Charles Arnoldi was born in 1946 in Dayton, Ohio. He has become a popular California artist best known for his brightly colored abstract paintings and prints that incorporate the use of wood as an expressive medium, often using tree branches and twigs. Arnoldi lives in Malibu and has had considerable financial success and celebrity attention.
Arnoldi arrived in Southern California in 1965 and spent two years at Ventura Junior College before receiving a full scholarship to the Art Center School in Los Angeles. He only lasted two weeks at his new school before becoming frustrated with limitations imposed upon him as an illustrator. Arnoldi soon enrolled at the Chouinard Art Institute and gained immediate recognition for his skill when he received a Los Angeles County Museum of Art talent award.
Arnoldi experimented with various painting techniques and struggled to find a solid interpretation of his artistic vision. He began to use branches and twigs to make up the lines within his paintings — "building" a painting with them. His earliest works were almost classic in their simplicity and shape, resembling woven stick baskets delicately balanced. Arnoldi concentrated on his twig painting for eight years, constructing many different forms, freestanding structures, sticks and string, twigs taped together densely or openly.
In 1977, Arnoldi had one of his small stick structures created in bronze. It was his first metal sculpture, and he found that the metal gave permanence to his wooden structures. In the 1980s color started to become more important to Arnoldi, and he used bright pigments to give even more definition to his three-dimensional pieces. He also started to paint on canvas, always reflecting the elements of his wood paintings.
In 1980, Arnoldi painted his interpretation of the logjam that occurred as a result of the Mount St. Helens volcano eruption. He juxtaposed his earth-toned canvas against a similar painting created entirely of sticks, mimicking the image on the painted canvas. He was constantly redefining his artistic approaches, and in the late 1980s started working with large plywood sheets. He glued the layered sheets together, deconstructed the piece using a chainsaw to cut jagged scars into the wood, and then painted it. He was now involved in a new process of building up and tearing down. His ever-evolving style took yet another direction when he started using heavy blocks of wood brightly painted and mounted on the wall. He made a point of preserving the integrity of wood by not sanding away any exposed grain.
In the 1990s Arnoldi departed from the rigidity of his wood creations by painting on canvas. His paintings from this period are predominantly black and white and display free-flowing organic shapes like twists and loops with a sense of motion not seen before in his work.
Arnoldi's work has been exhibited throughout his career in many solo and group shows. His first one-man show was at the Riko Mizuno Gallery in Los Angeles in 1971 and subsequent solo exhibitions followed at the James Corcoran Gallery in Los Angeles, (1980–85), and the Arts Club of Chicago, Illinois (1986). His group exhibitions include the Los Angeles County Museum of Art (1983), the Brooklyn Museum (1986) and the Museum of Contemporary Art Los Angeles (1992).
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(Biography provided by Joseph Grossman Fine Art)
$112,000
First Rights
By Charles Arnoldi
Located in Santa Monica, CA
Charles Arnoldi, is an American painter, sculptor and printmaker. He was born April 10, 1946 in Dayton, Ohio. Charles Arnoldi has been described as an artist who “draws in space” to...
Canvas, Charcoal, Acrylic
$105,000
Tumble
By Charles Arnoldi
Located in Santa Monica, CA
Charles Arnoldi, is an American painter, sculptor and printmaker. He was born April 10, 1946 in Dayton, Ohio. Charles Arnoldi has been described as an artist who “draws in space” to...
Canvas, Acrylic
$29,800
Clune
By Charles Arnoldi
Located in Los Angeles, CA
“Clune” abstract acrylic on canvas signed on verso by American artist, Charles Arnoldi (b. 1946) and dated 1978. Arnoldi’s work is permanently displayed at the Art Institute of Chic...
Canvas, Acrylic
$1,020
H 13.39 in W 23.63 in D 0.79 in
Light 15 July 13:22 - Modern Minimalistic Landscape Painting, Sea View
By Robert Motelski
Located in Salzburg, AT
Robert Motelski's paintings are exceptional visions of nature, visions of space which surrounds us. They tell about being, fate and passing. They depend on the season of year, the ti...
Canvas, Acrylic
$1,760Sale Price|20% Off
H 39.38 in W 47.25 in D 0.79 in
Absolute Wealth - Large Contemporary Abstract Maximalism Painting, Ready to Hang
By Karnish Art
Located in Pretoria, Gauteng
Title: Absolute Wealth Large Painting Absolute Wealth - Contemporary Abstract Colorful Maximalism Bold Invest Another soulful artwork by Karnish. Symbols and forms unfold in this m...
Gesso, Canvas, Acrylic, Wood, Charcoal, Spray Paint, Color Pencil, Stret...
$1,391
H 20.87 in W 32.68 in D 1.19 in
Urban Abstraction (ripped off posters) Italian Expressionist Painting on Canvas
By Andrea Spinelli
Located in Firenze, IT
The present work of art titled "Urban Abstraction (ripped off posters)" is part of a series of paintings that the artist composed in the 1980s and 1990s inspired by the observation of the urban reality of those years. The artist take the cue from his walks in Florence, both in the center and in the suburbs, and by the observation of billboards and posters scattered throughout the city. The mass of information, colors, messages and words were carried on the canvas with acrylic colors, ideally reconstructing the tears and overlaps of all the information and advertising contained on these huge sheets of paper that invade our cities. The geometric lines are overlaid with jagged lines, overlaps and color dripping and also the choice in the color palette, with different shades of white, gray, rose, orange red and blue helps in rendering the result of the tears and ripped paper. The result is a beautiful multicolored modern abstract canvas, both aesthetically and ethically, with many rich layers of color, texture and expression in which the artist leaves his own message. The painting is housed in a simple modern white lacquer wood frame. Andrea Spinelli...
