American Modern Art

This 1950s gouache on paper painting by Mildred Welsh Hammond (1900–1980) presents a striking modernist interpretation of Cripple Creek, Colorado. The co...

Please note that as of 1st March 2025, the Slim Aarons Estate Stamped Collection aligned its pricing across the entire collection. Please bear in mind that all prints are produced t...

Original 1962 Antoni "Autumn in Wonderful Copenhagen" Vintage Travel Poster. Professional archival linen-backed in Grade A condition, ready to frame. Step back in time and bring a...

George Gustav Adomeit (American, 1879-1967) Summer Landscape Oil on canvas board Signed lower right 13 x 14.25 inches 18.25 x 19.5 inches, framed A major painter of American scene s...

This work by John Marin depicts an image of lower Manhattan which was Marin's more iconic subject matter. The work has a stellar provenance as well. Provenance: Kennedy Galleries Richard York Gallery ACA Galleries...

Lee Hall (1934-), Connecticut Summer Fragments, a portfolio of watercolor, 29 in all, each about 5 ¼ x 7 ¼ inches, on hand made paper attached to a backing, i...

Laundry Day (Untitled), c. 1940s, oil on canvas, signed lower left, 30 x 24 inches Florence Walton Pomeroy was a New Jersey-based artist who primarily created portraits, still life...

This striking original lithograph, Clear Creek Canyon I (Colorado), was created in 1933 by acclaimed American artist Ross Eugene Braught (1898–1983). A master of landscape and form, ...

Charcoal, pastel lace Audrey Anastasi states: "The paper doll series was created first in the presence of a live model, working quickly, in charcoal an...

Shooting Gallery Mid 20th Century American Scene Social Abstract Realism Modern *William Kienbusch (1914 – 1980) Shooting Gallery, Sixth Avenue Post...

Robert Mapplethorpe William S. Burroughs Photograph insert from Radar No. 1 (1982) Year: 1982 Size: 9.8 × 7.8 inches Stamped verso, unsigned Accompanied by Radar, Basel, Edition C.L...

Jacquard weaving is at once simple and complex. The language used to set up weave structures is straightforward and binary: the warp is either up or down. With the Jacquard loom, h...

"The VHS" by pop Artist Destro. We all remember those iconic nights at the video store. Pop artist DESTRO once again encapsulates one of our favorite past times in a fine art con...

"Air Jordan" is an acrylic photomosaic artwork by Destro. The first release in a series mosaic works called "Icons". Destro has created large prints which are made up of many hundre...

Kings of Hollywood (Slim Aarons Estate Edition), 1957 Film stars (left to right) Clark Gable (1901 - 1960), Van Heflin (1910 - 1971), Gary Cooper (1901 - 1961) and James Stewart (19...

Shell and Leaves (Untitled), c. 1930s, mixed media on illustration board, signed lower right, 10 1/4 x 13 1/2 inches Edloe Risling was a California artist who created etchings and b...

Airacuda Fighter Planes Art Deco Machine Age 20th Century American Modernism Arthur Rosenman Ross (1913 - 1981) Bell YFM-1 Airacuda Fighter Planes 17 1/2 x 26 1/2 inches Gouache, Airbrush and Ink on Illustration Board, 1938 Signed A. Ross lower right Provenance: Estate of the artist. BIO Arthur Rosenman Ross was a key figure in automotive design at General Motors during America's "Golden Age" of auto design, the 1930's through the 1950s. He attended the Art Institute of Chicago from age 17, exhibiting a special interest for automotive renderings and the female figure. In 1934, he changed his name from Rosenman to Ross, fearing his Jewish ancestry could prejudice his career prospects. At age 20, he turned down job offers from MGM Studios in Hollywood and Duesenberg to work at General Motors alongside the Legendary Harley Earl in 1935. He was hand picked by Mr. Earl and assigned to GM's War and Camouflage Division in 1937 through WW2. It was during this pivotal period in which he executed some extraordinary military aircraft artworks, likely used between GM and America's military aeronautics companies in design preparation for WW2. General Motors played an important role in helping America's aircraft manufacturers preceding and during the war. Just after the war in 1945, Mr. Ross was rewarded by GM, being made Chief Designer of Cadillac, then two years later becoming Chief at Oldsmobile until his retirement in 1959. He was in large part responsible for some of GM's classic Cadillac designs such as the Cadillac Sixty Special, Fleetwood, LaSalle and GM's first concept car, the extraordinary Buick Y-Job. Mr. Ross was an exceptionally charismatic and vivacious man who quite by chance, befriended His idol, Salvador Dali at GM in 1955. They talked about art, cars and girls late into the evening, according to his son, Carter Ross. He had a gift in rendering the erotic arts...

