Hand Paintings

This painting reveals Bruno Surdo’s fluency in merging Renaissance figure painting with Symbolist and Pre-Raphaelite sensibilities. A young woman lies nestled in a field of daisies, wrapped in soft drapery and cradling a red book to her chest, while a monarch butterfly hovers near her hand. The composition recalls the reclining female figures of Titian and Giorgione, yet the setting shifts from mythological landscape to an immersive, almost Edenic field of flowers. Surdo’s atelier training is evident in the sculptural modeling of the body and the careful handling of light across skin and fabric. The figure possesses the volumetric presence of High Renaissance painting, yet she is embedded in a richly detailed natural environment that feels intimate rather than grand. Art historically, the work resonates strongly with the Pre-Raphaelites—particularly artists like John Everett Millais and John William Waterhouse—whose depictions of women in lush floral settings combined realism with poetic symbolism. The daisies traditionally symbolize innocence and purity, while the butterfly evokes transformation, the soul, and ephemerality—motifs frequently explored in Symbolist painting. The red book introduces narrative ambiguity: knowledge, memory, or interior life held protectively against the body. Unlike Surdo’s more theatrical mythological or urban allegories, this composition feels contemplative and inward. Yet it still aligns with his broader practice of grounding contemporary psychological states in the language of art history. The painting becomes a meditation on introspection, metamorphosis, and the quiet tension between innocence and awakening, rendered with the authority of classical draftsmanship and layered with 19th-century poetic symbolism. Bruno Surdo Connected Souls oil on canvas 24h x 36w in 60.96h x 91.44w cm BRS124 Bruno A. Surdo b. Chicago, 1963 EXHIBITIONS 2023 New Work, Gallery VICTOR, Chicago, IL 2021 Ethos + Truth, Gallery Victor Armendariz, Chicago, IL 2020 Realities, Gallery Victor Armendariz, Chicago, IL 2018 Liberation, Gallery Victor Armendariz, Chicago, IL Blood Sport, Gallery Victor Armendariz, Chicago, IL Art on Paper 2018, Gallery Victor Armendariz, Pier 36, New York, NY SOFA Chicago 2018, Gallery Victor Armendariz, Navy Pier, Chicago, IL 2017 POP!ARAZZI, Gallery Victor Armendariz, Chicago, IL Coming Attractions, Gallery Victor Armendariz, Chicago, IL 2015 SOFA Chicago 2015, Ann Nathan Gallery, Navy Pier, Chicago, IL Bruno Surdo: Allegories, Ann Nathan Gallery, Chicago, IL 2014 Bruno Surdo: Respond, Ann Nathan Gallery, Chicago, IL Modern Metaphors, Rockford Art Museum, Rockford, IL 2013 Bruno Surdo: Revelations, Ann Nathan Gallery, Chicago, IL Vice + Virtue, Northern Illinois University Museum of Art 2012 Contemporary Realism Biennial, Fort Wayne Museum of Art, Fort Wayne, IN 2011 Bruno Surdo, University of St. Francis School of Creative Arts, Fort Wayne, IN Uncensored, Ann Nathan Gallery, Chicago, IL 2010 Art Chicago 2010, Ann Nathan Gallery, Merchandise Mart, Chicago, IL 2009 Art Chicago 2009, Ann Nathan Gallery, Merchandise Mart, Chicago, IL 2007 Bruno Surdo, Art Institute of Indianapolis, Indianapolis, IN 2006 Context/Content: Making Meaning with the Figure, University of Arkansas, Conway, AR Creative Imaginings, Mobile Museum of Art, Mobile, AL Bruno Surdo: Cycles, Ann Nathan Gallery, Chicago, IL 2005 Art Chicago 2005, Ann Nathan Gallery, Chicago, IL 2004 Tragedy, Memory, & Honor, Richard M. Daley Center, Chicago, IL Art Chicago 2004, Ann Nathan Gallery, Chicago, IL Group Show, Arcadia Gallery, New York, NY Drawings VII, Koplin Del Rio Gallery, West