Don Clausen Landscape Paintings

American, 1930-2020

Don was a passionate artist all his life. He started out with his animal drawings for children while attending art school. He then went on to his more abstract “boat paintings” and finally settled on abstract expressionism. His idea of a vacation was carving wood sculptures. He showed his art for many years at the De Tours Gallery and Maiden Lane Gallery in San Francisco, Zantmans in Carmel, Alta Galleria in Berkeley and had art shows in Grand Rapids Michigan in 2016 and 2019, plus various other galleries and shows over the years. One of his paintings is on the label of the 1986 Kenwood “artist series” Cabernet Sauvignon. Born in 1930, Clausen is a graduate of the California College of Art in Oakland, California. “I always search for new ways of seeing things,” he says. “I’m an incurable experimenter. I live for art.” He uses a palette knife for his oil abstract paintings; in the 1960s and 1970s he also painted seascapes and did some sculpture in wood and metal. In his luminous abstractions, Clausen employs every color of the rainbow, the strong lines forming geometric shapes that appear to fly through space. Nothing is weighed down in his paintings; it’s as if images came to him from outer space or other realms. He turns the physical world into dabs and streaks of color that convey an engulfing sense of motion. Whether abstract or representational, his works convey enormous energy and vitality, like masterpieces by Jackson Pollack and Willem de Kooning. They also are distinctive for their sculptural quality, a result of his thickly layering the paint and then slicing down to the canvas with a palette knife or section of a venetian blind; his choice of tools is as eclectic as his subject matter. “I’ll paint with anything,” he says. “I like sticks because I can carve into the paint with them.” Few artists demonstrate Clausen’s versatility, proved by his genius for shifting from one artistic form to another. He shows outstanding talent for portraiture, conveying a profound sense of his subjects’ characters, through sensitive detail, such as the tilt of a head, expression of the mouth or smile lines. A great admirer of Rembrandt and Vermeer, Clausen has learned how to evoke a psychological state from studying those masters. He also paints landscapes and cityscapes, particularly splendid is a golden-brown San Francisco that he did of the city long ago. He has spent a lot of time studying the broad horizons of French painter Vlaminck. “Everything is abstract more or less,” he says, “as it’s fundamentally composed of shapes and lines.”

Artist: Don Clausen

Don Clausen'Abstract Landscape', California College of Arts and Crafts, Oakland, Thiebaud, 1974

$1,150

'Abstract Landscape', California College of Arts and Crafts, Oakland, Thiebaud

By Don Clausen

Located in Santa Cruz, CA

Signed lower left, 'Clausen' for Don Clausen (American, 1930-2020) and dated 1974. A self-proclaimed "sculptor of paint," Donald Clausen used tools of his own invention to create co...

Category

1970s Don Clausen Landscape Paintings

Materials

Masonite, Oil

James Earl RayLandscape with Orange Sky, ca. 1975

$1,500Sale Price|40% Off

H 6.5 in W 8.5 in

Landscape with Orange Sky

Located in Wilton Manors, FL

James Earl Ray (1928-1998). Landscape with Orange Sky. ca. 1975. Oil on masonite panel measures 6.5 x 8.5 inches, 10.5 x 12.5 inches framed. Signed lowe...

Category

Mid-20th Century Abstract Don Clausen Landscape Paintings

Materials

Masonite, Oil

Helen Enoch GleiforstAutumn Trees - Mid Century Small-Scale Landscape, Signed Oil Painting, 1955

$880Sale Price|20% Off

H 15.5 in W 13.5 in D 1.5 in

Autumn Trees - Mid Century Small-Scale Landscape, Signed Oil Painting

By Helen Enoch Gleiforst

Located in Soquel, CA

Autumn Trees - Mid Century Small-Scale Landscape, Signed Oil Painting Vivid mid century landscape of autumn trees blurring into colorful abstraction by Helen Gleiforst (American, 19...

Category

1950s American Impressionist Don Clausen Landscape Paintings

Materials

Masonite, Oil

Will S. TaylorAntique American New England Fall Impressionist Framed Signed Oil Painting, 1930

$1,275

H 16 in W 18 in D 2 in

Antique American New England Fall Impressionist Framed Signed Oil Painting

Located in Buffalo, NY

Impressive early American impressionist landscape painting by Will S. Taylor (Born 1882). Oil on board. Framed. Signed. Image size, 12 by 13 inches.

Category

1970s Modern Don Clausen Landscape Paintings

Materials

Oil, Masonite

Donald Roy PurdyHarbor abstract in Deep Blues, 1950

$3,500Sale Price|30% Off

H 31.25 in W 47.5 in D 4 in

Harbor abstract in Deep Blues

By Donald Roy Purdy

Located in New York, NY

Signed lower left: Purdy A very cool example of mid-century 50"s abstraction. Harbor is done in a style that was being experimented with particularly in the New York and California ...

Category

Mid-20th Century Abstract Don Clausen Landscape Paintings

Materials

Oil, Masonite

Jean KrilleLandscape 127 by Jean Krille - Oil on masonite 65x92 cm

$2,000Sale Price|20% Off

H 25.6 in W 36.23 in D 0.4 in

Landscape 127 by Jean Krille - Oil on masonite 65x92 cm

By Jean Krille

Located in Geneva, CH

Jean Krillé’s paintings are known for their expressive use of color and dynamic, abstract forms, blending realism with abstraction in his depictions of nature. His landscapes often f...

