Skip to main content

Unframed Portrait Paintings

to
3,186
1,895
1,485
1,518
1,528
2,115
Overall Width
to
Overall Height
to
102
205
1,929
6,305
48
24
48
75
52
104
111
194
102
142
43
3,179
654
447
441
424
385
246
227
131
86
68
56
21
6
5,492
1,494
1,450
6,443
4,238
2,976
2,473
2,209
1,995
846
779
692
421
360
278
274
188
176
165
144
140
128
125
7,827
4,768
4,592
4,526
3,413
80
72
69
67
59
5,879
1,427
3,465
3,204
Frame Included
"Don't Cry Long" Abstracted and Distorted Self-Portrait, One Crying Eye
Located in Detroit, MI
"Don't Cry Long" is a self-portrait of the artist and an unusual one at that in which the artist portrays herself shedding tears. Perhaps it is an expression of some grief experienced by Ms. Woodlock, but it also admonishes her to not "Cry Long" while at the same time poking fun because of her elongated face and the one lone "long" tear tracing a pattern down her face. In addition to self-portraits, Ethelyn painted commissioned portraits. In this painting her head is cocked and her famous bangs hang down her forehead. Compare two self-portraits, “Up From Under”, and “M’Eyes" to "Don't Cry Long." The major differences are the close facial view and the brilliant blood red paint that fills the entire canvas. This painting is included in the book, "Dreams Have Wings: An Artist's Journey into Magic and Mystery" printed in the United States, 1985. She describes "Don't Cry Long" as showing how funny looking we are, if we cry too long. Ethelyn Woodlock...
Category

Mid-20th Century American Modern Abstract Paintings

Materials

Oil, Masonite

Creative Force - Original Emotional Feminine Figurative Painting on Canvas
Located in Los Angeles, CA
Rooted in introspection and emotional nuance, Xenia Gray’s figurative mixed media works capture the quiet tension between solitude and connection. Her paintings often depict the huma...
Category

2010s Contemporary Figurative Paintings

Materials

Canvas, Acrylic

French Contemporary Art by Karine Bartoli - Porto 08
Located in Paris, IDF
Oil on canvas Karine Bartoli was born in 1971 in Ajaccio. She enrolled at the Ecole Nationale Superieure des Beaux Arts in Marseille where she graduated in 1997. Since then she has ...
Category

2010s Contemporary Figurative Paintings

Materials

Oil, Canvas

Woman
Located in Los Angeles, CA
Woman, 2015 Christopher Mudgett Woman (2015) is a striking portrait that distills the essence of the female face into an elegant interplay of line, form, and tone. Executed in oil o...
Category

2010s Contemporary Abstract Paintings

Materials

Canvas, Oil

In The Making 2 -21st Century, Contemporary, Figurative, Abstract, Colour Africa
Located in Ibadan, Oyo
By and by Too many thoughts rooted in my soul So many memories, the good and the bad They all shaped me. Colourful in a wink, darkness looted. But when it's all going grey, it shine...
Category

21st Century and Contemporary Abstract Figurative Paintings

Materials

Oil, Canvas

Portrait Of Mrs Diana George (nee Atkinson), dated 1930 Pre Raphaelite School
By John Maler Collier
Located in Blackwater, GB
Portrait Of Mrs Diana George (nee Atkinson), dated 1930 by John Maler Collier OBE (1850-1934) National Portrait Gallery Exhibition, reference: 323, 1930 Large 1930 Pre-Raphaelite ...
Category

Early 20th Century Portrait Paintings

Materials

Canvas, Oil

Untitled Portrait II (Modern, Academic Style Portrait Painting of a Young Man)
Located in Hudson, NY
Modern, academic style portrait painting on canvas of a young athletic male oil on canvas, 26 x 17 inches in antique wood frame This vertical, contemporary portrait painting of sin...
Category

2010s Academic Portrait Paintings

Materials

Canvas, Oil

Glamorous Young Woman Illustration
Located in Wilton Manors, FL
Attributed to Jon Whitcomb (1906-1988) Illustration of Glamorous Young Woman, ca. 1950's. Tempera on illustration board, image measuring 9 x 13 inches. Board measuring 15 x 20 inc...
Category

