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Artis Lane Portrait Paintings

Canadian, b. 1927

For work that spans portraiture, oil painting and bronze sculpture, the Canadian artist Artis Lane draws from the spiritual and emotional aspects of human existence. Lane is a trailblazer: She was the first Black woman to be admitted to Cranbrook Academy of Arta legendary institution within art, design and architecture — and her bronze bust of Sojourner Truth was the first statue of an African-American woman in the United States Capitol.

Lane was born in North Buxton, Ontario, in a town predominantly inhabited by the descendants of slaves who arrived in Canada by way of the Underground Railroad. As her artistic career developed, so did her interest in people of African descent as well as her ideas about the physical world and our bodies being vessels, capable of eventually taking on godly characteristics.

“Lane promotes the primacy of corporeal experience with sculptures that speak to Africa as the beginning of human life,” noted the University of Oklahoma’s Journal of Museum Studies in 2008. Her unique approach to depicting the journey between the physical and spiritual worlds has been to work outside the constraints of the traditional bronze finishing process, leaving the ceramic casing, wire and tubing used to cast it intact as part of the finished piece, whereby the wire is symbolic of bondage to the physical form.

Lane attended what was then called the Ontario College of Art (today, it’s the Ontario College of Art and Design University) on the Edith Chapman scholarship before studying painting at Cranbrook. She took an active role in the artistic communities in the various cities she lived in over the years. In New York and Los Angeles, she befriended actors Cary Grant and Diahann Carroll, and in Detroit, she painted commissioned portraits of auto industry executives to pay the bills. She would go on to paint portraits of many esteemed figures such as President John F. Kennedy, Frank Sinatra, Michael Jordan and Aretha Franklin. Today, a sculpture Lane created of Rosa Parks is on display at the National Portrait Gallery.

Lane received a Lifetime Achievement Award from the California African American Museum and an honorary degree from her alma mater, Cranbrook Academy of Art.

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Artist: Artis Lane
"Desmond Tutu", Acrylic on Canvas, Historical Portrait
"Desmond Tutu", Acrylic on Canvas, Historical Portrait

"Desmond Tutu", Acrylic on Canvas, Historical Portrait

By Artis Lane

Located in Detroit, MI

This portrait of Desmond Tutu is from the seminal artist Artis Lane and is one of the many exquisite portraits done of historical figures and celebrities she has met and painted duri...

Category

Early 2000s Artis Lane Portrait Paintings

Materials

Canvas, Acrylic

"Female", Acrylic on Canvas
"Female", Acrylic on Canvas

"Female", Acrylic on Canvas

By Artis Lane

Located in Detroit, MI

This acrylic on canvas from the seminal artist Artis Lane is one of the many model paintings from her long and illustrious career. The subject is a female nude in pose, holding a flo...

Category

1980s Artis Lane Portrait Paintings

Materials

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"Eva Gabor" Female Portrait, Golden Colors, Movie Star
"Eva Gabor" Female Portrait, Golden Colors, Movie Star

"Eva Gabor" Female Portrait, Golden Colors, Movie Star

By Artis Lane

Located in Detroit, MI

This portrait from the seminal artist Artis Lane is one of the many unique portraits she has painted of notable people she has known in her long and illustrious career. The subject is Eva Gabor...

Category

Late 20th Century Modern Artis Lane Portrait Paintings

Materials

Canvas, Oil

"Baby Jane Holzer"  Female Portrait, Golden & Green Colors, Celebrity, Intimate
"Baby Jane Holzer"  Female Portrait, Golden & Green Colors, Celebrity, Intimate

"Baby Jane Holzer" Female Portrait, Golden & Green Colors, Celebrity, Intimate

By Artis Lane

Located in Detroit, MI

This portrait from the seminal artist Artis Lane is one of the many unique portraits she has painted of notable people she has known in her long and illustrious career. The subject is "Baby Jane" Holzer, a member of Andy Warhol superstars and an art collector and film producer in her own right. She appeared in several Andry Warhol...

Category

1970s Modern Artis Lane Portrait Paintings

Materials

Canvas, Oil

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Artis Lane portrait paintings for sale on 1stDibs.

Find a wide variety of authentic Artis Lane portrait paintings available for sale on 1stDibs. You can also browse by medium to find art by Artis Lane in canvas, fabric, paint and more. Much of the original work by this artist or collective was created during the 20th century and is mostly associated with the modern style. Not every interior allows for large Artis Lane portrait paintings, so small editions measuring 25 inches across are available. Customers who are interested in this artist might also find the work of Sandu Liberman, Moshe Katz, and Orovida Pissarro.