CAR SERVICE Hand cut paper on heavy weight gessoed watercolor paper, framed in flat gray painted wood & plexi. Ms. Marano is a daughter of Brooklyn. She holds a BFA from Pratt Institute, is an intimate of the visual poetry of Coney Island, created the winning poster for the first Spirit of Brooklyn poster...

Alice Topping Poses by Pink Flowers and Palm Trees is a portrait of Alice Topping and features Minnie Cushing in the background. 16 x 20" print. Limited Edition Estate Stamped Print...

Bold figurative work by Richard Cronin (American, b. 1952). Two figures stand on a patio, turned away from each other. The figures and scene are rendere...

Hand signed lower left corner Oil on masonite Dimensions: Frame H 18.25" x W 22.25". Sight H 11.25" x W 15.25 This is a great scene, vintage Americana. Possibly Coney Island in Brooklyn New York City. Done in a mid century modern style with great vibrant colors and loose, adept, brushwork. George Schwacha, Jr. (1908 - 1986) New Jersey artist. Known for Landscape painting and snow scenes. He studied Arthur W. Woelfle; John Grabach; Edward Dufner and A. Schweider. George Schwacha was president of the American Artists Professional League and a past president of the Audubon Artists and Art Center of New Jersey. He belongs to the American Watercolor Society, The National Society of Painters in Casein, and the Philadelphia Watercolor Club. His paintings have been shown throughout the country at museums such as the Pennsylvania Academy, the Corcoran Gallery in Washington, DC and the Birmingham Art Museum, The Butler Art Institute in Youngstown, Ohio the Connecticut Academy of Fine Arts, as well as in leading New Jersey and New York exhibitions, including the American Society of Arts and Letters. He is listed in Who's Who in American Art and International Directory of Arts. His work is represented nationally in over 30 museums and public collections including the Newark Museum, Montclair Museum, Birmingham Art Museum, the Isaac Delgado Museum in New Orleans, and the Butler Art Institute. Worldwide he is also represented in collections in the following countries: Austria, Belgium, Canada, Egypt, England, France, Germany, Greece, Holland, Hong Kong, Israel, Scotland and Switzerland. Seymour Zayon, Bertram Hartman, Hugh Campbell, Frank Herbst, Joseph Newman, Theodore Valenkamph, Robert John McClelland, Nicolai S (Nicola) Cikovsky, Ben Benn, George Howell Gay, Robert Brackman, Vernon Wood...

