Skip to main content

Anton Refregier Art

American, 1905-1979

Anton Refregier was a painter and muralist active in Works Progress Administration Federal Art Project commissions, and in teaching art. He was a Russian immigrant to the United States. He is known, among other works, for his mural The History of California located in the Rincon Center, in downtown San Francisco, California. It depicts the state's history across 27 panels that he painted from 1940–48. The style of this historic mural had many of Refregier's key characteristics. The palette was composed of yellows, browns, and grays, punctuated by red in certain areas to evoke emotion. Earthy tones and the lack of bright colors remind viewers of the struggles and hardships he is depicting. Refregier also uses white to represent virtue in those inspired by a cause. His style is very flat and one-dimensional. Refregier uses solid blocks of color to denote shadows, along with depth and shade. His painting style appears to be very rudimentary and simple, but complex because of the way he uses color to evoke emotion and powerful images to tell a story. Refregier died in 1979 while in Moscow. Refregier was working on a mural for a medical center in his home city. The same year, his Rincon Mural was placed under the protection of the National Register of Historic Places.

to
1
7
2
1
1
Overall Width
to
Overall Height
to
11
2
8
1
5
8
3
8
7
4
3
2
2
2
1
1
1
1
1
1
1
1
6
3
2
1
1
11
8,889
2,810
1,329
1,278
3
11
Artist: Anton Refregier
Peace
By Anton Refregier
Located in Fairlawn, OH
Peace Woodcut printed in orange red ink on japanese paper Signed and titled in pencil lower right (see photo) Titled lower left (see photo) Created along with an illustrated book project Song of Peace, 1950-1959. Condition: Excellent Image: 10 1/2 x 4 7/8" Sheet: 16 1/8 x 7"; Anton Refregier (March 20, 1905 – October 10, 1979) was a painter and muralist active in Works Progress Administration Federal Art Project commissions, and in teaching art. He was a Russian immigrant to the United States. Among his best-known works is his mural series The History of San Francisco, located in the Rincon Center in downtown San Francisco, California. It depicts the city's history across twenty seven panels that he painted from 1940 to 1948. Life and early career Refregier was born in Moscow and emigrated to the United States in 1920. After working various odd jobs in New York City, he earned a scholarship to the Rhode Island School of Design in 1921. After finishing school, Refregier moved back to New York in 1925. To earn a living, Refregier worked for interior decorators, creating replicas of François Boucher and Jean-Honoré Fragonard paintings...
Category

1950s American Modern Anton Refregier Art

Materials

Woodcut

original lithograph
By Anton Refregier
Located in Henderson, NV
Medium: original lithograph. This lithograph was printed for the inside back cover of the 1956 "Improvisations" portfolio, published by the Artists Equity Association of New York on ...
Category

1950s Anton Refregier Art

Materials

Lithograph

WPA Mural Study Mid-Century Modern American Scene Social Realism Workers
By Anton Refregier
Located in New York, NY
WPA Mural Study Mid-Century Modern American Scene Social Realism Workers Anton Refregier (1905-1979) Mural Study, Untitled 7 ¾ x 22 inches (sight) Gouache, pencil, and charcoal on board, c. 1940s Unsigned Provenance: Estate of Seymour Fogel, noted verso Thomas McCormick Gallery...
Category

1940s American Modern Anton Refregier Art

Materials

Charcoal, Gouache, Board, Pencil

DISCOVERY OF GOLD - Very Large Serigraph - WPA Artist - California Murals
By Anton Refregier
Located in Santa Monica, CA
ANTON REFREGIER (1905 – 1979) DISCOVERY OF GOLD, 1949. Color serigraph. Signed and numbered in pencil, edition of 90. Image 23 ¼ x 21 ¾" Large sheet, 29 3/4 x 25 ¼”. Printed title...
Category

1940s American Modern Anton Refregier Art

Materials

Screen

Picnic, Modern Figurative Oil Painting by Anton Refregier
By Anton Refregier
Located in Long Island City, NY
Artist: Anton Refregier Title: Picnic Year: 1959 Medium: Oil on Masonite, signed and dated l.r. Size: 24 x 44 inches (61 x 112 cm) Frame: 31.5 x 51.5 inches
Category