Mid-20th Century American Realist Portrait Paintings

Materials

Tempera

"The Space Between" - Expressive Mixed Media Figurative Painting
Located in Denver, CO
Jon Wassom’s "The Space Between" is a striking mixed media painting on panel, measuring 16 x 12 inches. This evocative figurative work merges expressive brushwork with geometric abst...
Category

2010s Contemporary Portrait Paintings

Materials

Canvas, Mixed Media

The archangel Saint Michael, after an icon of the 14th century
Located in Segovia, ES
Archangel Saint Michael after an icon from Constantinople of the 14th Century. Artist: Oliver Samsinger Technique: Egg tempera on gesso and wood, with application of gold leaf Dimens...
Category

2010s Byzantine Figurative Paintings

Materials

Gold Leaf

French North African early 20th century Impressionist, Fishermen coming ashore
Located in Woodbury, CT
French North African early 20th-century Impressionist, Fishermen coming ashore with their daily catch. André Humbert was born in Paris on the 27th of November. He was a student of t...
Category

Early 1900s Impressionist Figurative Paintings

Materials

Canvas, Oil

Renaissance Style Italian Old Master Painting Madonna & Child Tender Embrace
Located in Cirencester, Gloucestershire
19th/ early 20th Century Italian School unsigned Madonna and Child oil painting on canvas, unframed canvas: 32 x 24 inches provenance: private collecti...
Category

Late 19th Century Renaissance Portrait Paintings

Materials

Oil

“Orientalist Portrait of an Arab Man” Jean-Horace Vernet (French 1789-1863)
Located in SANTA FE, NM
“Orientalist Portrait of an Arab Man” Half-length, turned to the left, oval Jean-Horace Vernet (French 1789-1863) Circa 1830s Watercolor heightened with touches of white on paper Sig...
Category

1830s Romantic Portrait Paintings

Materials

Watercolor

"Levi Jackson" (2015) By John Tarantola, Nude Portrait Oil Painting
Located in Denver, CO
John Tarantola's original nude portrait "Levi Jackson" (2015) is a realist oil on panel painting that depicts a nude male lying on a bed, looking up seductively at the viewer's point...
Category

2010s Realist Nude Paintings

Materials

Oil, Panel

MARILYN - ANTICIPATION III
Located in Aventura, FL
Hand signed by the artist on verso. Hand Painted Unique Silkscreen on Canvas. Artwork is in excellent condition. Canvas is not stretched. Certificate of authenticity included. All...
Category

21st Century and Contemporary Pop Art Portrait Paintings

Materials

Canvas, Oil

Let Go - Original Dramatic Feminine Figurative Portrait Acrylic Painting
Located in Los Angeles, CA
Rooted in introspection and emotional nuance, Xenia Gray’s figurative mixed media works capture the quiet tension between solitude and connection. Her paintings often depict the huma...
Category

2010s Contemporary Figurative Paintings

Materials

Canvas, Acrylic

Contemporary abstract expressionist woman's portrait paper "By love, we endure"
Located in VÉNISSIEUX, FR
In her evocative painting titled "By Love, We Endure," French artist Natalya Mougenot delves deeply into the emotional and psychological landscape of womanhood. Rooted in a bold fusi...
Category

2010s Abstract Expressionist Portrait Paintings

Materials

Paper, Acrylic

Fine 18th Century British Old Master Oil The Young Shepherdess with Lamb
Located in Cirencester, Gloucestershire
The Young Shepherd English School, 18th century circle of Sir Joshua Reynolds oil on canvas, unframed Canvas: 30 x 25 inches Provenance: Private collection Condition: very good condi...
Category

18th Century Old Masters Portrait Paintings

Materials

Oil

Bide Your Time - 21st Century, Surrealism, Figurative, Women, Africa, Globe
Located in Ibadan, Oyo
Shipping Procedure Ships in a well-protected tube from Nigeria This work is unique, not a print or other type of copy. Accompanied by a Certificate of Authenticity. About Artist Bor...
Category

