Skip to main content
Want more images or videos?
Request additional images or videos from the seller
1 of 10

Kenji Nanao
Alta Beach

c.1990

About the Item

This artwork titled "Alta Beach" c.1990 is an original lithograph with silver leaf addition on Arches paper, by Japanese artist Kenji Nanao, 1929-2013. It is hand signed, titled and inscribed C.T.P in pencil by the artist. The image size is 23 x 20 inches, sheet size is 29.5 x 29.5 inches. It is in excellent condition, has never been framed. About the artist. Painter and printmaker Kenjilo (Kenji) Nanao was born in Aomori, Japan on July 26, 1929. He studied at the Asagaya Art Academy from 1948 to 1951, but changed his course to pursue economics at Nihon University, graduating in 1953. Another shift in focus led him to the U.S. in 1960 to study at the California School of Fine Arts (now the San Francisco Art Insititute), graduating in 1963 with a degree from the graphics department. He then earned his MFA in 1971 at the San Francisco Art Institute under Nathan Oliveira, among others. His first passion was printmaking, particularly lithography, and soon he became known for his subtly surreal works featuring everyday objects set against finely graded grounds of color. After exposure to Diebenkorn and other respected Bay Area artists, he soon delved into painting. In this medium he broke away from surrealism, pursuing Abstract Expressionist composition, with large format paintings in his signature gradient tones. By the 1980s he focused almost exclusively on the medium and, along with painterly monotype printmaking, continued to work until his death in 2013. His work is included in the collections of the Museum of Modern Art, N.Y.C.; City of San Francisco; Pasadena Art Museum; Los Angeles County Museum; Cincinnati Museum of Art; Honolulu Academy of Art; Gruenwald (University of California, Los Angeles); and the Achenbach Foundation, among others. One-man shows include but are not limited to: Tsubaki Kindai Gallery, Tokyo, 1965; Smith Andersen Gallery, Palo Alto; California, 1971, '74, '78, '90, '98; Santa Barbara Museum, 1972; Achenbach Foundation Legion Honor, 1973; Dubins Gallery, Los Angeles, 1985, '86, '89, '92; Elins Eaglesmith Gallery, San Francisco, 2006; retrospective at Aomori Prefectura Museum, Japan, 2004, and Gallery Dionisi, 2004, among others. Exhibited in group shows at Gump's Gallery, San Francisco, 1971-1976; Anchorage Fine Arts and History Museum 1976; Brooklyn Museum, 1976, '78; Crocker Art Museum, Sacramento, California, 1980; Palo Alto Cultural Center, 1992; Galerie Sho, Tokyo, 1994; Josip Juraj Brookings Gallery, San Francisco, 1997; among others. Represented in permanent collections Biblioteque National, Paris; Museum Modern Art; New York City Library. Kenji Nanao died in Berkeley, California on May 13, 2013.
  • Creator:
    Kenji Nanao (1929 - 2013)
  • Creation Year:
    c.1990
  • Dimensions:
    Height: 29.5 in (74.93 cm)Width: 29.5 in (74.93 cm)Depth: 0.01 in (0.26 mm)
  • Medium:
  • Movement & Style:
  • Period:
  • Condition:
  • Gallery Location:
    San Francisco, CA
  • Reference Number:
    Seller: nanao/alt/011stDibs: LU666310319352
More From This SellerView All
  • Four Horsemen of the Apocalypse
    By Harry Fritzius
    Located in San Francisco, CA
    Artist: Harry Fritzius (American, 1932-1989) Title: Four Horsemen of the Apocalypse Year: 1989 Medium: Lithograph with mixed med...
    Category

    Late 20th Century Abstract Expressionist Abstract Prints

    Materials

    Mixed Media

  • Graffiti
    Located in San Francisco, CA
    This artwork titled "Graffity" 1983 is a mixed media, color etching, aquatint and collage by renown artist Misch Kohn, 1916-2003. It is hand signed, titled,...
    Category