Hollywood, CA Armory Show, New York Armory, New York, NY 2003 Paintings & Drawings, College of Lake County, Grayslake, IL The Art Show, New York, NY Bruno Surdo: New Work, Ann Nathan Gallery, Chicago, IL Art Chicago 2003, Ann Nathan Gallery, Chicago, IL 2003-10 International Show of Contemporary Artists, Chicago Art Open, Chicago, IL 2002 Bruno Surdo: Perception of Appearance, Frye Museum, Seattle, WA Tragedy, Memory, & Honor, Richard M. Daley Center, Chicago, IL Bruno Surdo: Transcendence, Ann Nathan Gallery, Chicago, IL Art Chicago 2002, Ann Nathan Gallery, Chicago, IL Tragedy, Memory, & Honor, Ann Nathan Gallery, Chicago, IL 2001 Magic Vision, Arkansas Art Center, Little Rock, AR 1998 Evanston and Vicinity Artists, Evanston Art Center, Evanston, IL 1996 Bruno Surdo: A Personal View, University of Wisconsin, Kenosha, WI 1995 Bruno Surdo: Recent Works, College of Lake County, IL AIDS in Our Society, Loyola University, Chicago, IL Bruno Surdo: Life, Struggle, and Hope, Chicago Cultural Center, Chicago, IL 2001 Magic Vision, Arkansas Art Center, Little Rock, AR Bruno Surdo: Dualities of Life, Ann Nathan Gallery, Chicago, IL 1999 Group Show, Ann Nathan Gallery, Chicago, IL 1998 Group Exhibition, Fine Arts Building Gallery, Chicago, IL 1995 Spiritual Inquiries, Struve Gallery, Chicago, IL 1994 Recent Works, The 14th Annual Juried Exhibition for Lake County Artists, Grayslake, IL Go Figure, Figurative Works on Paper, Chicago Printmakers Collaborative, Chicago, IL SELECTED COLLECTIONS The Re-Birth of Venus, Temporary Loan, Fort Wayne Museum of Art Arkansas Art Center, Little Rock, AR College of Lake County, Greyslake, IL Flashpoint Academy, Chicago IL John Robert Wiltgen Design Shoemaker Ruud Collection Julie & Thomas Danilek Michael Vozzella and Mike Silver Benjamin Fernandez Tom Braake Betsy Colburn Michael Diemand & Lor LaRose Michael Staab & Kathy Brock Bruce Leep Frank Tzurect Mary Foley Rosalyn Carlson Mimmy Turney Janet Long Halstead Billy Hunt Carol Galli Myles Kerrigan Honorable & Mrs. Edwin Berman Theodore Gage Northrop Art Museum Past Present & Future Company Dr. James & Peggy Kemmler Salvatore Monastero Nix & Virginia Lauridsen Joel Miller David & Marlene Zerkel Ann & Andy Abel Claudia Rush Marc Miller Leonard Goldberg Lawrence Pucci Howard Tullman Collection Susan & Manny Kramer James Rinnert Richar Interiors Michael & Nancy Colt Khalid Altijir Dr. Joe Grodman Beryl & Jack Gore Larry Wolf & Eric Naegle Chuck Wolandi Jack Schwab & David Sandelin Thomas Kaczmarek Marti Dinerstein Craig & Michael Golden Mike & Jill Rose SELECTED PUBLICATIONS Bruno Surdo: The Method Artist Responds, by Lucia Mauro, June 26, 2014, anitathemovie blog An Exhibition of Exhibitionism: Bruno Surdo’s ‘Respond’, by Carrie McGath, July 1, 2014, The Chicagoist Website, Arts and Entertainment “Inspired Environs: A renowned designer decks out his Loop abode in art and texture” Modern Luxury, Men’s Book, Spring 2014 “Master Class” What’z Up Magazine, Fort Wayne, 2011 ”9/11 Painting will be on Display” Fort Wayne Journal Gazette, 2011 “Illuminated Images” Fort Wayne Reader, 2011 “Two Faces of Beauty” American Art Collector Magazine, Issue #3 and #59, 2006/2010 “Art and Calamity” Art Papers, 2009 “Versions of the Present, Techniques of the Past” American Artist Magazine, 2004 “Living Artists” Crow Book Publishing, Chicago, IL 2004 “The New Master” by Craig Keller, Chicago Social Magazine, 2004. “Tragedy, Memory, and Honor,” by William Hageman, Chicago Tribune, March 28, 2002 “Mural Depicts Tragedy of 9/11” Art Section, Chicago Sun Times, 2002 Review by Dennis Raverty, Art Papers Magazine, July 2001 WTTW Channel 11...