21st Century and Contemporary Surrealist Figurative Paintings

Materials

Canvas, Acrylic

Pauline Plummer (b.1933) - Contemporary Oil, Freddy
Located in Corsham, GB
A striking portrait of a handsome young man named 'Freddy' by artist Pauline Plummer (b.1933). Unsigned. Titled verso. On canvas on stretchers.
Category

21st Century and Contemporary Portrait Paintings

Materials

Oil

1930's Large French Oil Distinguished Portrait Dapper Gentleman in Suit & Chair
Located in Cirencester, Gloucestershire
The Seated Gentleman by Georges JOUBIN (1888-1983) signed and inscribed/ dated verso signed oil on canvas, unframed Canvas : 36 x 29 inches Provenance: private collection, Paris Con...
Category

Early 20th Century Impressionist Portrait Paintings

Materials

Oil

«Stella» Original portrait study.Acrylic painting . Square . Impressionism
Located in Oslo, NO
This artwork is a striking portrait showcasing a figure seated against a vibrant backdrop. The artist employs bold brushstrokes and a rich palette, blending earthy tones with dynamic...
Category

2010s Impressionist Portrait Paintings

Materials

Canvas, Acrylic

WONDERFUL
Located in CÓRDOBA, ES
Mixed media on paper Original art by DARIA KUSTO The magic flow reality.. Shipped well protected, unframed.
Category

2010s Neo-Expressionist Portrait Paintings

Materials

Permanent Marker

Sisterhood 2 -21st Century, Contemporary, Figurative Portrait, Women Africa Love
Located in Ibadan, Oyo
Sisterhood is also about growth and transformation. As we go through life, we change and evolve as individuals, and our relationships with our sisters change and evolve with us. The ...
Category

21st Century and Contemporary Contemporary Portrait Paintings

Materials

Canvas, Acrylic

Reality
Located in Ibadan, Oyo
Painting Ships in a well-protected tube from Nigeria This work is unique, not a print or other type of copy. Accompanied by a Certificate of Authenticity.
Category

21st Century and Contemporary Contemporary Portrait Paintings

Materials

Canvas, Oil, Acrylic

Reality
Reality
$2,336 Sale Price
25% Off
Reclining Nude Lady Model 1970's French Modernist Painting Provence Collection
Located in Cirencester, Gloucestershire
The Artists Model Nude Lady Model French School, circa 1970's signed oil painting on card, unframed size: 19.25 x 25.75 inches condition: overall very good, a very few light marking...
Category

1970s Impressionist Nude Paintings

Materials

Oil

The Other Side 4
Located in Ibadan, Oyo
Shipping Procedure FREE Shipping Worldwide Ships in a well-protected tube from Nigeria This work is unique, not a print or other type of copy. Accompanied by a Certificate of Authenticity (Issue by The Galley) The other side...
Category

21st Century and Contemporary Contemporary Portrait Paintings

Materials

Canvas, Acrylic

"Mood in Orange, " Oil Painting
Located in Denver, CO
Suchitra Bhosle's "Mood in Orange" is an original, handmade oil painting that depicts a dark haired woman, in vivid orange clothing, tilting her head a...
Category

2010s Impressionist Portrait Paintings

Materials

Oil, Panel

Abstract Expressionist impressionist woman's body on paper "Fragile soul"
Located in VÉNISSIEUX, FR
Fragile Soul is a contemporary abstract expressive depiction of a woman’s body, created in 2025 by French artist Natalya Mougenot in her studio in Lyon, France. The figure at the hea...
Category

2010s Contemporary Portrait Paintings

Materials

Paper, Acrylic

Afrocentric Radiance
Located in Ibadan, Oyo
In a vibrant celebration of African heritage and beauty, our protagonist, a stunning black African woman, graces the scene with her majestic presence. Crowned with a voluminous afro ...
Category

21st Century and Contemporary Contemporary Portrait Paintings

Materials

Fabric, Canvas, Oil, Mixed Media

Self Portrait, Street Art, Pop Art, Basquiat, red
Located in München, BY
Edition 5 Self Portrait of Jay-C JAY-C – the pseudonym of this innovative young artist known for his subversive use of familiar figures and symbols. Using a distinct and fine British sense of humour, 
he addresses stereotypes of modern society and his work, both playful and profound, stimulates us to question conventional social conceptions. JAY-C is a barometer responding to the world around us. Having had his first solo exhibition in 2018, in the same year he did a collaboration with BoConcept on their iconic Imola chair...
Category