    Late 20th Century Abstract Expressionist Abstract Prints

    Materials

    Mixed Media

  • Spectral Vision
    By Zao Wou-Ki
    Located in San Francisco, CA
    This artwork titled "Spectral Vision" 1970, is an original color lithograph by renown Chinese/American artist Zao Woo Ki, 1921-2013. It is hand signed and inscribed H.C. (Hors Commerce) in pencil by the artist. The image size is 17.25 x 24.5 inches, framed size is 32.65 x 39 inches. Custom framed in a wooden silver frame, with silver color spacer and fabric matting. It is in excellent condition. About the artist: Zao Woo Ki was born in Beijing with family roots in Dantu, Zhenjiang, Jiangsu province. In his childhood he was brought back to his hometown Dantu where he studied calligraphy. From 1935 to 1941, he studied painting at the China Academy of Art in Hangzhou, Zhejiang province, where he was taught by Lin Fengmian, Fang Ganmin and Wu Dayu. In 1948, he went with his wife Lan-lan, a composer, to Paris to live on the same block in Montparnasse where the classes of Émile Othon Friesz took place. His earliest exhibitions in France were met with praise from Joan Miró and Picasso. In 1957, Zao decided to visit the United States where his younger brother Chao Wu-Wai was living in Montclair, New Jersey, close to the art scene of New York City. He wanted to learn more about "pop art". While in the US, he painted seven canvases at his brother's house. There are relatively few items dating from that year (1957). Years later, the largest canvas was given by his brother, Chao Wu-Wai, to the Detroit Institute of Arts. He left the U.S. after a six-week stay, traveling to Tokyo and then to Hong Kong, where he met his second wife Chan May-Kan Zao's works, influenced by Paul Klee, are orientated to abstraction. He names them with the date in which he finishes them, and in them, masses of colours appear to materialise a creating world, like a Big Bang, where light structures the canvas. He worked formats in triptychs and diptychs. While his work was stylistically similar to the Abstract Expressionists whom he met while travelling in New York, he was influenced by Impressionism. Zao Wou-Ki stated that he had been influenced by the works of Matisse, Picasso and Cézanne.[ His meetings with Henri Michaux pushed him to review his Indian ink techniques, always based in Chinese traditional drawings. Zao was a member of the Académie des beaux-arts, and was considered to have been one of the most successful Chinese painters during his lifetime. In 1982, he was invited to paint for the Fragrant Hills Hotel in Beijing, designed by I. M. Pei. In 1983, he returned to his alma mater, the China Academy of Art in Hangzhou to give lectures. Former French President Jacques Chirac was offered a painting by Zao Wou-Ki by his ministers during their last meeting. His auction record of HKD 510 million was set at Sotheby's, Hong Kong, on 1 September 2018. Zao's work 'Juin-Octobre 1985' is now the most expensive painting ever to go under the hammer at auction in Hong Kong. By the end of his life Zao had stopped producing new paintings due to health problems. He died on 9 April 2013 at his home in Switzerland. Selected public collections and museums: Vienna, Albertina Museum, Graphische Sammlung Brussels, Museum of Modern Art Brussels, Royal Museums of Fine Arts of Belgium Rio de Janeiro, Museum of Modern Art Montreal, Museum of Contemporary Art of Montreal (Quebec) Montréal, Museum of Fine Art (Quebec) Quebec City, National Museum of Fine Arts of Quebec (Quebec) Toronto, Art Gallery of Ontario (Ontario) Hangzhou, China Academy of Art Hong Kong, Hong Kong Museum of Art Beijing, China Central Academy of Fine Arts Suzhou, Suzhou Museum Helsinki, Ateneum Museum Tempere, Sara Hildén Art Museum Châteauroux, Bertrand Museum Colmar, Unterlinden Museum Dunkirk, LAAC Évreux, Museum of Art, History and Archeology Gravelines, Musée du Dessin et de l’Estampe Originale Issoudun, Musée de l’Hospice Saint-Roch Le Havre, Malraux Museum Lyons, École normale supérieure Metz, Museum of Art and History Montauban, Ingres Museum Montpellier, Fabre Museum Nantes, Museum of Fine Art Orléans, Museum of Fine Art Paris, L’Adresse – Musée de La Poste Paris, Bibliothèque nationale de France Paris, Bibliothèque de l’Institut de France Paris, Centre Pompidou, National Museum of Modern Art / Industrial Design Center Paris, Cercle de l’Union Interalliée Paris, Fonds National d’Art Contemporain Paris, Institut national d’histoire de l’art Paris, Manufacture Nationale des Gobelins Paris, Manufacture Nationale de la Savonnerie Paris, Manufacture Nationale de Sèvres Paris, Mobilier National Paris, Museum of Modern Art of Paris Paris, Cernuschi Museum Paris, Musée du Louvre (at Musée Fabre in Montpellier) Paris, Schlumberger Ltd. Paris-La Défense, Société Générale Paris-La Défense, TOTAL France Rennes, Museum of Fine Art Saint-Dié-des-Vosges, Musée Pierre-Noël Sceaux, Musée de l’Ile-de-France, Château de Sceaux Tournus, Musée Greuze Tours, Museum of Fine Art Tours, Conseil général d’Indre-et-Loire, fourteen windows for La Demeure de Ronsard, La Riche Valence, Museum of Fine Art and Natural History Essen, Folkwang Museum Liverpool, The Tate Gallery London, The Tate Gallery London, Victoria and Albert Museum Jakarta, Jakarta Museum Tel Aviv, Tel Aviv Museum Genova, Gallery of Modern Art Milan, Museum of MOdern Art of Milan Fukuoka, Fukuoka Art Museum Fukushima, Iwaki City Art Museum Hakone-Machi, The Hakone Open-Air Museum Kyoto, Kyoto National Museum of Modern Art Nagaoka, Nagaoka Contemporary Art Museum Osaka, National Museum of Art Tokyo, Bridgestone Museum of Art, Ishibashi Foundation Luxembourg City, Grand Ducal Collections of the State of Luxembourg Luxembourg City, National Museum of History and Art Skopje, Museum of Contemporary Art Mexico, Centro Cultural/Arte Contemporáneo Mexico, Museum of Modern Art Mexico, Tamayo Museum of Contemporary Art Castelo Branco...
    Category

