Barbara Nessim Art

Despite its explicit content, this intimate scene conveys a sense of tenderness and romantic love characteristic of Chinese erotic art. Known as “spring palace paintings,” these ink and watercolor illustrations imagined the sensual delights of courtly life. Taken from an album of erotic paintings, this framed leaf departs from a tradition of depicting lovers in risqué outdoor settings by picturing an amorous coupling in a distinctly Qing-dynasty interior. The uniquely detailed surroundings shed light on the prevailing aesthetic tastes in decor and furniture of 19th-century China. Note the carved wooden headrest, blue and white censer...

A Fine, Stylish 1930s Modern Figure Study Drawing of a Standing Male Nude Model (Back) by Famed Chicago Artist Francis Chapin (Am. 1899-1965). A wonderful, early example of Chapin's...

Drawing on paper is his basic work tool, some are sketches of his surviving works, and others are sketches of moments he documents. Throughout his artistic career, Castro has exalt...

A colorful, 1930s American Modern figure study watercolor of a standing young male nude model by notable Chicago Institute of Design artist, Eugene Dana. Watercolor on paper, dating...

Drawing on paper is his basic work tool, some are sketches of his surviving works, and others are sketches of moments he documents. Throughout his artistic career, Castro has exalted the figure and genitality of the Latin American man, putting into tension the limits imposed by the sex/gender system that are part of an unquestionable patriarchal and phallocentric order. The majority of those portrayed are inhabitants of the Colombian coast, also constructing alternative ways of conceiving Latin American identity. By breaking taboos about corporality and male sexuality, his work has been censored on numerous occasions due to public accusations of immorality and pornography. Celso Castro’s work is a bare-bulb erotic photo...

Drawing on paper is his basic work tool, some are sketches of his surviving works, and others are sketches of moments he documents. Throughout his artistic career, Castro has exalt...

Drawing on paper is his basic work tool, some are sketches of his surviving works, and others are sketches of moments he documents. Throughout his artistic career, Castro has exalt...

A Striking, Dramatic 1950s Mid-Century Modern Figure Study Portrait of Woman by Notable Chicago Artist, Harold Haydon (Am. 1909-1994). A well executed, studio drawing in charcoal of...

A Timely and Prescient, 1940s WWII Era Political Cartoon / Illustration Ink Drawing by Notable Chicago Modern Artist, Harold Haydon (Am. 1909-1994). Titled "USA No Admittance". A p...

Despite its explicit content, this intimate scene conveys a sense of tenderness and romantic love characteristic of Chinese erotic art. Known as “sp...

The Hermaphrodite is an original modern artwork realized in the half of the 20th Century by the Italian artist Mino Maccari (Siena, 1898 - Rome, 1989). Original ink and watercolor o...

"Fall to Grace" is an original ink and watercolor painting on paper mounted to wood by artist Robert Kraiza measuring 19in height x 9in width. Artist Statement // In my work I invoke a whimsical world inspired by Victorian and Edwardian eras. To me they represent a romantic time period that has roots that extend directly into the modern world, both good and bad. The customs and aesthetics of the period are both fascinating and breathtaking but a vast portion of the population was victim to subjugation. It has since been eradicated on paper but still permeates to this day. I am exploring an imagined supernatural world hidden just out of sight where these woman could escape. This is an evolution from my earlier work set in the same time period with a continuous thread of humans and their animal companions. Through witchcraft these women find strength in their abilities and each other to leave the oppressive world they inhabit behind and escape to the woods to their Covendom, the boundary that defines the territory of their coven. They shed their customs, their corsets, and their concerns at the edge of the forest and gather among the trees to explore their magical potential with their familiars at the side. This body of work is exploring multiple media with a consistent theme and setting; combining watercolor painting, pen and ink illustrations, and graphite drawings. All pieces are created in monochrome on hot press watercolor paper mounted on wood with a gold painted border reminiscent of daguerreotype frames. Watercolor allows me to achieve results ranging from soft ethereal layered washes similar to oil glazes to precise minute details I include in all of my works. Bio // ROBERT KRAIZA (pronounced: cry-zuh) is an illustrator and fine artist who lives and works in Philadelphia, Pennsylvania. He studied Media Arts and Animation at the Art Institute of Philadelphia. Interested in many media, he often paints in monochrome watercolor on a small scale, inspired by the Victorian era and whimsical dreams in both his art and personal aesthetic. Depicting fantasy worlds from the hidden life of nineteenth century witches to miniature children...