William Tolliver

"Man With Saxophone" Abstract, Figurative, Colorful, Musician, African American

1970s - 1990s

“Icarus Suspended” is an extraordinary painting of Ayrton's obsession with flight, myths, mirrors and mazes. This complex piece shows a figure in flight, frozen in action, either swooping down or, perhaps, falling to earth. Named after the Greek mythological figure, Icarus, who along with his father attempted to escape from Crete by means of wings that his father constructed from feathers and wax. Flying too close to the sun the wax melted and both fell to earth. The positioning of Ayrton's figure is reminiscent of "The Fall of Icarus" by Jacob Peter Gowy, Museo Nacional del Prado. This is part of a series of artworks on Icarus some sculptural and some three-dimensional paintings on canvas. Verso contains gallery label Matthiesen Gallery, 142 Bond St., London, England, with a signature and text in upper right corner: "To Morton Schotnick. Bought on the occasion of The Archives of American Arts Tour to London, England. October 10, 1961. Michael Ayrton...

"Trumpet Soloist" places the viewer in the midst of what might be a jazz festival and calls forth music we've all snapped our fingers to. The musician is in the midst of belting it o...

"Drummer in Red" is a vibrant painting both in the application of color, and the abstract movement of the background. Dennis has captured the musician in the midst of what might be a...

"The Weary Blues" depicts the interior scene of a Blues bar late at night with a number of patrons socializing, drinking and listening to music. The scene is dramatically rendered in...

SALE ONE WEEK ONLY Complicated exchanges between individuals engaged in conversations, an argument, boredom, a caring exchange, toasting, so many human interactions within an almost five and a half foot square painting containing up to 25 people has been magnificently composed and is continuously captivating. The dynamism and flow of humanity in “Mirror, Mirror” can be compared to the dynamism and flow of humanity found in Breughel’s “Wedding Dance” owned by and located at the Detroit Institute of Arts. Frederick Harold Cress was a British painter who migrated to Australia and won the Archibald Prize in 1988 with a portrait of John Bread. Cress was born in Poona, British Raj, but went to England with his parents in 1948, when he was ten. He was educated at the Birmingham College of Art in England, and migrated to Australia in 1962 as a "ten pound Pom", meaning that he only had to pay ten pound for his fare to Australia. Cress met the painter Anne Judell and married her in 1967; they divorced in 1991. He started his career painting figuratively, but became well known for his abstract work in the late 60s and 70s. He returned to figurative painting in the late 80s after he won the Archibald Prize with a portrait of his friend and colleague, John Beard...

"I See Color" is a dramatic psychological study of personal discovery painted in black and white with the face reflected on a window painted in color. Dennis states: It was a time wh...

Attack From Above, 2020, acrylic, oil, canvas, yarn and thread on canvas. Green, blue, pink, eagle, jet, spider-man, abstract.

The painting "SISTERS" by Libby Rosa blurs the distinction between abstraction and representation. And that rational/irrational alignment is only part of th...

Tornado is a black painting made by Patrice Breteau, a French contemporary artist. Breteau creates relief, texture and gives a living aspect to his mixed media pieces by using variou...

In a captivating new collection, Alex Guofeng Cao dazzles audiences with his unique twist on instantly recognizable images. Inspired by history and pop culture, Cao manipulates one iconic image to create another in his extraordinary large-scale works. From a distance, the pieces appear to be a singular image but as the viewer approaches closer, you find each work is a masterfully crafted compilation of minute detailed images layered next to one another, creating a mesmerizing and hypnotic optical illusion. Cao meticulously places each smaller image to form a dynamic gradient from dark to light which tricks the eye into seeing one image. This expertise in contrast is exemplified in all of his works, from striking black and white pieces to stunning explorations in high-definition color. He cleverly mirrors this visual contrast in his subject matter by subverting the main image and creating a dialogue between the macrocosm and microcosm. Take the piece, Ali vs Armstrong; here we see the iconic image of Muhammed Ali’s victory composed of thousands of tiny portraits...

Cao meticulously places each smaller image to form a dynamic gradient from dark to light which tricks the eye into seeing one image. This expertise in contrast is exemplified in all ...

In a captivating new collection, Alex Guofeng Cao dazzles audiences with his unique twist on instantly recognizable images. Inspired by history and pop culture, Cao manipulates one i...