2010s Street Art Portrait Paintings

Materials

Mixed Media, Pigment, Archival Pigment

Alberto Rossi (1858-1936) - Early 20th Century Oil, Knitting Lessons
By Alberto Rossi
Located in Corsham, GB
A thoroughly charming oil showing a young girl teaching a little boy to knit using red wool. The artist has beautifully captured the tutorial tilt of the girl's head and the inquisit...
Category

20th Century Portrait Paintings

Materials

Oil

Gri gri oil on canvas painting abstract expressionism
Located in Sitges, Barcelona
Title: Gri Gri Artist: Eduardo Arranz Bravo (Barcelona, 1941 – 2023) Medium: Oil on canvas Dimensions: 39.4 x 31.9 in (100 x 81 cm) Date: 1974 Signature: Signed lower left: Arra...
Category

1970s Abstract Abstract Paintings

Materials

Canvas, Oil

Dénudée (Unclad) - 21st Century, Contemporary, Figurative Realism, Nude, Drawing
Located in Ibadan, Oyo
Dénudée, the French word for unclad is evidently a contemplative piece-- one of passion, intimacy, and elegance, describes the feminine appearance and nature in one single case, the ...
Category

21st Century and Contemporary Expressionist Mixed Media

Materials

Paper, Charcoal

Popeye In The Run (large original painting on canvas)
Located in Aventura, FL
Original acrylic painting on canvas. Hand signed on front; signed and titled on verso by Jozza. Canvas is stretched. Artwork is in excellent condition. Certificate of authentici...
Category

2010s Street Art Portrait Paintings

Materials

Canvas, Acrylic

Unspoken Chapters -21st Century, Contemporary, Figurative Portrait, Modern Women
Located in Ibadan, Oyo
Shipping Procedure Ships in a well-protected tube. This work is unique, not a print or other type of copy. Accompanied by a Certificate of Authenticity. About Artist Elie HATUNGIMAN...
Category

21st Century and Contemporary Contemporary Figurative Paintings

Materials

Canvas, Acrylic

Sunshine, Women Portrait, Figurative, Original Oil Painting, Handmade Artwork
Located in Granada Hills, CA
Portrait oil Painting, women, nude, figurative art, Impressionism Artist: Ashot Muradyan Work: Original Painting, Handmade Artwork, One of a Kind Medium: Oil on Linen Year: 2024 Sty...
Category

2010s Impressionist Portrait Paintings

Materials

Canvas, Oil

Portrait of a Woman, 1940s-50s. Signed Vera d’Angara, Italian-Russian actress
Located in Firenze, IT
Portrait of a Woman, 1940s-50s. Signed Vera d’Angara, Italian-Russian actress Technique: Oil on panel Dimensions: Height 59 cm x Width 58 cm Frame: Painted wooden frame The portrait...
Category

Mid-20th Century Art Deco Portrait Paintings

Materials

Wood, Oil, Wood Panel

Open Road Ballad
Located in Zofingen, AG
A striking composition that fuses American nostalgia with contemporary energy. A red barn with a flag, a vintage light-blue car, and a young woman in denim holding a drink embody f...
Category

2010s Realist Figurative Paintings

Materials

Cotton Canvas, Acrylic

Baroque Portrait of a gentleman 18th century Italian master by Domenico Parodi
By Domenico Parodi (Genoa, 1672 - 1742)
Located in Stockholm, SE
We are grateful to Prof. Daniele Sanguineti for suggesting the attribution to Domenico Parodi (1672 - 1742). He dates the painting into the period between 1730 and 1740. Domenico Par...
Category

1730s Realist Portrait Paintings

Materials

Canvas, Oil

In The Mangrove, 21st Century Contemporary Oil Painting, By Anne-Rixt Kuik
Located in Nuenen, Noord Brabant
Anne Rixt Kuik graduated in 2017 at The Classical Academy of Arts in Groningen. She then went for study to Australia and Florence (Italy). Anne Rixt as a little child visited the Rij...
Category