Pegah Samaie's (CA based) "Rebirth" is an original, handmade oil painting that depicts a woman laying down on green foliage in a sleeping pose. About the Artist: Pegah Samaie is ...

Ale Casanova's "Captured Moment 4" is an original, handmade oil painting that depicts a portrait of a model with her index finger in front of her lips. ...

'Green Purse', 2022 is 31.5 x 23.5 inches, oil on linen painted by French American Frédéric Choisel, is inspired by the cities and countrysides of France, ...

Anne Marjorie Robinson 1858 - 1924, was a British painter in oil and watercolour of portraits and miniatures. Annie as she was sometimes known was born in Belfast Northern Ireland and moved to London in 1907, there she studied miniature portrait painting under the best miniature painter of the time Alyn Williams. Annie exhibited at the Royal Academy, the National Gallery in Ireland, the Belfast Museum, the Walker Art Gallery in Liverpool and the Royal Hibernian Academy, and others. She was a well known and much admired painter in Northern Ireland and a number of her works are held in the Ulster Museum. This picture is of a old soldier who resided with the Chelsea Pensioners and he is known a such. He looks as if he is wearing the coat of an officer of the Royal Marines Light Infantry and the medals he is wearing and the ribbons are for the Indian Mutiny issued between 1857 - 1859, he is also wearing the General Indian Service Medal which was issued between 1852 -1859. As an officer he would have worn this darker, and more expensive coat but the general service infantry would have worn red simply because it was cheaper to produce in mass production methods during the 19th Century. Visibility did not seem to be considered an issue then as the troops would have marched directly towards the enemy firing and bayonetting away without the later consideration of camouflage and personal survival. The advantage of camouflage did not come into force until WW1. The buttons on the coat are most interesting as they are dated back to the Duke of Wellington's time, and reflect the imitation of Royal and upper class serviceman's fashion in general. The frame appears to be original to the painting and the labels show that it was exhibited almost certainly at the Royal Academy, and the other label with the London address shows the home of what was once the home of James McNeil Whistler. I am extremely thankful to Jonathon Russell, from the Annie Swynnerton website, for his help in catalouging this painting and the help he received from the National Army Museum Experience Team. I have included a further biography here for your interest :- Annie Marjorie Robinson (1858–1924) was a Belfast-born Irish artist known for her portraits and miniature paintings, as well as for her sculptures. Education and early career Early training: Robinson trained as an illuminator and attended the Belfast Government School of Design. Move to London: In 1907, she relocated to London to focus on portraiture, studying under Alyn Williams of the Royal Society of Miniature Painters. While there, she also studied modelling. Return to Belfast: She returned to Belfast in 1914 after the outbreak of World War I. Exhibitions and memberships Robinson was a frequent exhibitor throughout her career: Royal Academy: She exhibited nine works at the Royal Academy in London between 1914 and 1923. Royal Hibernian Academy: Her work was regularly shown at the Royal Hibernian Academy in Dublin. Other venues: She also exhibited at the Walker Art Gallery in Liverpool and with the Belfast Arts Society. Arts & Crafts Society: In 1917, she displayed two decorative panels at the 5th exhibition of the Arts & Crafts Society in Dublin. Robinson was an active member of the artistic community and held several prestigious memberships: Associate of the Royal Miniature Society (ARMS), elected in 1912. Associate of the Society of Women Artists (ASWA), elected in 1918. Member of the Belfast Ramblers' Sketching Club (1886–1890) and the Belfast Arts Society (1895–1924). Artworks and legacy Subject matter: A regular subject in Robinson's work was Saint Brigid of Kildare. Paintings exploring this theme, including It Was Brigit Wove the First Cloth in Ireland, are now part of a triptych in the Ulster Museum. Legacy at Ulster Museum: After her death on October 22, 1924, her brother John B. Robinson donated 22 miniature portraits, as well as sculptures, watercolours, and an oil-on-canvas self-portrait, to the Ulster Museum. Other posthumous tributes Memorial exhibition: In 1925, the Belfast Municipal Art Gallery held an exhibition of Robinson's oil paintings...

France, 2013 Oil Paint- Lying man Homme allongé

Original artwork, oil on canvas. Her realistic figurative works portray the female form and are marked by restricted use of colour. Good especially enjoys the juxtaposition of "ghos...

Rebecca Mason Adams' "Hand Study #1" is an original, handmade acrylic painting that depicts a monochromatic hand grasping fabric that is full of cascading ...

