Ira Moskowitz

'Navajo Courtship Dance' — Southwest Regionalism, American Indian

1946

Ira Moskowitz, 'Navajo Horse Race', lithograph, 1946, edition 30, Czestochowski 204. Signed and titled in pencil. Signed and dated in the stone, lower le...

Louis Lozowick, 'Angry Skies (Andante Cantabile)', lithograph, 1935; edition 10, AAA 250; Flint 123. Signed in pencil. Signed in the stone, lower left. A fine, richly-inked impressio...

Louis Lozowick, 'Mural Study: Lower Manhattan', lithograph, edition 10 or fewer, 1936. Flint 135. Signed and dated in pencil. Signed in the stone, lower right. A fine, richly-inked...

Ira Moskowitz, 'The Three Gods of Healing (Navajo Medicine Ceremony of the Night Chant)', lithograph, 1945, edition 30, Czestochowski 148. Signed and titled in pencil. Signed and dated in the stone, lower right. A fine, richly-inked impression, on cream wove paper, with full margins (2 1/4 to 2 3/4 inches), in excellent condition. Matted to museum standards, unframed. Image size 12 1/4 x 15 13/16 inches (311 x 402 mm); sheet size 17 1/8 x 20 7/8 inches (435 x 530 mm). ABOUT THIS WORK The nine-night ceremony known as the Night Chant or Nightway is believed to date from around 1000 B.C.E. when it was first performed by the Indians who lived in Canyon de Chelly (now eastern Arizona). It is considered the most sacred of all Navajo ceremonies and one of the most difficult and demanding to learn, as it encompasses hundreds of songs, dozens of prayers, and several highly complex sand paintings. And yet the demand for Night Chants is so great that as many as fifty such ceremonies might be held during a single winter season, which lasts eighteen to twenty weeks. The Night Chant is designed both to cure people who are ill and to restore the order and balance of human and non-human relationships within the Navajo universe. Led by a trained medicine man who has served a long apprenticeship and learned the intricate and detailed practices that are essential to the chant, the ceremony itself is capable of scaring off sickness and ugliness through techniques that shock or arouse. Once the disorder has been removed, order and balance are restored through song, prayer, sand painting, and other aspects of the ceremony. The medicine men who supervise the Night Chant ensure that everything—each dot and line in every sand painting, each verse in every song, each feather on each mask is arranged precisely, or it will not bring about the desired result. There are probably as many active Night Chant medicine men today as at any time in Navajo history due to the general increase in the Navajo population, the popularity of the ceremony, and the central role it plays in Navajo life and health. ABOUT THE ARTIST Ira Moskowitz was born in Galicia, Poland, in 1912, emigrating with his family to New York in 1927. He enrolled at the Art Student's League and studied there from 1928-31. In 1935, Moskowitz traveled to Paris and then lived until 1937 in what is now Israel. He returned to the United States in 1938 to marry artist Anna Barry in New York. The couple soon visited Taos and Santa Fe in New Mexico, returning for extended periods until 1944, when they moved there permanently, staying until 1949. During this especially productive New Mexico period, Moskowitz received a Guggenheim fellowship. His work was inspired by the New Mexico landscape and the state’s three cultures (American Southwest, Native American, and Mexican). He focused on Pueblo and Navajo life, producing an extensive oeuvre of authentic American Indian imagery. He and Anna also visited and sketched across the border in Old Mexico. While in the Southwest, Moskowitz flourished as a printmaker while continuing to produce oils and watercolors. Over 100 of Moskowitz’s works depicting Native American ceremonies were used to illustrate the book American Indian Ceremonial Dances by John Collier, Crown Publishers, New York, 1972. After leaving the Southwest, printmaking remained an essential medium for the artist while his focus changed to subject matter celebrating Judaic religious life and customs. These works were well received early on, and Moskowitz was content to stay with them the rest of his life. From 1963 until 1966, Moskowitz lived in Paris, returning to New York City in 1967, where he made his permanent home until he died in 2001. Shortly before his death, Zaplin-Lampert Gallery of Santa Fe staged an exhibition of the artist's works, December 2000 - January 2001. Other one-person shows included the 8th Street Playhouse, New York, 1934; Houston Museum, 1941; and the San Antonio Museum, 1941. The artist’s work was included in exhibitions at the Art Students League, Art Institute of Chicago, Philadelphia Print Club, College Art Association (promotes excellence in scholarship and teaching), and the International Exhibition of Graphic Arts (shown at MOMA, 1955). Moskowitz’s lithographs of...

This original signed lithograph print by George Elbert Burr (1859-1939) features a serene winter landscape with snow-covered trees, capturing the tranquil beauty of nature in a crisp winter scene. Known for his etchings and prints, Burr’s lithograph technique beautifully reflects his mastery in portraying the delicate interplay of light, snow, and shadows in the landscape. The print is signed by the artist and is presented in a custom frame with archival materials for long-lasting preservation. The framed dimensions measure 15 x 17 ¾ inches, with the image size itself being 7 ¼ x 10 ¼ inches. About the Artist: George Elbert Burr was a prolific American artist born in Monroe Falls, Ohio, in 1859. From an early age, Burr showed a passion for art, creating his first etchings using zinc scraps found in his father’s hardware store. Despite limited formal training—attending the Art Institute of Chicago for only a short period—Burr developed a unique and impactful style, focusing on etchings, lithographs, and illustrations. His early works often reflected the rural landscapes of Missouri, which he sketched during his travels on a railway pass. Burr gained recognition as an illustrator, working with notable publications like Scribner’s, Harper’s, and The Observer. In 1892, he began a monumental project illustrating the Metropolitan Museum of Art’s catalog of Heber R. Bishop’s jade collection, completing approximately 1,000 etchings. From 1896 to 1901, Burr and his wife traveled extensively across Europe, capturing landscapes and scenes from Sicily to North Wales. In 1906, Burr moved to Denver, Colorado, where he created the Mountain Moods series and began to document the American Southwest. His work often featured the rugged beauty of the Arizona desert and the New Mexico landscape. Burr’s Desert Set...

Royal Hotel - New Orleans 1920s Depression Art Lithograph in Ink on Paper Dramatic street scene with a man wearing a trench coat and hat by Robert J We...

Gordon Grant (American, 1875-1962) The Salt Bark - Gloucester, c. 1947 Lithograph Sight: 10 x 12 1/2 in. Framed: 15 x 19 x 3/4 in. Signed lower right in pencil Published in edition ...

Original Washington (D.C.) American Airlines mid-century vintage travel poster. Professional archival linen backed in very fine condition, ready to frame. Featuring one of the ...