Sanford Mason

Portrait of Angelica Singleton Van Buren

1835

A wonderful three quarter portrait of a boy in a straw hat peeling a piece of fruit, probably an orange, by Italian artist Eugene Von Blaas (1843-1942). Von Blaas was born to Austria...

A fine American School naive folk art portrait of a man in a black tuxedo, oil on panel, monogrammed lower right AS, signed illegibly on verso “Alexande...

A set of four naive portraits by self-taught American artist Earle T. Merchant (1903-1997). Merchant was born in Gloucester, and started his law education at Boston University Law School, earning a law degree during the late 1920s. By 1928 he had joined a law practice with offices on Main Street in Gloucester. By the early 1960s, Earle Merchant...

A fine European portrait of a priest, oil on canvas, probably dating to the 17th or 18th century, unsigned, with original stretcher, minor surface losses and damage, craquelure, edge...

Info artist : Van Beers studied at the Academy in Antwerp. In 1873, he undertook a trip to London with Alexandre Struys. In 1878, Van Beers went to Paris where he worked in the stud...

Titan Fine Art presents this exquisite oil on panel portrait depicting a handsome young gentleman in an exuberant black damask doublet. The pose, with one hand holding gloves and the other akimbo, was one that was well-established for gentleman of the upper echelons of society by the time this work was painted. The principle governing portraits at this time was the recording and defining in visual terms of the position of a sitter in society. In addition to brilliant and complex symbols of luxury, they often contained many symbolic elements too; the inclusion of gloves was often used in portraits that celebrated a betrothal as in ancient times gloves were used to seal a marriage contract. The extraordinary costume of a black shimmering doublet, the brilliant white reticella ruff, and the cuffs edged with lace were immensely costly… this attire proclaims to every onlooker that this is a superior being. The rendering of the reticella lace ruff is exquisite and the artist has recorded the design that runs through the black damask fabric with meticulous attention to detail. The preservation of this black pigment is remarkable considering the age of the work. Black pigments are especially vulnerable to fade and wear over time partly due to environmental condition but also from unprofessional cleaning. This work is an exquisite example from the period. According to the inscription in the upper right, the gentleman was in his 22nd year of age in 1624. The coat of arms, which is displayed without a crest, may be ‘blazoned’ in the language of heraldry, as: Sable on a Chevron between in chief two Roundels and in base a Billet [or possibly Square] Or three Martlets Sable. In plainer English this means a black (Sable) background, spanned by a gold (Or) chevron, above which are two golden solid circles (Roundels), and below which is a gold rectangle (Billet); on the chevron are three small black birds (Martlets). Martlets are a stylised form of heraldic bird, believed to be based on the swift, which are conventionally drawn with small tufts instead of feet. In Continental Europe it is also conventional for them to be drawn without beaks, as appears to be the case here. The birds in this instance also have a vaguely duck-like appearance. Five families have been identified with very close armorial bearings to the one in our portrait. They are the (van) Houthem’s (of Brabant), the Prévinaire’s (of Flanders and Holland), and the Proveneer’s (of Liège) and it must be noted that the locations of these families also fit with the painting’s Flemish origins. However the French Grenières’s (of Île-de-France) and the Jallot’s (of Normandy) are the next closest matches and plausible matches, as Frans Pourbus had settled in Paris just a few years before our portrait was painted. This painting has been assessed by a professional conservator prior to going on sale, and as thus, it can be hung and enjoyed immediately. Frans Pourbus the Younger...

"Fragment" by Rudolf Kosow is a compelling painting that intricately uses the medium of wood to enhance its textural and emotional depth. The artwork features a close-up of a human f...

This contemporary figurative oil painting explores themes of politics and culture. Deborah Root’s dynamic colourful compositions tell an intimate story about her experience during socially relevant and politically important moments in time. “In The Nordstrom Box, popular culture operates both as a set of instructions and as a distorted mirror...