Canvas, Acrylic
$11,340
H 68 in W 84 in
Robot Circleish - Large Scale Abstract Expressive Mixed Media Painting on Canvas
By Bruce Rubenstein
Located in Los Angeles, CA
The paintings of Bruce Rubenstein seamlessly marry sophistication with affordability. His expressive abstract landscape artwork 'Robot Circleish' features whimsical details and vibra...
Canvas, Charcoal, Oil Pastel, Mixed Media, Acrylic
$11,500
H 55 in W 80 in
Golden Moments - Large Original Abstract Expressionism Painting on Canvas
By Bruce Rubenstein
Located in Los Angeles, CA
The paintings of Bruce Rubenstein seamlessly marry sophistication with affordability. His original art merges the creative attitudes of the two distinct art hot spots of New York and...
Canvas, Charcoal, Oil Pastel, Mixed Media, Acrylic
$6,700
H 44 in W 66 in
12 Dreams - Large Floral Mixed Media Abstract Landscape Painting on Canvas
By Bruce Rubenstein
Located in Los Angeles, CA
The paintings of Bruce Rubenstein seamlessly marry sophistication with affordability. His expressive abstract landscape artwork 'Flourishing Fields' features whimsical details and vi...
Enamel
$10,150
H 58 in W 89 in
Mid-Hudson Inscape - Large Abstract Landscape Mixed Media Painting on Canvas
By Bruce Rubenstein
Located in Los Angeles, CA
The paintings of Bruce Rubenstein seamlessly marry sophistication with affordability. His expressive abstract landscape artwork 'Mid-Hudson Inscape' features whimsical details and vi...
Enamel
$6,700
H 44 in W 66 in D 1.5 in
Mountain High - Large Original Abstract Expressionism Playful Landscape Painting
By Bruce Rubenstein
Located in Los Angeles, CA
The paintings of Bruce Rubenstein seamlessly marry sophistication with affordability. His expressive abstract landscape artwork 'Flourishing Fields' features whimsical details and vi...
Canvas, Charcoal, Oil Pastel, Mixed Media, Acrylic
$1,200
H 24 in W 22 in
Aura IV /// Abstract Geometric Contemporary Painting Circles Pattern Striped Art
By Jack Graves III
Located in Saint Augustine, FL
Artist: Jack Graves III (American, 1988-) Title: "Aura IV" Series: Aura *Signed by Graves lower left. It is also signed, dated, and titled on verso Year: 2022 Medium: Original Acryli...
Canvas, Paint, Acrylic
$3,950
H 72 in W 48 in D 1.5 in
"Surprise" (FRAMED) Abstract Painting 72 x 48 inch by Yoram Katz
By Yoram Katz
Located in Culver City, CA
"Surprise" (FRAMED) Abstract Painting 72 x 48 inch by Yoram Katz Medium: Acrylic and Enamel on Canvas Size framed: 73 x 49 in ABOUT THE ARTIST: Born in Israel. Graduated from the...
Enamel
$4,175
H 35.44 in W 63 in D 0.79 in
Light 21 October 11:02 - Modern Minimalistic Landscape Painting, Sea View
By Robert Motelski
Located in Salzburg, AT
Robert Motelski's paintings are exceptional visions of nature, visions of space which surrounds us. They tell about being, fate and passing. They depend on the season of year, the ti...
Canvas, Acrylic
"Blossom" Abstract Painting 35" x 55" inch by Carole Baines
By Carole Baines
Located in Culver City, CA
"Blossom" Abstract Painting 35" x 55" inch by Carole Baines Pollination and bush fruits in spring time. Carole Baines is a self-taught, London-born artist based between Townsville ...
Canvas, Oil, Acrylic
Radar
By Charles Arnoldi
Located in Palm Desert, CA
A painting by Charles Arnoldi. "Radar" is an abstract acrylic on plywood painting executed in a colorful palette by contemporary artist by Charles Arnoldi. Signed verso, "1987 Arnoldi" Provenance: SCAPE (Southern California Art Project and Exhibitions), Corona del Mar...
Plywood, Acrylic
Ram
By Charles Arnoldi
Located in Phoenix, AZ
acrylic on canvas b. 1946, Dayton, Ohio Since his breakthrough structures made out of branches in the late ‘70s, Charles Arnoldi has worked in numerous styles and media, from charc...
Canvas, Acrylic
Soriano
By Charles Arnoldi
Located in Phoenix, AZ
acrylic on canvas b. 1946, Dayton, Ohio Since his breakthrough structures made out of branches in the late ‘70s, Charles Arnoldi has worked in numerous styles and media, from charc...
Canvas, Acrylic
Untitled
By Charles Arnoldi
Located in Laguna Beach, CA
Claiming, “I’m just trying to make art with some sense of dignity, and honesty, and integrity,” Charles Arnoldi has been blurring the boundaries between painting and sculpture, abstr...
Plywood, Acrylic
Tourniquet
By Charles Arnoldi
Located in Laguna Beach, CA
Claiming, “I’m just trying to make art with some sense of dignity, and honesty, and integrity,” Charles Arnoldi has been blurring the boundaries between painting and sculpture, abstr...
Copper