J. Herr

"Group Looking at Painting" Satirical Modern Figurative Abstract

JUNE WAYNE (1918 - 2011) THE TUNNEL II, 1951 (B.69; G.14; Conway 67) Lithograph, signed, numbered, dated July 1951 and titled incorrectly The Target. Edition 35. 15 3/4 x 19 3/4 inc...

JAMES CHAPIN (1887 – 1975) COMPOSITION c. 1940 Lithograph signed in pencil, Image 11 7/8 x 7 ¾ inches, sheet 13 5/8 x 10 5/8 inches. Just a hint of mat line in the margins and on the verso. Some remnants of old tape prImarily at the left & right sheet edges. Rather scarce print but possibly published by Associated American Artists. WONDERFUL PORTRAYAL OF AN UP AND COMING ARTIST...

'Winter Silhouettes,' a small and delicate print, is an original offset lithograph by the Milwaukee artist Schomer Lichtner. The composition displays registers of foliage, emerging from the white of the paper as though emerging from the snow-covered ground. The artwork is thus plays with the materials of printmaking; the paper is both the support and the primary indication of the season. The subtle texture of the tooth of the paper also adds life to the image, giving the snow a wind-swept, creature trodden surface. The free forms of the grasses and leaves resemble the lyrical mid-century works of the French artist Henri Matisse, which combined with these material concerns demonstrate Lichter's modern sensibilities. 3.75 x 2.75 inches, image 5.5 x 4.5 inches, paper 10 x 8 inches frame Signed and dated in the stone, lower right Framed to conservation standards in a shadow-box style mounting, using 100 percent rag matting, museum glass, and housed in a cherry wood moulding Overall excellent condition; some toning to edges of paper; some minor abrasions to frame Milwaukee artist Schomer Lichtner was well known for his whimsical cows and ballerinas and abstract imagery. He and his late wife Ruth Grotenrath, both well-known Wisconsin artists, began their prolific careers as muralists for WPA projects, primarily post offices. Lichtner also painted murals for industry and private clients. Schomer was a printmaker and produced block prints, lithographs, and serigraph prints. His casein (paint made from dairy products) and acrylic paintings are of the rural Wisconsin landscape and farm animals. He became interested in cows when he and Ruth spent summers near Holy Hill in Washington County. According to David Gordon, director of the Milwaukee Art Museum, Schomer Lichtner had a tremendous joie de vivre and expressed it in his art. Schomer Lichtner was nationally known for his whimsical paintings and sculptures of black- and white-patterned Holstein cows and elegant ballerina dancers. Lichtner also painted all sorts of combinations of beautiful women, flowers and country landscapes. James Auer, former Milwaukee Journal Sentinel art critic, said that his art eventually "exploded into expressionistic design elements with bold, flat areas of color and high energy that anticipated Pop Art." Auer went on to describe Lichtner’s work as full of "wit, vigor and virtuosity." As early as 1930, Lichtner’s work was shown at the prestigious Carnegie International Exhibition in New York and at museums throughout the Midwest. As a student, he was a protégé of another icon of 20th century American art, Gustave Moeller. Lichtner and his wife, Ruth Grotenrath (1912-1988), are celebrated as Milwaukee’s first couple of painting and are regarded as major Wisconsin artists. Lichtner’s impressive production, perseverance, longevity, and positive approach to his life and art made him and his work distinctive and much loved by his many admirers. His work is currently represented in collections at the Milwaukee Art Museum, the John Michael Kohler Art Center, the West Bend Museum, and in the collections of many individuals. Books on the lives and art work of both Lichtner and Grotenrath are in progress and it is anticipated that they will be published next year. Schomer Lichtner passed away on May 9, 2006 at the age of 101. He continued to amaze and create with his whimsical paintings of ballerinas...

Gerry Mulligan, Baritone Sax - Rare Signed Figurative Lithograph in Ink on Paper Bold lithograph by Eugene Hawkins (American, b. 1933). Gerry Mulligan sits on a stool holding his ba...

"Colors in Space II" (SF-95) Signed Printer's Proof Lithograph on Archival Paper Bright and playful abstract composition by Sam Francis (American, 1923-1994). Splashes of yellow, or...

"Unicorn Moebius II" - Trial Proof Lithograph in Ink on Laid Paper High contrast, multi-layer etching by Bruce Weinberg (American, 1942-1994). A moebius strip is shown against a dar...

Hilliard Reynolds Dean, '#3', color lithograph, 1970, edition not stated but small. Signed and titled in pencil. A fine impression, with fresh colors, on Arches, heavy, cream wove pa...

Robert Vale Faro, 'Going My Way?', lithograph, 1946, edition 14. Signed in pen, recto. Titled, numbered '#118 14/14' and dated '5/5/46' in pen, verso. A fine, richly-inked impression, on heavy, off-white wove paper, with full margins (1 5/8 to 2 15/16 inches), in excellent condition. Image size 13 1/8 x 7 3/8 inches; sheet size 17 x 12 3/8 inches. Scarce. Matted to museum standards, unframed. An impression of this work is in the permanent collection of the National Gallery of Art. ABOUT THE ARTIST Robert Vale Faro (1902-1988) was a modernist architect and artist associated with the Chicago Bauhaus. He received his degree in architecture and design from the Armour Institute in Chicago and worked at L'Ecole des Beaux-Arts, Paris, from 1924-27, where he was influenced by Harry Kurt Bieg and Le Corbusier. Upon his return to Chicago, Faro worked with the important modernist Chicago architects George and William Keck under Louis Sullivan. Faro founded the avant-garde printmaking group Vanguard in 1945. The group counted Atelier 17 artists Stanley William Hayter, Sue Fuller...

Robert Vale Faro, 'Kaf With', color lithograph, 1945, edition 15. Signed, dated, titled and numbered '84' and '6/15' in pen, recto. Titled, numbered '#84' and '6/15' and dated '7/22/...

Robert Vale Faro, 'Sylvan Maze', color lithograph, 1946, edition 20. Signed, dated, titled and numbered '112' and '11/20' in pencil. A fine, richly-inked impression with fresh colors, on heavy, off-white wove paper; full margins (1 to 1 1/2 inch), in excellent condition. Image size 13 11/16 x 9 11/16 inches; sheet size 16 1/8 x 12 5/16 inches. Scarce. Matted to museum standards, unframed. ABOUT THE ARTIST Robert Vale Faro (1902-1988) was a modernist architect and artist associated with the Chicago Bauhaus. He received his degree in architecture and design from the Armour Institute in Chicago and worked at L'Ecole des Beaux-Arts, Paris, from 1924-27, where he was influenced by Harry Kurt Bieg and Le Corbusier. Upon his return to Chicago, Faro worked with the important modernist Chicago architects George and William Keck under Louis Sullivan. Faro founded the avant-garde printmaking group Vanguard in 1945. The group counted Atelier 17 artists Stanley William Hayter, Sue Fuller...