2010s Contemporary Figurative Paintings

Materials

Oil

Contemporary abstract expressionist woman's portrait "Woman with ruby drops"
Located in VÉNISSIEUX, FR
This contemporary expressionist portrait of a woman was created by French artist Natalya Mougenot. It is part of her ongoing series dedicated to Women — a deeply personal journey thr...
Category

2010s Abstract Portrait Paintings

Materials

Paper, Acrylic

Subway no. 4 - Beijing
Located in Burlingame, CA
BING ZHANG's Subway no. 4, 48 x 48 inches, oil on canvas. Proudly presented by Andra Norris Gallery in California. Bing Zhang’s Subway painting series explores themes of class, labo...
Category

21st Century and Contemporary American Realist Figurative Paintings

Materials

Canvas, Oil

“Comme Avant, As Before" Abstract Colorful Portrait Street Art Pop Art on Canvas
Located in New York, NY
This particular piece depicts an anonymous portrait of a beautiful woman. Inspired by the every day, JM Robert strives to create paintings that mimic the fla...
Category

2010s Street Art Portrait Paintings

Materials

Canvas, Ink, Mixed Media, Acrylic

Portrait of Seated Young Woman - British 30's art Impressionist oil painting
Located in Hagley, England
This lovely portrait was painted by the noted British Impressionist portrait painter Walter Ernest Webster. It depicts a young woman and was painted circa 1930 in an impressionist pa...
Category

1930s Impressionist Portrait Paintings

Materials

Oil

Love Never End - 21st Century, Contemporary, Realist Portrait, Black Woman
Located in Ibadan, Oyo
It all started when we both met years back. I loved you and you loved me too. Our love journey began and was full of joy, love, peace and happiness! You showered me with the love I ...
Category

21st Century and Contemporary Contemporary Figurative Paintings

Materials

Canvas, Oil, Acrylic

Abstract impressionist portrait of Frida Kahlo "Dreaming with Frida" on canvas
Located in VÉNISSIEUX, FR
"Dreaming with Frida" is a contemporary, faceless abstract portrait of Frida Kahlo by French artist Natalya Mougenot. Blending elements of impressionism and expressionism, the work reimagines one of the most iconic female figures in art with bold color, emotional depth, and symbolic detail. Frida is depicted with orange flowers in her hair and matching orange earrings...
Category

2010s Abstract Impressionist Abstract Paintings

Materials

Canvas, Oil

Shackled Freedom - 21st Century, Expressionist, Figurative Portrait, Nude, Women
Located in Ibadan, Oyo
Shipping Procedure Ships in a well-protected tube. This work is unique, not a print or other type of copy. Accompanied by a Certificate of Authenticity. About Artist Sayeed Momoh is...
Category

21st Century and Contemporary Contemporary Figurative Paintings

Materials

Canvas, Charcoal

Large Abstract Cubist Style Multicoloured Original Oil Painting Signed
Located in Cirencester, Gloucestershire
Abstract Art, Picasso Style, Multicoloured, Original Oil Painting, Signed By French artist Beatrice Werlie, early 21st Century Signed by the artist Oil painting on canvas, unframed ...
Category

21st Century and Contemporary Abstract Abstract Paintings

Materials

Oil

Woman posing mixed media painting
Located in Sitges, Barcelona
Jordi Curós Ventura (1930-2007) - Woman Mixed technique on canvas cardboard. Work measurements 46x38 cm. Frameless. Jordi Curós Ventura (Olot, Girona, March 4, 1930) is a Spanish pa...
Category

1970s Fauvist Portrait Paintings

Materials

Mixed Media

Woman posing mixed media painting
Located in Sitges, Barcelona
Jordi Curós Ventura (1930-2007) - Woman Mixed technique on canvas cardboard. Work measurements 46x38 cm. Frameless. Jordi Curós Ventura (Olot, Girona, March 4, 1930) is a Spanish pa...
Category

1970s Fauvist Portrait Paintings

Materials

Mixed Media

Purpose of Existence 10
Located in Ibadan, Oyo
Shipping Procedure FREE Shipping Worldwide Ships in a well-protected tube from Nigeria This work is unique, not a print or other type of copy. Accompanied by a Certificate of Authent...
Category

