Ben Shahn

Silkscreen with Old Testament Psalm 57 pencil signed 255/300 provenance letter

1967

Robert Kushner Honor Thy Father and Thy Mother (The Fifth Commandment), 1987 6 Color Lithograph on Dieu Donne handmade paper 24 × 18 inches Pencil signed and numbered 6/84 in graphite on the front Unframed with deckled edges This five color lithograph on Dieu Donne hand made paper with deckled edges is pencil signed, dated and numbered from the limited edition of 84. This 1980s Robert Kushner print was created as part of the 1987 portfolio "The Ten Commandments", in which ten top Jewish American artists were each invited to choose an Old Testament commandment to interpret in contemporary lithographic form. The "Chosen" artists were, in order of Commandment: Kenny Scharf, Joseph Nechvatal, Gretchen Bender, April Gornik, Robert Kushner, Nancy Spero, Vito Acconci, Jane Dickson, Judy Rifka and Richard Bosman. This is the first time the print will have been removed from the original portfolio case. (shown). Lisa Liebmann, who wrote the introduction to the collection, observed: "...The image has, for most of us, replaced the word..." With respect to the present work, she writes, "There is a sweet smell of nostalgia to Robert Kushner's view of the FIFTH COMMANDMENT, to honor one's parents. Kushner's subtly ornate use of colors suffuses his subject with a filagreed texture of warmth. In this gentle icon, the traditional duo - all those Ozzies and Harriets in our hearts and on the airwaves -are frames as if by a bubble bath of affection." ROBERT KUSHNER BIOGRAPHY Since participating in the early years of the Pattern and Decoration Movement in the 1970s, Robert Kushner has continued to address controversial issues involving decoration. Kushner draws from a unique range of influences, including Islamic and European textiles, Henri Matisse, Georgia O’Keeffe, Charles Demuth, Pierre Bonnard, Tawaraya Sotatsu, Ito Jakuchu, Qi Baishi, and Wu...

Saul Steinberg Nuits de La Fondation Maeght, 1970 Silkscreen Poster Published by Maeght and Arte Paris Signed on the plate with elegant gold stamp in the middle 35 × 23 in 88.9 × 58...

Adolph Gottlieb, David Smith, Dorothy Dehner, Edgar Levy, Lucille Corcos and Esther Gottlieb Collaborative Etching With 6 artist (Hand Signed by 3 artist), ...

Saul Steinberg Sam's Art, from The New York International Portfolio), 1966 Lithograph on wove paper with blind stamp Pencil signed and numbered 12/225 on the front Published by Tanglewood Press, Knickerbocker Machine and Foundry, Inc., New York Printed by Irwin Hollander with blind stamp Unframed This Steinberg lithograph is titled Sam's Art, which of course refers to Uncle Sam, the nickname for the United States government. It features his version of the motto seen on our dollar bills, "Annuit Coeptis", which is one of the mottoes found on the Great Seal of the United States. It is directly underneath the "Eye of Providence" and is translated by the US Treasury and State Department as "God (or Providence) favors our undertakings". American President Abraham Lincoln, sitting in front of an easel, is also depicted as an artist in this telling 1960s work. Commentary: "In Saul Steinberg’s lithograph ‘Sam’s Art’, Abraham Lincoln, in stove-pipe hat, poses as the artist in front of his canvas. While his attention looks fixed on rendering the slightly wobbly pyramid with an eye, the Masonic motif from the back of the one dollar bill, the line from his brush has floated off the canvas to become a cubist-futurist cloud in the sky. The American Eagle looks on, perched on a civil war cannon...

"To Days of Childhood That are Still Unexplained". It depicts six female silhouette figures in long dresses or coats against a blue and pastel purple background. From the Rainier Ma...

SCARCE EARLY WORK. BEN SHAHN Levana and our Lady's Sorrows. lithograph printed in sepia on Papier Ancien, 1931. 13 1/8x9 7/8 inches (sheets), full margins, loose as issued. One of o...

SCARCE EARLY WORK. BEN SHAHN Levana and our Lady's Sorrows. lithograph printed in sepia on Papier Ancien, 1931. 13 1/8x9 7/8 inches (sheets), full margins, loose as issued. One of o...

This elegant Ben Shahn lithograph entitled “Levana” was created in 1966. It was printed by Gemini G. E. L., Los Angeles, California, in an editi...