Joseph Stella (1877 - 1946) Tree, Trunk, and Roots, Bronx, New York, circa 1924 Oil on canvas 12 x 16 inches inscribed in another hand Joseph Stella/Estate and bears Joseph Stella Estate stamp (on the reverse) Provenance: The Estate of the Artist Rabin & Kreuger, New Jersey Parke Bernet Galleries, New York, March 14, 1968, Lot 147 ACA Galleries, New York Thence by descent Stella was born June 13, 1877 at Muro Lucano, Italy, a mountain village not far from Naples. He became painter laureate of Muro Lucano when he was in his teens with a representation of the local saint in the village church. Stella immigrated to America in 1896 and studied medicine and pharmacology, but upon the advice of artist friend Carlo de Fornaro, who recognized his undeveloped talent, he enrolled at the Art Students League in 1897. Stella objected to the rule forbidding the painting of flowers, an indication of his lifelong devotion to flower painting. He also studied under William Merritt Chase in the New York School of Art and at Shinnecock Hills, Long Island in 1901-1902, displaying the bravura brushwork and dark Impressionist influence of Chase. Stella liked to paint the raw street life of immigrant society, rendering this element more emotionally than the city realists, the Aschcan School headed by Robert Henri. Stella went through a progression of styles--from realism to abstraction--mixing media and painting simultaneously in different manners, reviving styles and subjects years later. The "Survey" sent Stella to illustrate the mining disaster of 1907 in Monongah, West Virginia, and in 1908 commissioned him to execute drawings of the Pittsburgh industrial scene. Steel and electricity became a major experience in shaping his responses to the modern world, and Stella succeeded in portraying the pathos of the steelworkers and the Pittsburgh landscape. Stella went abroad in 1909 at the age of thirty-two, lonely for his native land. He returned to Italy, traveling to Venice, Florence and Rome. He took up the glazing technique of the old Venetian masters to get warmth, transparency, and depth of color. One of Stella's paintings was shown in the International Exhibition in Rome in 1910 and was acquired by the city of Rome. The influence of the French Modernists awakened his dormant individuality. His friendship with Antonio Mancini, a Futurist, also played a role in his new style. At the urging of Walter Pach...

'Broken Carousel', color lithograph, 1950, edition 35, Fine and Looney 285. Signed, titled, and numbered '18/35' in pencil. Initialed in the stone, lower right. A fine, richly-inked ...

Andy Warhol (1928-1987) is arguably the most important American artist of the 20th century. He not only defined Pop Art but had an unrivaled influence on artists and image-making. In recent years there has been new scholarship and increasing commercial interest in Andy Warhol's early works, material created prior to Pop Art. During the 1950's Warhol established himself in New York City as a trendy illustrator contributing to a wide number of fashion publications and retailers. His simple line drawings were modern and gentle, with a subtle but unmistakably gay touch. In a short period of time, he created an aesthetic that was both versatile and distinctively his. Like the consummate artist that he was, Warhol was frequently drawing. The images he created during this era, independent from his fashion commissions, were romantic, hopeful, and unabashedly gay. It is worth emphasizing that Warhol was almost exclusively dedicated to drawing during this period, only creating a handful of paintings - which were intended to be used for window displays. Taschen, the legendary art book publisher, recently released the book Andy Warhol: Love, Sex, and Desire 1950-1962 which celebrates his drawings of the male form from the pre-Pop era. This portrait is a paradigm of Warhol's mastery of line and visionary framing. A man's profile commands the composition as he gazes forward with his hand raised towards his mouth, holding a delicate flower. With the lightest touch, Warhol masterly portrays this male ideal with the details of his chiseled jawline, softened gaze, and timeless elegance. Warhol drawings from the 1950s are marked by a gentle whimsy that embodies Warhol's vivid imagination. With fanciful details such as exaggerated lips and eyebrows, "Young Man with Flower...

"Plum Door Shack" is an oil on panel painting by Setauket based artist Doug Reina. This painting depicts a beach shack with an light purple door. Behind the shack is a sandy beach wi...

An Exceptional, Vibrant Mid-Century Modern 1950s Chicago Night Club Scene of Dancing Showgirls. Titled "Dancers #2", the painting depicts a dynamic, sta...

Frida is a photomosaic artwork by Destro. The first release in a series mosaic works called "Icons". Destro has created large prints which are made up of many hundreds of smaller i...

1928. Etching. Morse catalog 235. state ii. Image: 9 3/4 x 7 (sheet 17 1/4 x 11 3/8). From the first printing of 100 proofs by Peter Platt. There were an additional 10 printed by Er...