Sheer Cerulean, 2021

Oil on Canvas 9 x 12 x .5 in. Signed and titled with medium and size in pencil on verso Dot is a re-emerging artist based in Hot Springs, AR, and originally from Dallas, TX. Her sma...

Matthew Alfonso Durante's "Hand 1" is an original, handmade acrylic painting that depicts a pink hued hand in an unusual gesture with a dark background.

Matthew Alfonso Durante's "Hand 2" is an original, handmade acrylic painting that depicts a pink hued hand in an unusual gesture with a dark background.

Kamal Mitra - Caring Hand - 18 x 24 inches (unframed size) Acrylic on Canvas Inclusive of shipment in a roll form. About Kamal Mitra’s Works : While pursuing his Bachelors (Painting...

Artist self portrait in mirror

Artist : Prasanta Sahu Title : Under the Scanner Size - 15 x 11 inches (unframed size) Acrylic & Watercolour on Paper ( Mixed Media ) ( Set of 3 works ) ( UNFRAMED & DOOR DELIVERE...

Prasanta Sahu - Incomplete Investigation - 36 x 36 inches (unframed size) Acrylic on Canvas Inclusive of shipment in roll form. Prasanta’s inventiveness in his works lies as much i...

This acrylic painting on paper can be framed or displayed easily by hanging with magnets. Tatana Kellner’s work is rooted in social issues. She has been exhibited in numerous venue...

ROBERT KENNETH WHITE – "TAKING FLIGHT" ⚜ Oil on canvas ⚜ Hand signed lower right ⚜ Frameless display FREEDOM AND POISE IN A MOMENT OF LIFT In “Taking Flight,” Robert Kenneth White c...

Oil on canvas Rachel Yedid is a French multidisciplinary artist born in 1977 who lives and works between Paris, France & Jerusalem, Israel. She grew up marked by a severe autoimmune...

EDUARDO CHILLIDA (1924-2002) "Sin título" signed, with the artist's monogram and dated "CHILLIDA / - 58" (lower right) ink on paper 12 x 18 inches (30.5 x 45.5 cm.) framed: 19-1/4 x ...

Author's technique I work with different techniques but prefer canvas and oil. Painting is always an improvisation for me. Upon starting a painting, I don’t know the final result ...

Artist Comments
In this hyperrealistic painting, David depicts a model holding plastic to her face. The work is meant as a commentary on global warming and a need to plan fo...

Oil on canvas Artwork can be shipped rolled up in a tube Hua Qing is a Chinese male artist born in 1962 in Huaibei, Anhui Province who lives and works in Beijing, China. He is gradu...

The original poster project in gouache by Y. Adam for the Jamboree International in London in 1953 stands as a vivid testament to the spirit of camaraderie and international collabor...

Two friends are having a quiet intimate conversation. From another time. This was done with quality oil paints and cold wax on linen. :: Painting :: Contemporary :: This piece come...

"THE NEW YORK SESSIONS - NATALIE" Oil Painting 49" x 31" in by Charles Malinsky Full name: "THE BLACK COAT PROJECT - THE NEW YORK SESSIONS - NATALIE" Artwork ships rolled in a tube...

Oil on canvas, Helen Uter is an established Franco-American painter born in 1955 who lives and works in Donnery, near Orléans, France. Heavily influenced by Edward Hopper, she crea...

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Oil on canvas Liu Xiaodong is a Chinese artist born in Inner Mongolia in 1968 who lives and works in Beijing, China. He graduated from the Oil Painting Department of Inner Mongolia...

Hand holding a pearl necklace on a light grey background :: Painting :: Photorealism :: This piece comes with an official certificate of authenticity signed by the artist :: Ready to...

Michael Tole is a figurative painter currently living in Tempe, AZ with his wife and daughters. A Texas native, most of his 20 year long career was spent...

Signed on reverse Andrea Vandoni is an Italian artist born in 1972 who lives and works in Novara, Italy. The artist studied and trained at the School of the Archaeologists and the S...

Jerome Romain lives and works in Montpelier, France He defines his painting as Classic Painting for Contemporary History " The world as a representation " His oil on canvas painting...

From Nicholas Poussin’s The Death of Sapphira, circa 1652 Sooner or later, we get caught lying. For most of us, it’s incredibly early in life, and the falsehood detected is innocuou...

From Thomas Eakins’ Portrait of Dr. Samuel D. Gross (The Gross Clinic), 1875 At some point the lying has to stop, right? But when? I’m no longer convinced that any external stimulus...

