Angelina
View Similar Items
1 of 3
Balcomb GreeneAngelina1984
1984
About the Item
Balcomb Greene
Balcomb Greene has been described as "an iconoclast, a painter who has refused to conform to the latest artistic trends." This comment was apt, for Greene was an independent-minded artist who followed his own aesthetic inclinations regardless of what was in vogue among critics and the public. At the outset of his career, he eschewed Depression-era realism in favor of a cutting-edge geometric abstract style that set him apart from the mainstream art establishment and from many of his fellow abstractionists. During the 1940s, when non-representational painting came into fashion, he began to incorporate the human form into his work, creating enigmatic figure paintings in which variations of light and shadow played a vital role in creating mood. A turning point in his career occurred in 1931, when Greene and his wife, Gertrude Glass Greene, traveled to Paris to further their understanding of vanguard art and literature. Although Greene intended to write novels in his Montparnasse studio, he soon found himself drawn to the art world and decided to become a painter. He was especially inspired by the example of Piet Mondrian, Juan Gris and the Abstraction-Creation painters, who sought to eliminate all references to nature, literature and anecdote by focusing on pure abstraction. Greene returned to the United States in 1932, going on to develop his own hard-edged abstract style, creating what he referred to as "straight line, flat paintings." In 1937, he became a founding member and first chairman of Abstract American Artists, established to promote the cause of abstraction in national art circles. In the 1930s, Greene found employment with the Works Progress Administration's Federal Art Project. He created an abstract mural for the Federal Hall of Medicine at the World's Fair of 1939. In 1940, Greene began studying art history at New York University, going on to receive a master's degree in 1943. During this period, his aesthetic approach changed as he abandoned the crisply rendered and brightly colored forms of his geometric work in favor of the figure shown against a backdrop of fragmented planes. He went on to create paintings, often naturalistic depictions of the female nude, that were characterized by an expressionist handling of paint and a limited palette of whites, greys and other muted tones that derived from his interest in photography. In 1947 Greene purchased some land on Montauk Point, Long Island. With the exception of a trip to Paris in 1958-60, he spent most of his time on Long Island, where he was one of the pioneers of the East End art colony. Inspired by the proximity of the ocean, he painted a number of marines, using dynamic brushwork to evoke the energy and spirit of the sea. Greene taught aesthetics and art history at the Carnegie Institute of Technology in Pittsburgh (1942-47), where his students included Andy Warhol and Philip Pearlstein.
You May Also Like
- Girl Shepherd & Shepherd IILocated in Istanbul, 34The two works are for sale together. Together they are more meaningful. The two figures are side by side, looking at each other. Each work is 92X73 cm. If it is desired to be exhibited together, the frame of one is slightly larger than the other. However, the canvas dimensions are exactly the same size. If desired, the frame can be changed. The work is oil on canvas. The artist does not use white paint on white areas. That is the nature of the artist. More information is right below. Ömer Kaleşi...Category
1990s Modern Figurative Paintings
MaterialsOil, Canvas
- Oval Portrait of Mother and Daughter early 20 century Scandinavian Oil PaintingLocated in Stockholm, SESketch (or Non-Finito work) done by an unknown Scandinavian professional artist in a semi-modernist manner. A tender scene of family harmony, a daughter sits in her mother’s arms, co...Category
Early 20th Century Modern Portrait Paintings
MaterialsCanvas, Wood, Cotton Canvas, Oil
- Girl with Cat oil painting by Hans BurkhardtBy Hans BurkhardtLocated in Hudson, NYGirl with Cat (1935) Oil on canvas 38" x 26" 42 ½" x 30 ½" x 3 ½" framed Signed and dated "1935 H Burkhardt" lower right. Signed, dated and inscribed verso. About this artist: Hans ...Category
1930s Modern Portrait Paintings
MaterialsCanvas, Oil
- Modernist Portrait of a Woman by Philadelphia Artists Julius BlochLocated in Philadelphia, PAJulius Thiengen Bloch (American, born Germany, 1888-1966) Portrait of a Woman Oil on canvas, 32 x 25 1/4 inches Framed: 38 x 31 inches (approx.) Signed at lower right: "Julius Bloch"...Category
Mid-20th Century Modern Portrait Paintings
MaterialsCanvas, Oil
- Catalan peasant oil on canvas painting spanishBy Luis Graner Y ArrufiLocated in Barcelona, BarcelonaOil mesures 36x23 cm. Frameless. Restored.Category
1930s Modern Portrait Paintings
MaterialsCanvas, Board, Oil
$615 Sale Price30% Off - Spanish grape picker oil on canvas paintingLocated in Barcelona, BarcelonaLafuente - Grape harvester - Oil on canvas Spanish school signed "Lafuente". Oil measures 61x50 cm. Frameless.Category
1950s Modern Portrait Paintings
MaterialsCanvas, Oil
$703 Sale Price46% Off