This artwork titled "Toast" c.1990, is an original color serigraph by American artist Rickey Jewell Hohimer, 1946-2021. It is hand signed, titled and numbered 98/300 in pencil by the artist. The image size is 23.75 x 9.5 inches, framed size is 30.25 x 16.25 inches. The artwork is in excellent condition, the frame is slightly damaged, and will be replaced by a new similar black frame when sold. This will bring the over all condition to excellent. About the artist: Although formally trained with a MFA in painting, Rickey Jewell Hohimer has used the styles of Van Gogh and Gaughin to reach for the spontaneity and simplicity of today's folk art. Hohimer creates figures which are not photos of reality; they are romantically stylized to encourage straightforward emotional responses both to the colorful images and to the situations in which they find themselves. Each of Hohimer's paintings lays out a basic story line to which viewers add their own details. "I want the viewer to become personally involved. My paintings offer a change from those which encourage extensive intellectualizing about what the artist is trying to convey. I want viewers to smile -- to enjoy the whimsical nature of what they are experiencing -- to feel it, not to analyze it. His jazz paintings are stories on canvas of inspired musicians spontaneously making music of the moment. Life in the jazz age is clubs and nightlife beckoning to musicians to produce jazz art...

"Artist and His Family" is a captivating 1950 oil on board painting by renowned American artist Donna Marecak (1922-1998). This intimate interior scene f...

Beauty and the Beast, 1959 - Portrait of Lady Daphne Cameron on Tigerskin Rug by Slim Aarons 16 x 20" print. Limited Edition Estate Stamped Print. Edition of 150. Printed Later. "B...

HARRY STERNBERG (American, 1904-2001) THOMAS BENTON, 1943. Color screenprint on gray card stock wove paper. Edition of 30. Signed "Benton by Sternberg" in ink, by hand by the artist...

Julio De Diego’s Atomic Series paintings made an extraordinary statement regarding the shock and fear that accompanied the dawn of the nuclear age. In the artist’s own words, “Scientists were working secretly to develop formidable powers taken from the mysterious depths of the earth - with the power to make the earth useless! Then, the EXPLOSION! . . . we entered the Atomic Age, and from there the neo-Atomic war begins. Explosions fell everywhere and man kept on fighting, discovering he could fight without flesh.” To execute these works, De Diego developed a technique of using tempera underpainting before applying layer upon layer of pigmented oil glazes. The result is paintings with surfaces which were described as “bonelike” in quality. The forms seem to float freely, creating a three-dimensional visual effect. In the 1954 book The Modern Renaissance in American Art, author Ralph Pearson summarizes the series as “a fantastic interpretation of a weighty theme. Perhaps it is well to let fantasy and irony appear to lighten the devastating impact. By inverse action, they may in fact increase its weight.” Exhibited 1964 Marion Koogler McNay Art Institute, San Antonio, Texas This work retains its original frame which measures 54" x 42" x 2" About this artist: Julio De Diego crafted a formidable persona within the artistic developments and political struggles of his time. The artist characterized his own work as “lyrical,” explaining, “through the years, the surrealists, the social-conscious painters and the others tried to adopt me, but I went my own way, good, bad or indifferent.” [1] His independence manifested early in life when de Diego left his parent’s home in Madrid, Spain, in adolescence following his father’s attempts to curtail his artistic aspirations. At the age of fifteen he held his first exhibition, set up within a gambling casino. He managed to acquire an apprenticeship in a studio producing scenery for Madrid’s operas, but moved from behind the curtains to the stage, trying his hand at acting and performing as an extra in the Ballet Russes’ Petrouchka with Nijinsky. He spent several years in the Spanish army, including a six-month stretch in the Rif War of 1920 in Northern Africa. His artistic career pushed ahead as he set off for Paris and became familiar with modernism’s forays into abstraction, surrealism, and cubism. The artist arrived in the U.S. in 1924 and settled in Chicago two years later. He established himself with a commission for the decoration of two chapels in St. Gregory’s Church. He also worked in fashion illustration, designed magazine covers and developed a popular laundry bag for the Hotel Sherman. De Diego began exhibiting through the Art Institute of Chicago in 1929, and participated in the annual Chicago Artists Exhibitions, Annual American Exhibitions, and International Water Color Exhibitions. He held a solo exhibition at the Art Institute of Chicago in the summer of 1935. Though the artist’s career was advancing, his family life had deteriorated. In 1932 his first marriage dissolved, and the couple’s young daughter Kiriki was sent to live with friend Paul Hoffman. De Diego continued to develop his artistic vocabulary with a growing interest in Mexican art. He traveled throughout the country acquainting himself with the works of muralists such as Carlos Merida, and also began a collection of small native artifacts...

