Many of Angela Fraleigh’s haunting and carefully staged tableaux feature women drawn from the annals of Baroque and Rococo “boudoir paintings” — titillating scenes meant to fan the ardor of the viewer. But she puts a contemporary twist on this iconography by giving her characters more agency than was typical of earlier eras.
In Fraleigh’s paintings, which can extend to eight feet, group scenes are typically set against a backdrop of lush painterly effects, ranging from pure abstraction to suggestions of flora and fauna. “I want my paintings to be magical and mesmerizing — seductive, while also inspiring the viewer to ask questions about who they are, where they are, what power they have available and how they might use that power,” the artist says.
Adds Ted Holland, a director at Hirschl & Adler Galleries, in New York, which represents Fraleigh’s work: “She examines the roles and depictions of women in art history — as subject, object, artist and muse — and repositions those often-marginalized figures at the center of her own paintings. The mix of figuration and abstraction allows the female figures to exist without the signifiers of time and location, ultimately giving the figures a new power and context.”
But Fraleigh’s practice also has a quieter, more intimate side. She is an exquisite draftsman who has focused on, among other subjects, the animal kingdom and the intricacies of women’s hair, and some of her smaller paintings have a quiet mystery reminiscent of Gerhard Richter’s tender portraits.
Find original Angela Fraleigh art on 1stDibs.
Through the half-drowned stars
By Angela Fraleigh
Located in Houston, TX
Angela Fraleigh Through the half-drowned stars, 2015 oil, ink, and synthetic resin on canvas 66 x 90 x 2 in (167.6 x 228.6 x 5.1 cm) Angela Fraleigh (born 1976, Beaufort, SC) earned...
Canvas, Ink, Oil, Synthetic Resin
A Word For What Binds
By Angela Fraleigh
Located in New York, NY
Unsigned
Canvas, Charcoal, Oil
In an Absent Dream
By Angela Fraleigh
Located in New York, NY
Unsigned
Canvas, Charcoal, Oil
$18,000
Turn Your Eyes to the Heavens and Say Three Times: I do not have to be good
By Angela Fraleigh
Located in New York, NY
Is it discomfort, or excitement, that you feel when you watch these women languidly roust, or subtly drift asleep? Do you happily play the voyeur, seduced by their beauty and the opu...
Oil, Acrylic
The Stars Rise, the Moon Bends Her Arc
By Angela Fraleigh
Located in New York, NY
Signed and dated (on verso): Angela Fraleigh 2021
Linen, Oil
Our story was a ghostly one
By Angela Fraleigh
Located in New York, NY
Signed on verso
Linen, Oil
Wait For Me There
By Angela Fraleigh
Located in New York, NY
Signed and dated (on verso): Angela Fraleigh 2021
Canvas, Oil, Panel
A late frost drifted back
By Angela Fraleigh
Located in New York, NY
Signed on back
Linen, Oil
A Pang of Vivid Light
By Angela Fraleigh
Located in New York, NY
Signed and dated (on verso): "Angela Fraleigh 2021"
Linen, Oil
Shaking to Sound the Silent Skies
By Angela Fraleigh
Located in New York, NY
Signed and dated (on verso): Angela Fraleigh 2021
Linen, Oil
Splinters of a Secret Sky - Splinters
By Angela Fraleigh
Located in New York, NY
Signed (on verso): AF/2021
Canvas, Acrylic Polymer, Oil, Acrylic
Silent Sparks
By Angela Fraleigh
Located in New York, NY
Signed and dated (on verso): Angela Fraleigh 2021
Canvas, Oil, Panel
Tumbling into Light
By Angela Fraleigh
Located in New York, NY
Signed and dated (on verso): Angela Fraleigh 2021
Canvas, Oil, Panel
The Circle is Cast, We Are Between the Worlds
By Angela Fraleigh
Located in New York, NY
In Angela Fraleigh’s dynamic paintings, female subjects culled from art history become active protagonists in newly imagined spaces. In their original contexts, these figures were largely painted as docile objects for the male gaze...
Oil, Acrylic
Rooted in Constellations
By Angela Fraleigh
Located in New York, NY
Signed and dated (on verso): Angela Fraleigh 2021
Linen, Oil
Stars Splinter, Pointed and Wild
By Angela Fraleigh
Located in New York, NY
Unsigned
Linen, Oil
From Sunset to Sunrise
By Angela Fraleigh
Located in New York, NY
Signed and dated (on verso): Angela Fraleigh 2021
Linen, Oil
Marilyn Chanel Diamond. (Palm White)
By Russell Young
Located in Östermalm, Stockholms län
Unique. Artwork size: 160x122 cm. Frame size 167x130x5 cm. Signed, titled and dated on the back. Acquired directly from the artist. Free shipment worldwide Russell Young, born in 1959 in Yorkshire, is a British-American artist best known for his large scale silk screen paintings...