Category

Late 20th Century Neo-Expressionist Don Clausen Landscape Paintings

Materials

Masonite, Oil

Jean KrilleLandscape 130 by Jean Krille - Oil on canvas 50x35 cm, 1981

$984Sale Price|20% Off

H 19.69 in W 13.78 in D 0.79 in

Landscape 130 by Jean Krille - Oil on canvas 50x35 cm

By Jean Krille

Located in Geneva, CH

Jean Krillé’s paintings are known for their expressive use of color and dynamic, abstract forms, blending realism with abstraction in his depictions of nature. His landscapes often f...

Category

Late 20th Century Neo-Expressionist Don Clausen Landscape Paintings

Materials

Masonite, Oil

Clayton AndersonSmall Surrealist Landscape with Boats - After the Flood, circa 1970s

$1,880Sale Price|20% Off

H 8.63 in W 8.63 in D 2 in

Small Surrealist Landscape with Boats - After the Flood

By Clayton Anderson

Located in Soquel, CA

Detailed surrealist landscape depicting a barren, desert-like scene with small boats by Clayton Anderson (American, b. 1943). Signed "CLAY ANDERSON" on v...

Category

1970s Surrealist Don Clausen Landscape Paintings

Materials

Wood, Masonite, Oil

Vasil PapkovBoathouse at Night, Modernist Two Toned Color-field Abstracted Seascape, c. 1987

$1,150

H 14.25 in W 18.25 in D 1 in

Boathouse at Night, Modernist Two Toned Color-field Abstracted Seascape

By Vasil Papkov

Located in Soquel, CA

Boathouse at Night, Modernist Two Toned Color-field Abstracted Seascape Nocturnal seascape by Vasil (Victor) Papkov (20th Century). At the top of the piece, the moon is obscured beh...

Category

1980s Impressionist Don Clausen Landscape Paintings

Materials

Masonite, Oil

Jean KrilleLandscape 128 by Jean Krille - Oil on masonite 70x50.5 cm, 1981

$1,520Sale Price|20% Off

H 27.56 in W 19.89 in D 0.4 in

Landscape 128 by Jean Krille - Oil on masonite 70x50.5 cm

By Jean Krille

Located in Geneva, CH

Jean Krillé’s paintings are known for their expressive use of color and dynamic, abstract forms, blending realism with abstraction in his depictions of nature. His landscapes often f...

Category

Late 20th Century Abstract Don Clausen Landscape Paintings

Materials

Masonite, Oil

Sylvia Rutkoff"The Cowboy" Oil Impasto Painting, Mid Century, Signed, 42x36 Inches, 1960s

$6,000

H 36 in W 42 in D 1 in

"The Cowboy" Oil Impasto Painting, Mid Century, Signed, 42x36 Inches

By Sylvia Rutkoff

Located in Arp, TX

Sylvia Rutkoff (1919–2011) "The Cowboy" c. 1950s · Oil, gesso, on masonite · Period wood frame About this work Few paintings in the Rutkoff estate cache reveal her range as ...

Category

Mid-20th Century Abstract Expressionist Don Clausen Landscape Paintings

Materials

Masonite, Oil

Robert CaneteAbstract Expressionist Oil Painting of Boats Near Shore, 1980s, 1980

$1,720Sale Price|20% Off

H 16 in W 20 in D 0.25 in

Abstract Expressionist Oil Painting of Boats Near Shore, 1980s

By Robert Canete

Located in Soquel, CA

Abstracted seascape of three boats near the shore with broad, painterly strokes of blue, turquoise, and neutrals by Robert Canete (American, b. 1948). Signed lower right. Image: 16"H...

Category

1980s Abstract Expressionist Don Clausen Landscape Paintings

Materials

Masonite, Oil

Katherine Westphal"Abstract Landscape" by Katherine Westphal, Oil on Board; Framed 18" x 24", c. 1975

$3,000

H 24.25 in W 30.25 in D 0.875 in

"Abstract Landscape" by Katherine Westphal, Oil on Board; Framed 18" x 24"

Located in Oklahoma City, OK

This framed 18" x 24" oil painting on masonite board by American artist Katherine Westphal depicts a colorful abstract landscape. The sun, a near-perfect circle, is peeks from betwee...

Category

Mid-20th Century Abstract Don Clausen Landscape Paintings

Materials

Masonite, Oil

Don Clausen landscape paintings for sale on 1stDibs.

Find a wide variety of authentic Don Clausen landscape paintings available for sale on 1stDibs. You can also browse by medium to find art by Don Clausen in masonite, oil paint, paint and more. Much of the original work by this artist or collective was created during the 1970s and is mostly associated with the abstract style. Not every interior allows for large Don Clausen landscape paintings, so small editions measuring 14 inches across are available. Customers who are interested in this artist might also find the work of Edward Avedisian, Heidi Hybl, and Suzanne Vattier. Don Clausen landscape paintings prices can differ depending upon medium, time period and other attributes. On 1stDibs, the price for these items starts at $1,850 and tops out at $1,850, while the average work can sell for $1,850.