2-color lithograph, edition 35, 1944, Fine and Looney 233. Signed, dated, titled and annotated 'Ed 35' in pencil. Initialed 'BS' in the image, lower right. A superb, richly inked im...

Screenprint in colours, 1982, on Fabriano paper, signed, dated, titled, and inscribed ‘AP’ in pencil, one of 15 numbered artist's proofs, aside from the edition of 100, printed by Do...

Watercolor and pencil on buff wove watercolor paper, 10 x 8 inches (255 x 203 mm). In good condition with overall minor toning. Some watercolor paint splatters on the verso, contem...

Cars parked on a tree-lined street in Palm Beach, Florida, circa 1953. C print 12 x 10 inches Framed Estate stamped and hand numbered edition of 150 with certificate of authenticit...

A stunning oil on canvas painting portraying a panoramic view of a town by the beach. The painting is finely framed in a decorative gilt frame and is signed by the artist Austin. D...

This rare, original WPA-era painting, Church in Leadville (1938), was created by renowned Colorado and Woodstock modernist artist Jenne Magafan (1916-1952). The watercolor and ink wo...

Oil on board Image size: 15 3/4 x 11 1/2 inches (40 x 29 cm) Framed Provenance By descent from the estate of the artist Emma Fordyce MacRae Emma Fordyce MacRae was an American representational painter. She was a member of the Philadelphia Ten, a group of women artists who worked and exhibited together. Her work — including still lifes and paintings of women — shows the influence of Asian flower paintings and of Seurat. MacRae grew up in New York City, where she attended Miss Chapin's School and the Brearley School. She enrolled at the Art Students League in 1911, studying first with Frank DuMond and Kenneth Hayes Miller, and beginning in 1915, with Luis Mora, Ernest Blumenschein, and John French Sloan. She also attended one of Robert Reid's summer courses. MacRae's painting, "Green Jade," was shown at the Anderson Galleries in 1928, at an exhibit of artist members of the American Woman's Association. Many exhibitions and gallery showings followed. In 1937, MacRae's painting "A Persian Girl," was listed as deserving of special mention by The New York Times critic Edward Alden Jewell. In the 1940s, MacRae was chairman of the awards jury of the National Association of Women Artists. Galleries rediscovered MacRae's art in the 1980s; the Richard York Gallery in New York exhibited thirty of her paintings in December 1983. In 1987, her painting of a Venetian cafe was part of "American Women Artists, 1830-1930," an exhibition displayed at the National Museum of Women in the Arts in Washington, D.C. and in four other museums. MacRae had studios in New York City and in Gloucester, Massachusetts. Where MacRae painted her New England landscapes form the Cape Ann Landscapes...

This artwork titled "Elephant Family" 1983 is an original large color serigraph on paper by noted American artist Leroy Neiman, 1921-2012. It is hand signed and numbered 63/300 in pe...

This compelling graphite drawing on paper by Verona Burkhard (1910–2004) showcases a dynamic figure on horseback, rendered with expressive linework and a keen sense of movement. Likely created as a preliminary study for a larger mural, this untitled composition reveals Burkhard’s skill in capturing form, gesture, and energy through the subtle control of graphite. Executed with a confident hand, the sketch offers insight into the creative process of one of America’s notable WPA muralists, making it a rare and collectible piece of American art history. The drawing is presented in a custom archival frame for long-term preservation and elegant display. Framed dimensions: 29 ¾ x 22 ¾ inches, image size: 23 ½ x 16 ¼ inches About the Artist: Verona Lorraine Burkhard Verona Burkhard was an accomplished American artist, muralist, and educator, best known for her vibrant contributions to the WPA (Works Progress Administration) mural program and for shaping the Western Colorado art community. Born in 1910, Burkhard studied at the Art Students League in New York under Boardman Robinson and at Columbia University with Frank Mechau...