1950s American Modern Anton Refregier Art

Materials

Oil

original lithograph
By Anton Refregier
Located in Henderson, NV
Medium: original lithograph. This lithograph was printed in 1956 for the "Improvisations" portfolio, published by the Artists Equity Association of New York on the occasion of the 19...
Category

1950s Anton Refregier Art

Materials

Lithograph

original lithograph
By Anton Refregier
Located in Henderson, NV
Medium: original lithograph. This lithograph is from the rare 1950 "Improvisations" portfolio, published by the Artists Equity Association of New York on the occasion of the 1950 Spr...
Category

1950s Anton Refregier Art

Materials

Lithograph

“Girl in the Grass”
By Anton Refregier
Located in Southampton, NY
Original oil on canvas painting by Anton Refregier of a young girl resting in the grass. Signed upper right and dated 1962. Condition is very good. The painting is in its original oa...
Category

1960s American Modern Anton Refregier Art

Materials

Canvas, Oil

original lithograph
By Anton Refregier
Located in Henderson, NV
Medium: original lithograph. This lithograph was printed in 1955 for the "Improvisations" portfolio, and published by the Artists Equity Association of New York in an edition of 2000...
Category

1950s Anton Refregier Art

Materials

Lithograph

original lithograph
By Anton Refregier
Located in Henderson, NV
Medium: original lithograph. This lithograph was printed in 1957 for the "Improvisations" portfolio, published by the Artists Equity Association of New York on the occasion of the 19...
Category

1950s Anton Refregier Art

Materials

Lithograph

original lithograph
By Anton Refregier
Located in Henderson, NV
Medium: original lithograph. This lithograph is from the rare 1953 "Improvisations" portfolio, published by the Artists Equity Association of New York on the occasion of the 1953 Spr...
Category

1950s Anton Refregier Art

Materials

Lithograph

Related Items
A Pair of Modern Impressionist Landscape Oil Paintings Framed Female artist NY
Located in Buffalo, NY
A Pair of Modernist Landscapes by listed female artist Margaret Munro Stratton McLennan. Margaret was a painter working in the early 20th Century in the Syracuse area. These charmi...
Category

1920s American Modern Anton Refregier Art

Materials

Oil, Board

'The Rabbit' original woodcut engraving by Clarice George Logan
By Clarice George Logan
Located in Milwaukee, WI
In 'The Rabbit,' Wisconsin artist Clarice George Logan presents the viewer with a multi-figural scene: under a wood-frame structure, four children crouch on the ground, gathered around a young woman who presents a rabbit. Under normal circumstances, such an image of children with a bunny would recall childhood storybooks. In this case, however, the image is more ambiguous and suggests the unfortunate economic circumstances many children suffered during the interwar years. Nonetheless, the group could also be interpreted as a nativity play, with the rabbit taking the place of the Christ child, shining light on the children like in a painting by the Italian Renaissance artist Correggio. The careful line-work of the woodblock engraving adds a sense of expressionism to the scene, leaving the figures looking distraught and dirty, though the image nonetheless falls into the Social Realist category that dominated American artists during the Great Depression. This print was published in 1936 as part of the Wisconsin Artists' Calendar for the year 1937, which included 52 original, hand-made prints - one for each week of the year. Clarice George Logan was born in Mayville, New York in 1909 but moved to Wisconsin in 1921. She attended the Milwaukee State Teachers College from 1927 to 1931 where she studied with Robert von...
Category

1930s American Modern Anton Refregier Art

Materials

Engraving, Woodcut

French Gouache Painting of Pueblo Bread Baking in Taos New Mexico
Located in Cirencester, Gloucestershire
Title: French Gouache Painting of Pueblo Bread Baking in Taos New Mexico by Emile GALLOIS (1882-1965, French) Signed: Yes Medium: Original gouache painting on thick unframed paper, S...
Category