Canvas, Oil, Acrylic, Linen, Ink, Screen
Hedonist
Located in Edinburgh, GB
This captivating oil painting explores the delicate intersection of female sensuality and whimsical surrealism. It features an Anthropomorphic rabbit elegantly lounging upon a beautifully detailed, rich burgundy corset...
Oil, Acrylic
$900
H 10 in W 8 in
"Figure 1, 2021" Acrylic Painting of Nude Female, 21st Century, Framed
By Matthew Durante
Located in Denver, CO
Matthew Durante's "Figure 1 2021" is an original, handmade acrylic painting that depicts a blue-toned nude female model superimposed over a pink and purple background.
Oil, Acrylic, Panel, Pencil
$3,428
H 19.69 in W 23.63 in D 0.79 in
“The Seated Nude” (Nudes Series) Canvas, Oil, Acrylic, 50x60 cm
Located in Zofingen, AG
“The Seated Nude”(Nudes Series) Canvas, Oil, Acrylic, 50x60 cm Dive into a passionate, deeply layered expression of the human form with this captivating figurative masterpiece from t...
Oil, Acrylic
$4,570
H 19.69 in W 27.56 in D 0.79 in
Renunciation (Nudes Series) canvas, oil, acrylic 50x70cm
Located in Zofingen, AG
Renunciation (Nudes Series) canvas, oil, acrylic 50x70cm A masterpiece exploring sculptural anatomy, deep isolation, and the infinite. This fine art 70x50cm oil, acrylic canvas cap...
Acrylic, Oil
$4,999
H 39.37 in W 25.59 in D 1.18 in
"Bolonia IV" – Oil Painting, Female Nude Beach Scene
By Conrado López
Located in Denver, CO
"Bolonia IV" by Conrado López is a striking original 2024 painting depicting a female nude figure executed in acrylic, gold leaf, and oil on canvas. Measuring 39.37 x 25.59 x 1.18 in...
Gold Leaf
$4,700
H 49 in W 49 in
Stardust Moon - Original Artwork Deep Black Gold Blue Earth Sky Moon Outer Space
By Charlotte Elizabeth
Located in Los Angeles, CA
Charlotte Elizabeth has been working with paint professionally for over fifteen years. Elizabeth’s training in theatre design preceded a busy career as a Theatrical Scenic Artist in London’s West End...
Gold Leaf
$3,500
H 24 in W 18 in D 2 in
"BRIANNA" Figurative Portrait Painting 24" x 18" inch by Isaac Pelayo
By Isaac Pelayo
Located in Culver City, CA
"BRIANNA" Figurative Portrait Painting 24" x 18" inch by Isaac Pelayo Painting size: 24" x 18" in Medium: oil and acrylic on wood ABOUT THE ARTIST: Isaac Pelayo is a head on crash...
Wood, Oil, Acrylic
Reflexes in the Bathroom
By Roxana Khonkulova
Located in Zofingen, AG
A moment when a woman is alone with herself — capturing the intimacy of ritual, of silence, of her own space. She reconnects with the sensation of her body, her beauty, and life itse...
Canvas, Oil, Acrylic
$6,500
H 35.5 in W 23.5 in
"In the Room Where You Sleep" by Daire Lynch, Original Oil Painting, Nude Female
By Daire Lynch
Located in Denver, CO
"In the Room Where You Sleep" by Daire Lynch (Ireland based) is an original oil, acrylic and gold leaf on canvas that depicts a red haired nude model in ...
Gold Leaf
$62,500
H 60 in W 60 in
Morteza Pourhosseini "The Circus 15" Oil and Acrylic on Canvas
By Morteza Pourhosseini
Located in Queens, NY
Morteza Pourhosseini (Iran, born 1985) "The Circus 15" oil and acrylic on canvas, 2013 . Depicting a muscular male nude with "The Persian Iranian Lion" tattooed on his stomach and a...
Oil, Acrylic
$1,850
H 32 in W 32 in D 1 in
Soul Adorned -21st Century, Contemporary, Figurative, Portrait, Africa, Women
By Sola Ojo
Located in Ibadan, Oyo
Shipping Procedure Ships in a well-protected tube from Nigeria This work is unique, this is not a print or other type of copy. Accompanied by a Certificate of Authenticity. About Ar...
Canvas, Charcoal, Mixed Media, Oil, Acrylic
Shine
By Angela Fraleigh
Located in New York, NY
Signed on verso
Resin, Oil, Board