The Painted Ladies of Alamo Square are an icon of San Francisco. Street Photographer Mitchell Funk captures them in a quintessential beautiful way. The images is a contrast between ...

"Newman" is an acrylic photomosaic artwork by Destro. The first release in a series mosaic works called "Icons". Destro has created large prints which are made up of many hundreds o...

Signed lower right: H. GASSER; on verso: “Gloucester Vista” / HENRY GASSER / N.A.

This WPA-era signed oil painting by Paul K. Smith captures a stormy summer landscape in Colorado, featuring houses and lush trees under dramatic storm clouds. Painted in rich shades ...

"Orange Dog" is an American Modern oil painting of a man sitting with two dogs. Massachusetts. Kelly Carmody’s work has been widely exhibited and collected. One of her major figura...

Taking inspiration from Robert Mapplethorpe, Max Grant's series "Floral Noir" is a thoughtful combination of simplicity and elegance. In this striking bla...

Charles Cary Rumsey attended Harvard University, studied art in Paris at the Academie Julian and at Boston School of Fine Art under Bela Pratt. His public works are found worldwide, such as the frieze at the Manhattan Bridge, Zion Park...

A Striking, 1960s Mid-Century Modern Watercolor of European City Rooftops, Painted from a City Bus. Rudolph Pen was fond of these innovative city rooftop compositions completed whil...

Magazine Cover Illustration Mid 20th Century Modern Theatre Broadway Realism WPA Ernest Hamlin Baker (1889 – 1975) “Today Magazine” Cover ...

Alice Helen Waugh (American, 20th century) Untitled, late 20th century Oil on board 19 3/4 x 23 3/4 in. Framed: 24 x 28 x 2 1/2 in. Signed lower left: Alice Waugh A painter and prof...

African American artist Alvin Hollingsworth part of the famous Spiral Group , created an inventive and intriguing close-up portrait with figures in the distance. Found objects such as swatches of burlap, plastic spoons, press type and wood shapes are adhered to the surface make this work an object as much as an image. The overall image is bathed in a super hot orange-yellow. This is Hollingsworth interpretation of the soul of Africa. Indistinctly signed lower right in red. The work makes a powerful statement in person. Provenance: The Artist to a personal friend. Private collection Framed dimensions 19 1/4 x 25 1/4 in. Alvin Carl...

Sea and Land Abstraction, 1936, oil on canvas board, 16 x 20 inches, signed and dated lower left, exhibited at the 18th Annual Paintings and Sculpture Exhibit at the Los Angeles Muse...

Mid Century Modern Palm Springs Architecture.Blue vintage Porsche Car photographed in Palm Desert. Archival Inkjet Print on Cotton Pa...

A Dynamic, Avant-Garde, Mid-Century Modern Abstract Female Figure Study by Harold Haydon (Am. 1909-1994). A striking, black & white figural studio ink drawing on paper depicting an...

Very large ca. 1940s painting of a female rower holding oars by artist Francis Chapin. Image size: 65" x 44". Framed size: 65 1/2" x 44 1/2". Provenance: Estate of the artist....

"Barns" Watercolor Mid-20th Century Modern Abstract Realism Excellent Provenance Arthur Dove (1880-1946) "Barns" 5 x 7 inches Watercolor on paper, 19...

This finely framed photograph captures the stunning beauty of Seitan Limania Beach in Crete, seen from the vantage point atop a hill. The beach stretches gracefully, running up the l...