Mid-20th Century American Modern Anton Refregier Art

Materials

Gouache

Clinton Hill, (Nude #1), 1951, drawing, figure/abstraction
By Clinton Hill
Located in New York, NY
Clinton Hill (1922-2003), created quintessential mid-century images, but figures are unusual in his work. This is from a very early period. In 1951 Hill studied at the Academie de la...
Category

Mid-20th Century American Modern Anton Refregier Art

Materials

Gouache

Clinton Hill, (Nude #5), 1951, drawing, figure/abstraction
By Clinton Hill
Located in New York, NY
Clinton Hill (1922-2003), created quintessential mid-century images, but figures are unusual in his work. This is from a very early period. From 1949 to 1951 Hill attended the Brookl...
Category

Mid-20th Century American Modern Anton Refregier Art

Materials

Gouache

1969 American Modern "The Concert"
Located in San Francisco, CA
Powerful mid century American modern painting of 3 musicians. Really well painted mystery piece. It is oil on canvas dated on back with a name of either a...
Category

1960s American Modern Anton Refregier Art

Materials

Oil

Henri Matisse: Colour Lithographs after the Cut-Outs, Framed Print, 1958
By Henri Matisse
Located in Richmond, GB
Henri Matisse: Colour Lithographs after the Cut-Outs, Framed Print, 1958 In 1941 Matisse underwent abdominal surgery after which he found painting to be physically taxing. Increasi...
Category

20th Century Anton Refregier Art

Materials

Paper, Lithograph

mr. c and gladys, bright colorful man and dog
By Stephen Basso
Located in Brooklyn, NY
*ABOUT Stephen Basso Stephen Basso's highly original pastels and oil paintings are romantic, yet thought provoking fantasies. His whimsical works are alive with boundless imagina...
Category

2010s American Modern Anton Refregier Art

Materials

Canvas, Oil

Chicago Skyline
By Paul Schumann
Located in Middletown, NY
A beautiful turn-of-the-century lake view of Chicago by an American artist known for his Texas landscapes. Etching with drypoint on watermarked Umbria laid paper with deckle edges, 7 1/4 x 10 7/8 inches (182 x 275 mm), full margins. Signed and numbered 4/25 in pencil, lower margin. In good condition with adhesive residue at the sheet edges on the verso, does not show through to the recto. A lovely Lake Michigan landscape...
Category

Early 20th Century American Modern Anton Refregier Art

Materials

Handmade Paper, Etching, Drypoint

Chicago Skyline
Chicago Skyline
$800
H 7.17 in W 10.83 in
French Gouache Painting of Native American Antelope Hunt in Utah
Located in Cirencester, Gloucestershire
Title: French Gouache Painting of Native American Antelope Hunt in Utah by Emile GALLOIS (1882-1965, French) Signed: Yes Medium: Original gouache painting on thick unframed paper, Si...
Category

Mid-20th Century American Modern Anton Refregier Art

Materials

Gouache

'Tenant Farmers' — Depression Era, WPA
By Lou Barlow
Located in Myrtle Beach, SC
Lou Barlow (Louis Breslow), 'Tenant Farmers', color wood engraving, 1936, edition 25. Signed, titled, and numbered '15/25' in pencil. A superb, richly-inked impression, with fresh c...
Category

1930s American Modern Anton Refregier Art

Materials

Woodcut

Vibrant French Gouache Painting of Navajo Jewelry Makers in Albuquerque
Located in Cirencester, Gloucestershire
Title: Vibrant French Gouache Painting of Navajo Jewelry Makers in Albuquerque by Emile GALLOIS (1882-1965, French) Signed: Yes Medium: Original gouache painting on thick unframed p...
Category