Original hand cut stencil and spray paint on metal panel. Hand signed on verso by Snik. Artwork is in excellent condition. Certificate of Authenticity included. All reasonable of...

Acrylic on canvas, Maka Batiashvili is a Georgian artist born in 1975 who lives and works in Tbilisi, Georgia. Actively participating in both local and international cultural projec...

"Weathered Hands" Charcoal on Paper Drawing 16" x 19" inch by Ahmed Saber AHMED SABER - BIO Ahmed Saber is an Egyptian artist based in Luxor...

Evan Kuhn is a Milwaukee-based artist originally from the Chicagoland area. His creative body of work centers primarily on realism and takes inspiration from the world around us, wha...

Oil on canvas, Natia Sapanadze is a Georgian artist born in 1999 who lives & works in Tbilisi, Georgia. Natia's alternative profession is a philologist, besides she has started ...

“Hold On II” (2025) Charcoal and Acrylic on Canvas 100 x 70 cm / 39.3 x 27.6 in Original work by Ritchelly Oliveira (Brazil, b. 1993) “Hold On II” is a compelling exploration of emo...

There is plenty of B-movie-like pulp illustration art out there to consider. This work, however, is fundamentally different. The main point about the Harry Barton...

Will-o'-the-wisp. 2018, oil on canvas, 100x100cm Portrait on black background Agate Apkalne. Born in Riga, 1977 Education: 2005 – MA in arts, Art Acade...

An original acrylic painting by American Primitive Artist Robert Sellers.

Set of 2 works Artist : Prasanta Sahu - Title : Under the Scanner - 15 x 11 inches each (unframed size) 25 x 22 inches ( Framed) Medium : Water Colour on paper Prasanta’s invent...

Acrylics on canvas Carole Leprince is a French artist born in 1966 who lives & works in Houilles, France. Over the years, her personal photos have been the inspiration for pain...

Represented by George Billis Gallery, NYC & LA -- The idea of meditation and contemplation play a major role in the paintings of artist Craig Carlisle. His paintings articulate inde...

Prasanta Sahu - The Act of Touching - 48 x 96 inches (Diptych) (unframed size) Acrylic on Canvas Style : Commingling pictures and text, Sahu borrows motifs from the mass media. The...

This composition features two hands delicately holding cigarettes, rendered with bold yet intricate linework against a serene monochromatic teal background. The juxtaposition of meticulous detail and minimalist color palette creates a contemplative, almost meditative quality, as the subject balances between the intimate and universal. The interplay of traditional oil painting techniques with AI-assisted design highlights Wells' exploration of technology's role in augmenting artistic expression, making this work a poignant reflection on modernity and timeless human gestures. Lee Wells, Two Hands Smoking...

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Represented by George Billis Gallery, NYC & LA -- The idea of meditation and contemplation play a major role in the paintings of artist Craig Carlisle. His paintings articulate inde...

Oil on canvas Rachel Yedid is a French multidisciplinary artist born in 1977 who lives and works between Paris, France & Jerusalem, Israel. She grew up marked by a severe autoimmune...

Oil on canvas Rachel Yedid is a French multidisciplinary artist born in 1977 who lives and works between Paris, France & Jerusalem, Israel. She grew up marked by a severe autoimmune...

Oil on canvas Rachel Yedid is a French multidisciplinary artist born in 1977 who lives and works between Paris, France & Jerusalem, Israel. She grew up marked by a severe autoimmune...

Artist Statement Intermundium: space between worlds 2021 In the summer of 2019, I traveled to Ireland for an extended painting trip, renting a cottage for a month on the rugged Sheepshead Peninsula in West Cork...

The Infinite Conversation after Maurice Blanchet 2023 Archival pigment on canvas 150 x 150 cm / 59 x 59 inches Signed, titled and dated on verso Edition of 1 Lee Wells (b.1971) is...

Acrylics on canvas Carole Leprince is a French artist born in 1966 who lives & works in Houilles, France. Over the years, her personal photos have been the inspiration for painting...

Acrylics on canvas Carole Leprince is a French artist born in 1966 who lives & works in Houilles, France. Over the years, her personal photos have been the inspiration for painting...

Acrylic painting

Naked Narratives is an oil on canvas painting by Kumikaho Oshima from the series Naked Fortunes: Portraits of Barbie and Dollars, in which the artist constructs a precise visual dial...