Bertha Corbett Melcher's The Sunbonnet Babies, with their flat, minimalist, semi-abstract, and symbolic style, are an early example of American Modernism/Surrealism by a lesser-known female artist/illustrator. The present work demonstrates a delicate balance between abstraction and representation and between the commonplace and the mysterious. Her signature use of a hat or sunbonnet to hide the identity of her subjects is a big conceptual and visual idea that has been overlooked in the fine art canon. The exact meaning of this is unknown, but 120 years after they were done, it resonates as somewhat surrealistic. Her work is a contradiction. She shows innocent children engaging in everyday activity but are depicted in vail of mystery. Why does she not show the faces of her subjects? Watercolor on paper (each) Six drawings in all on one board. 6-1/8 x 5 inches (15.6 x 12.7 cm) (each) One signed; two initialed; three not signed. Six drawing in all on one board. 6-1/8 x 5 inches (15.6 x 12.7 cm) (each) One signed; two initialed; three not signed The Sunbonnet Babies characters were created by illustration Bertha L. Corbett when she was challenged to create a faceless character who nonetheless was engaging and appealing. The characters were a wild hit and appeared in books, comics, and popular collectibles. They also became a popular motif in quilting. Few of Corbett's original drawings for the babies are known to survive, making this a rare offering. From: Wikipedia Sunbonnet Babies are characters created by commercial artist Bertha Corbett Melcher (1872–1950). Sunbonnet Babies featured two girls in pastel colored dresses with their faces covered by sunbonnets. Sunbonnet Babies appeared in books, illustrations and advertisements between the years of 1900 and 1930. Sunbonnet Babies were later used as a popular quilting pattern also known as Sunbonnet Sue.[1] Melcher created a male version of the Sunbonnet Babies, named the 'Overall Boys' in 1905.[2][3] History Bertha L. Corbett Melcher Sunbonnet Babies were created by Bertha Corbett Melcher (1872–1950).[4] Melcher was born in Denver and moved with her family to Minneapolis in the 1880s. Melcher attended art school in Minneapolis with plans to become a commercial artist.[5] She may have also studied with Howard Pyle.[6] By the 1920s, Melcher had moved to Topanga, California.[7][4] Melcher started drawing the Sunbonnet Babies in 1897. The origin of the signature style of the faces being covered by sunbonnets is contested by different members of Melcher's family and by Melcher herself. In an interview, Melcher's brother said their mother suggested Bertha avoid the difficulty of drawing faces by covering them with sunbonnets.[4] Melcher herself said that covering faces allowed her to communicate with body position.[4] Melcher has also said that the design came about in "answer to a friend’s challenge to convey emotion without a face."[2] Melcher published her first book, The Sun-Bonnet Babies in 1900.[3] Later, she shopped her illustrations to publisher Rand McNally of Chicago, and nine subsequent books were written by Eulalie Osgood Grover and illustrated by Bertha Corbett. In 1905, Melcher wrote The Overall Boys.[3] Many of these books were used as primers and used widely in primary schools in the midwest. Melcher used the sunbonnet babies in advertising and later established the Sunbonnet Babies Company. She started a studio to illustrate and create merchandise of the Sunbonnet Babies.[2] The characters also appeared in a comic strip.[2] Quilting Melcher herself did not originate the use of the sunbonnet babies as quilting pattern. The Sunbonnet Babies quilting pattern appeared in textile art 1910's in the Ladies Home Journal 1911–1912 in a quilt stitched by Marie Webster. The pattern was popular during the Great Depression. In the American South, it was often known as "Dutch Doll" until the 1970s.[3] There was also a quilt pattern based on the "Overall Boys," known by the various names including “Overall Bill, “Overall Andy,” “Sunbonnet Sam,” “Suspender Sam,” “Fisherman Jim."[3] Many patterns for quilts and sewing were designed by Ruby Short McKim and published in nationally syndicated newspapers.[8] Sunbonnet Sue became symbolic of 'female innocence and docility'.[9] Linda Pershing collected accounts from women quilters who depicted 'Sues' doing activities such as smoking, wearing more revealing clothing, and subverting feminine stereotypes.[10] In 1979, the “Seamsters Union Local #500," a group of quilters from Lawrence, Kansas, created “The Sun Sets on Sunbonnet Sue," a quilt depicting the character murdered in a variety of ways.[3] Collectibles Sunbonnet Babies merchandise includes school books, valentines cards, postcards, china, and quilts.[2][5][11] Sunbonnet Babies were adapted into three dimensional porcelain collectibles and pottery made by Royal Bayreuth Company in the early 1900s. The Royal Bayreuth China...