21st Century and Contemporary Contemporary Portrait Paintings

Materials

Canvas, Acrylic

Classical French TURKISH Orientalist Beauty Painting of a Woman w/ Mandolin
Located in New York, NY
Francois Martin-Kavel (1861 - 1931) was active/lived in France. He was a profiling painter of woman, especially orientalism His auction records have exceeded over $20,000 Such a ...
Category

1880s Academic Figurative Paintings

Materials

Oil

19th century English Portrait of a Young boy in a Cavalier costume
Located in Woodbury, CT
This elegant English 19th-century portrait of a young boy dressed in a Cavalier costume, painted circa 1860, is a striking example of Victorian portraiture that seamlessly combines h...
Category

1860s Old Masters Portrait Paintings

Materials

Canvas, Oil

Fashion Essentials I - Contemporary colourful surrealistic painting
Located in DE
Gamez de Francisco paints and photographs very passionately, making statements filled with symbolism. He frequently includes insects in his artwork. He says: Flying insects represent...
Category

2010s Surrealist Portrait Paintings

Materials

Canvas, Acrylic

Surely I Will Fly - 21st Century, Contemporary, Figurative, Women, Bird, Oil
Located in Ibadan, Oyo
“Surely I Will Fly” is a vibrant and hopeful expression of the human spirit's innate desire for freedom and transcendence. This painting represents the moment when we spread our wing...
Category

21st Century and Contemporary Contemporary Figurative Paintings

Materials

Canvas, Oil

Rare Modernist Judaica Scholar Rabbi in Synagogue Oil Painting Signed Mora
Located in Surfside, FL
a mid century Judaica painting of a Rabbi wearing a Tallit prayer shawl. In the Modernist manner of Maurice Kish, Tully filmus or William Gropper. ...
Category

20th Century Folk Art Portrait Paintings

Materials

Oil

Antique German Oil Painting Portrait of a Family Group - Restoration project
Located in Cirencester, Gloucestershire
The Family Group German School, late 19th/ early 20th century oil on board board: 17.5 x 13 inches provenance: private collection condition: sound condition but with various surface ...
Category

Late 19th Century Victorian Figurative Paintings

Materials

Oil

Portrait of a Man with Bold Features Blue Sketch Original French Artwork
Located in Cirencester, Gloucestershire
Original French Artwork signed initials by Robert Ladou (French 1929-2014) original oil pastel painting on artist paper, framed overall size: 15.5 x 12.5 inches size: 9.5 x 8 inche...
Category