Mid-20th Century American Modern Anton Refregier Art

Materials

Gouache

Previously Available Items
"Hop Scotch" Mid 20th Century Social Realism WPA Modern American Scene 1950s SF
By Anton Refregier
Located in New York, NY
"Hop Scotch" Mid 20th Century Social Realism WPA Modern American Scene 1950s SF, .30 1/4 x 22 1/4 inches. Signed and dated 1951 lower right. Provenance: ACA Gallery label verso. BIO Anton Refregier was born March 20, 1905 in Moscow, Russia. He immigrated to the United States in 1920. He received his artistic training from the Rhode Island School of Design*, Providence, Rhode Island, 1921-1925; studied abroad with the sculptor Nicolai Vassilief in Paris in 1920; and with Hans Hofmann in Munich, 1927. From 1934 to 1940, Refregier, living in New York City, worked on various WPA Federal Art Projects* as a teacher, supervising artist, and mural supervisor. His most famous work is arguably the mural project at San Francisco's Rincon Center, the costliest and one of the most controversial of all the WPA commissions. It is a multi-scene panorama* that sparked national debate because of its inclusion of controversial events in California history. Refregier found inspiration in tragic events, which is reflected in his Depression Era-WPA work...
Category

1950s American Realist Anton Refregier Art

Materials

Masonite, Oil

SAN FRANCISCO '34 WATERFRONT STRIKE
By Anton Refregier
Located in Portland, ME
Refregier, Anton (American, born Russia, 1905-1979). SAN FRANCISCO '34 WATERFRONT STRIKE. Screenprint in colors, 1949. Edition of 75. Signed in ink and numbered 47/75, with the Title...
Category

1940s Anton Refregier Art

Materials

Screen

WPA Mural Study American Scene Modernism San Francisco Post Office 20th Century
By Anton Refregier
Located in New York, NY
WPA Mural Study American Scene Modernism San Francisco Post Office 20th Century Mural Study for “The Waterfront,” San Francisco Rincon Station Post Of...
Category

1930s American Modern Anton Refregier Art

Materials

Paper, Pencil

“Flowers and Radishes”
By Anton Refregier
Located in Southampton, NY
Original oil pastel on archival paper drawing by Anton Refregier of flowers and radishes in a still life. Signed upper right. Circa 1965. Condition is good. Overall measurements fra...
Category

1960s American Modern Anton Refregier Art

Materials

Oil Pastel, Archival Paper

LUMBERJACKS Hanging Sculpture Painting Ceramic Mid-Century Woodstock Men Working
By Anton Refregier
Located in New York, NY
LUMBERJACKS Hanging Sculpture Painting Ceramic Mid-Century Woodstock Men Working Anton Refregier (1905-1979) "Lumberjacks," Ceramic embedded plaster on masonite. 26 x 9 inches. Sign...
Category

1950s American Modern Anton Refregier Art

Materials

Ceramic, Plaster, Wood, Masonite

Deaths of Castillo and Calvo Sotelo (Spanish Civil War)
By Anton Refregier
Located in Myrtle Beach, SC
Anton Refregier, 'Deaths of Castillo and Calvo Sotelo' (Spanish Civil War), lithograph, c. 1936, edition 20. Numbered '17/20' in pencil. Signed 'REF.' ...
Category

1930s American Modern Anton Refregier Art

Materials

Lithograph

"Coulee Dam Construction" WPA Precisionist Industrial Figurative American Scene
By Anton Refregier
Located in New York, NY
Anton Refregier painting "Coulee Dam Construction, " a WPA era industrial American Scene oil painting, The figurative work is signed on the upper right Born in Moscow, Refregier stu...
Category

1930s American Realist Anton Refregier Art

Materials

Canvas, Oil

Anton Refregier art for sale on 1stDibs.

Find a wide variety of authentic Anton Refregier art available for sale on 1stDibs. If you’re browsing the collection of art to introduce a pop of color in a neutral corner of your living room or bedroom, you can find work that includes elements of orange and other colors. You can also browse by medium to find art by Anton Refregier in lithograph, oil paint, 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 Anton Refregier art, so small editions measuring 7 inches across are available. Customers who are interested in this artist might also find the work of Ruth Gikow, George Biddle, and Jacques Hnizdovsky. Anton Refregier art prices can differ depending upon medium, time period and other attributes. On 1stDibs, the price for these items starts at $75 and tops out at $13,000, while the average work can sell for $75.

Recently Viewed

View All