Schwartz (Music), Malvin Albright (Sculpture), Ivan Alrbight (Drama), Aaron Bohrod (Architecture), Rudolph Weisenborn (Literature), Vincent D’Agostino (Painting), and Ric Riccardo (Dance). In 2002 Chicago philanthropist Seymour H. Persky acquired the murals for his personal collection. Through the WPA, Schwarz received commissions to produce murals in post offices and public spaces. He created his “Americana Series,” a group of four paintings featuring poets, painters, composers and scientists. His Composersdepicts four contemporary musicians, among them, Victor Herbert. The mural was discovered at Glencoe Public Library, IL, in 2007, and include: Americana No. 1 Poets: Mark Twain, Walt Whitman and Edgar Allen Poe; Americana No. 2 Painters: Saint Gaudens, Bellows, Sargent, Innes, Whistler and Homer; Americana No. 3 Composers: Herbert, DeKoven, Chadwick, MacDowel; Americana No. 4 Scientists: Thomas Alva Edison, Steinmetz, Alexander Graham Bell...
Category

Mid-20th Century American Modern Figurative Paintings

Materials

Gouache

The Fisherman, 20th century Cleveland School artist
Located in Beachwood, OH
William Schock (American, 1913–1976) The Fisherman, c. 1955 Oil on canvas Signed lower right 26 x 40 inches 34 x 48 inches, framed William Schock was...
Category

1950s American Modern Figurative Paintings

Materials

Oil

City Scape, Ovoid Geometrical Abstract Green & Brown Structures
Located in Beachwood, OH
Clarence Holbrook Carter (American, 1904-2000) City Scape, 1978 Acrylic on scintilla Signed and dated lower right 30 x 22 inches A surrealist mid-century figural abstract painting....
Category

1970s American Modern Figurative Paintings

Materials

Acrylic

The Gold Coast, Mid-Century Pastel Pink & Green Painting of Ovoid, Miami
Located in Beachwood, OH
Clarence Holbrook Carter (American, 1904-2000) The Gold Coast, 1979 Collage and acrylic on scintilla Signed and dated lower right 22 x 30 inches Clarence Holbrook Carter achieved a...
Category

1970s American Modern Figurative Paintings

Materials

Acrylic

Reclining Nude Woman
Located in Astoria, NY
Manfred Schwartz (American, b. Poland, 1909-1970), Reclining Nude Woman, Oil on Canvas, apparently unsigned, gilt wood frame. Image: 14.75" H x 17.75" D; frame: 22" H x 25" W x 2.5"....
Category

Mid-20th Century American Modern Figurative Paintings

Materials

Canvas, Oil

American Modern figurative paintings for sale on 1stDibs.

Find a wide variety of authentic American Modern figurative paintings available for sale on 1stDibs. Works in this style were very popular during the 21st Century and Contemporary, but contemporary artists have continued to produce works inspired by this movement. If you’re looking to add figurative paintings created in this style to introduce contrast in an otherwise neutral space in your home, the works available on 1stDibs include elements of blue, orange, green, red and other colors. Many Pop art paintings were created by popular artists on 1stDibs, including Clarence Holbrook Carter, Patricia Gren Hayes, Jack Hooper, and Donald Stacy. Frequently made by artists working with Paint, and Oil Paint and other materials, all of these pieces for sale are unique and have attracted attention over the years. Not every interior allows for large American Modern figurative paintings, so small editions measuring 2 inches across are also available. Prices for figurative paintings made by famous or emerging artists can differ depending on medium, time period and other attributes. On 1stDibs, the price for these items starts at $350 and tops out at $330,000, while the average work sells for $4,517.

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