20th Century Portrait Paintings

Materials

Oil Pastel

"Triple Elvis" Denied Andy Warhol Silver Black Pop Art Painting by Charles Lutz
Located in Brooklyn, NY
"Triple Elvis" (Denied) Silkscreen Painting by Charles Lutz Silkscreen and silver enamel paint on canvas with Artist's Denied stamp of the Andy Warhol Art Authentication Board. 82 x 72" inches 2010 This important example was shown alongside works by Warhol in a two-person show "Warhol Revisited (Charles Lutz / Andy Warhol)" at UAB Abroms-Engel Institute for the Visual Arts in 2024. Lutz's 2007 ''Warhol Denied'' series gained international attention by calling into question the importance of originality or lack thereof in the work of Andy Warhol. The authentication/denial process of the [[Andy Warhol Art Authentication Board]] was used to create value by submitting recreations of Warhol works for judgment with the full intention for the works to be formally marked "DENIED". The final product of the conceptual project being "officially denied" "Warhol" paintings authored by Lutz. Based on the full-length Elvis Presley paintings by Pop Artist Andy Warhol in 1964, this is likely one of his most iconic images, next to Campbell's Soup Cans and portraits of Jackie Kennedy, Marilyn Monroe, Liz Taylor, and Marlon Brando. This is the rarest of the Elvis works from the series, as Lutz sourced a vintage roll of 1960's primed artist linen which was used for this one Elvis. The silkscreen, like Warhol's embraced imperfections, like the slight double image printing of the Elvis image. Lutz received his BFA in Painting and Art History from Pratt Institute and studied Human Dissection and Anatomy at Columbia University, New York. Lutz's work deals with perceptions and value structures, specifically the idea of the transference of values. Lutz's most recently presented an installation of new sculptures dealing with consumerism at Frank Lloyd Wright's Fallingwater House in 2022. Lutz's 2007 Warhol Denied series received international attention calling into question the importance of originality in a work of art. The valuation process (authentication or denial) of the Andy Warhol Art Authentication Board was used by the artist to create value by submitting recreations of Warhol works for judgment, with the full intention for the works to be formally marked "DENIED" of their authenticity. The final product of this conceptual project is "Officially DENIED" "Warhol" paintings authored by Lutz. Later in 2013, Lutz went on to do one of his largest public installations to date. At the 100th Anniversary of Marcel Duchamp's groundbreaking and controversial Armory Show, Lutz was asked by the curator of Armory Focus: USA and former Director of The Andy Warhol Museum, Eric Shiner to create a site-specific installation representing the US. The installation "Babel" (based on Pieter Bruegel's famous painting) consisted of 1500 cardboard replicas of Warhol's Brillo Box (Stockholm Type) stacked 20 ft tall. All 1500 boxes were then given to the public freely, debasing the Brillo Box as an art commodity by removing its value, in addition to debasing its willing consumers. Elvis was "the greatest cultural force in the Twentieth Century. He introduced the beat to everything, and he changed everything - music, language, clothes, it's a whole new social revolution." Leonard Bernstein in: Exh. Cat., Boston, The Institute of Contemporary Art and traveling, Elvis + Marilyn 2 x Immortal, 1994-97, p. 9. Andy Warhol "quite simply changed how we all see the world around us." Kynaston McShine in: Exh. Cat., New York, Museum of Modern Art (and traveling), Andy Warhol: Retrospective, 1996, p. 13. In the summer of 1963 Elvis Presley was just twenty-eight years old but already a legend of his time. During the preceding seven years - since Heartbreak Hotel became the biggest-selling record of 1956 - he had recorded seventeen number-one singles and seven number-one albums; starred in eleven films, countless national TV appearances, tours, and live performances; earned tens of millions of dollars; and was instantly recognized across the globe. The undisputed King of Rock and Roll, Elvis was the biggest star alive: a cultural phenomenon of mythic proportions apparently no longer confined to the man alone. As the eminent composer Leonard Bernstein put it, Elvis was "the greatest cultural force in the Twentieth Century. He introduced the beat to everything, and he changed everything - music, language, clothes, it's a whole new social revolution." (Exh. Cat., Boston, The Institute of Contemporary Art (and traveling), Elvis + Marilyn 2 x Immortal, 1994, p. 9). In the summer of 1963 Andy Warhol was thirty-four years old and transforming the parameters of visual culture in America. The focus of his signature silkscreen was leveled at subjects he brilliantly perceived as the most important concerns of day to day contemporary life. By appropriating the visual vernacular of consumer culture and multiplying readymade images gleaned from newspapers, magazines and advertising, he turned a mirror onto the contradictions behind quotidian existence. Above all else he was obsessed with themes of celebrity and death, executing intensely multifaceted and complex works in series that continue to resound with universal relevance. His unprecedented practice re-presented how society viewed itself, simultaneously reinforcing and radically undermining the collective psychology of popular culture. He epitomized the tide of change that swept through the 1960s and, as Kynaston McShine has concisely stated, "He quite simply changed how we all see the world around us." (Exh. Cat., New York, Museum of Modern Art (and traveling), Andy