    Late 20th Century Abstract Expressionist Abstract Prints

    Materials

    Lithograph

  • Red Block on Pink - from the New York Suite
    By John Hoyland
    Located in San Francisco, CA
    Artist: John Hoyland – British (1934-2011) Title: Red Block on Pink Series: New York Suite Year: 1971 Medium: serigraph Image size: 36 x 26 inches Shee...
    Category

    1970s Abstract Expressionist Abstract Prints

    Materials

    Paper, Screen

  • Brown Block on Pink - from the New York Suite
    By John Hoyland
    Located in San Francisco, CA
    Artist: John Hoyland – British (1934-2011) Title: Brown Block on Pink Series: New York Suite Year: 1971 Medium: serigraph Image size: 36 x 26 inches Sh...
    Category

    1970s Abstract Expressionist Abstract Prints

    Materials

    Paper, Screen

  • Carnegie Hall
    By Robert Motherwell
    Located in San Francisco, CA
    This artwork, titled "Carnegie Hall," from the suite New York, New York, 1982, is an original color lithograph with silkscreen and embossing by American ...
    Category

    Late 20th Century Abstract Expressionist Abstract Prints

    Materials

    Lithograph, Screen

You May Also Like
  • "Parets" original colograph by Helen Frankenthaler
    By Helen Frankenthaler
    Located in Hinsdale, IL
    Helen Frankenthaler (1928-2011) "Parets" Collagraph drawn with Araldite glue, c. 1988 Printed in light burnt sienna from one steel plate, off white handmade paper Signed in lowe...
    Category

    1980s Abstract Expressionist Abstract Prints

    Materials

    Mixed Media

  • Porcelain Plate of Princess of Wales Theatre ceiling design (Limited Edition)
    By Frank Stella
    Located in New York, NY
    Frank Stella Ceiling: Princess of Wales Theatre, 1996 Limited Edition Silkscreened Porcelain Plate in presentation box 12 inches diameter Edition 262/2000 Rarely found stateside - es...
    Category

    1990s Abstract Expressionist Mixed Media

    Materials

    Porcelain, Screen, Mixed Media

  • Pull Out All Flags (Engberg Banach 263) iconic abstract expressionist work 33/50
    By Robert Motherwell
    Located in New York, NY
    Robert Motherwell Pull Out All Flags (Engberg, Banach 263), 1980 Aquatint and etching in colors, on German Etching paper, with full margins Hand-signed by artist, Pencil signed and n...
    Category

    1980s Abstract Expressionist Abstract Prints

    Materials

    Mixed Media, Etching, Aquatint, Pencil, Graphite

  • Meduse (Medusa) Scarce mid century modern abstract expressionist Signed/N Framed
    By Stanley William Hayter
    Located in New York, NY
    Stanley WIlliam (Bill) Hayter Meduse, 1958 High Viscosity Etching & Engraving Pencil signed, titled and numbered from the edition of 50 (10/50) on the front Catalogue Raisonne Black/...
    Category

    Mid-20th Century Abstract Expressionist Abstract Prints

    Materials

    Etching, Aquatint, Mixed Media, Pencil, Graphite

  • LARGE: Silkscreen on silk hand signed with COA also signed by Frank Stella)
    By Frank Stella
    Located in New York, NY
    Frank Stella The Whale Watch Shawl (signed in indelible black marker), held in red silk presentation box; also with embossed COA hand signed by both Frank Stella and Kenneth Tyler, 1994 LARGE: (54 Sq inches) Silkscreen on 100% Italian Silk Shawl, hand signed by Frank Stella in indelible black marker, folded in Red Silk Box with Embossed Certificate of Authenticity (Brand New in Original Red Silk Box) - embossed COA is Hand Signed by Frank Stella and Kenneth Tyler Hand Signed and dated by Frank Stella on recto; signed by BOTH Stella & publisher Kenneth Tyler, and numbered on accompanying embossed COA 54 × 54 inches Unframed and held in original red Italian silk gift box Makes a terrific gift! Stunningly large -- 54 Square Inches. This work looks dazzling framed and hung on the wall -- but as it is a signed silkscreen on silk, but it can also be worn as a gorgeous and exclusive artistic fashion statement. Who else is wearing a Frank Stella scarf...
    Category

    1990s Abstract Expressionist Abstract Prints

    Materials

    Rice Paper, Archival Paper, Silk, Screen, Permanent Marker, Board, Mixed...

  • Monograph titled FLARE Thomas Nozkowski Images (hand signed by Thomas Nozkowski)
    By Thomas Nozkowski
    Located in New York, NY
    Thomas Nozkowski Flare: Thomas Nozkowski Images (hand signed by Thomas Nozkowski), 2009 Limited Edition monograph on fine art paper (hand signed and dated by Thomas Nozkowski on the ...
    Category

    2010s Abstract Expressionist Abstract Prints

    Materials

    Paper, Ink, Mixed Media, Lithograph, Offset

Recently Viewed

View All