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Sam Norkin
"Backstage, Ambassador" Broadway Theatre NYC Mid-century Modern Modernist Cubist

circa 1945

About the Item

"Backstage, Ambassador" Broadway Theatre NYC Mid-century Modern Modernist CubistSigned lower left, titled on the stretcher. Norkin was a Brooklyn, New York-born cartoonist who specialized in theater caricatures for more than seven decades. His drawings of theater, opera, ballet and film celebrities appeared in Variety, Backstage, The Philadelphia Enquirer, The Washington Post, Los Angeles Times, The Boston Globe and many other publications. Norkin learned composition and anatomy from the muralist Mordi Gassner. He received a scholarship to the Metropolitan Art School after his high school graduation, and he later attended Cooper Union, the Brooklyn Museum Art School and the School of Fine and Industrial Art. During the 1940s, newspaper editors wanted to devote more space to new theatrical productions, but photo opportunities usually did not happen until a show opened. Norkin took advantage of the situation and gained access to rehearsals, performers, costume sketches, fittings and scenic designs, providing editors with illustrations prior to an opening. From 1940 to 1956, his theatrical illustrations were a regular feature in the New York Herald Tribune. Then for the next 26 years, he covered the performing arts for the Daily News. Since 1940, Norkin has had more than 4000 drawings published. The painting depicts the empty stage of Broadway’s Ambassador Theatre. It measures 24 x 36 inches. Framed, the work is 41 x 29 inches.
  • Creator:
    Sam Norkin (1917 - 2011)
  • Creation Year:
    circa 1945
  • Dimensions:
    Height: 29 in (73.66 cm)Width: 41 in (104.14 cm)
  • Medium:
    Canvas,Oil
  • Movement & Style:
    American Modern
  • Period:
    1940-1949
  • Condition:
    The painting and its original frame are in very fine condition.
  • Gallery Location:
    New York, NY
  • Reference Number:
    1stDibs: LU115624154471
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