Warhol: Retrospective, 1996, p. 13). Thus in the summer of 1963 there could not have been a more perfect alignment of artist and subject than Warhol and Elvis. Perhaps the most famous depiction of the biggest superstar by the original superstar artist, Double Elvis is a historic paradigm of Pop Art from a breath-taking moment in Art History. With devastating immediacy and efficiency, Warhol's canvas seduces our view with a stunning aesthetic and confronts our experience with a sophisticated array of thematic content. Not only is there all of Elvis, man and legend, but we are also presented with the specter of death, staring at us down the barrel of a gun; and the lone cowboy, confronting the great frontier and the American dream. The spray painted silver screen denotes the glamour and glory of cinema, the artificiality of fantasy, and the idea of a mirror that reveals our own reality back to us. At the same time, Warhol's replication of Elvis' image as a double stands as metaphor for the means and effects of mass-media and its inherent potential to manipulate and condition. These thematic strata function in simultaneous concert to deliver a work of phenomenal conceptual brilliance. The portrait of a man, the portrait of a country, and the portrait of a time, Double Elvis is an indisputable icon for our age. The source image was a publicity still for the movie Flaming Star, starring Presley as the character Pacer Burton and directed by Don Siegel in 1960. The film was originally intended as a vehicle for Marlon Brando and produced by David Weisbart, who had made James Dean's Rebel Without a Cause in 1955. It was the first of two Twentieth Century Fox productions Presley was contracted to by his manager Colonel Tom Parker, determined to make the singer a movie star. For the compulsive movie-fan Warhol, the sheer power of Elvis wielding a revolver as the reluctant gunslinger presented the zenith of subject matter: ultimate celebrity invested with the ultimate power to issue death. Warhol's Elvis is physically larger than life and wears the expression that catapulted him into a million hearts: inexplicably and all at once fearful and resolute; vulnerable and predatory; innocent and explicit. It is the look of David Halberstam's observation that "Elvis Presley was an American original, the rebel as mother's boy, alternately sweet and sullen, ready on demand to be either respectable or rebellious." (Exh. Cat., Boston, Op. Cit.). Indeed, amidst Warhol's art there is only one other subject whose character so ethereally defies categorization and who so acutely conflated total fame with the inevitability of mortality. In Warhol's work, only Elvis and Marilyn harness a pictorial magnetism of mythic proportions. With Marilyn Monroe, whom Warhol depicted immediately after her premature death in August 1962, he discovered a memento mori to unite the obsessions driving his career: glamour, beauty, fame, and death. As a star of the silver screen and the definitive international sex symbol, Marilyn epitomized the unattainable essence of superstardom that Warhol craved. Just as there was no question in 1963, there remains still none today that the male equivalent to Marilyn is Elvis. However, despite his famous 1968 adage, "If you want to know all about Andy Warhol, just look at the surface of my paintings" Warhol's fascination held purpose far beyond mere idolization. As Rainer Crone explained in 1970, Warhol was interested in movie stars above all else because they were "people who could justifiably be seen as the nearest thing to representatives of mass culture." (Rainer Crone, Andy Warhol, New York, 1970, p. 22). Warhol was singularly drawn to the idols of Elvis and Marilyn, as he was to Marlon Brando and Liz Taylor, because he implicitly understood the concurrence between the projection of their image and the projection of their brand. Some years after the present work he wrote, "In the early days of film, fans used to idolize a whole star - they would take one star and love everything about that star...So you should always have a product that's not just 'you.' An actress should count up her plays and movies and a model should count up her photographs and a writer should count up his words and an artist should count up his pictures so you always know exactly what you're worth, and you don't get stuck thinking your product is you and your fame, and your aura." (Andy Warhol, The Philosophy of Andy Warhol (From A to B and Back Again), San Diego, New York and London, 1977, p. 86). The film stars of the late 1950s and early 1960s that most obsessed Warhol embodied tectonic shifts in wider cultural and societal values. In 1971 John Coplans argued that Warhol was transfixed by the subject of Elvis, and to a lesser degree by Marlon Brando and James Dean, because they were "authentically creative, and not merely products of Hollywood's fantasy or commercialism. All three had originative lives, and therefore are strong personalities; all three raised - at one level or another - important questions as to the quality of life in America and the nature of its freedoms. Implicit in their attitude is a condemnation of society and its ways; they project an image of the necessity for the individual to search for his own future, not passively, but aggressively, with commitment and passion." (John Coplans, "Andy Warhol and Elvis Presley," Studio International, vol. 181, no. 930, February 1971, pp. 51-52). However, while Warhol unquestionably adored these idols as transformative heralds, the suggestion that his paintings of Elvis...
Category

21st Century and Contemporary Pop Art Figurative Paintings

Materials

Enamel

Recently Viewed

View All