Emil Ganso Paintings

German, 1895-1941

Emil Ganso was born in Halberstadt, Germany, in 1895 and came to the United States as a teenager. By 1914, Ganso was taking evening classes at the National Academy's School of Fine Arts while supporting himself as a baker. His work was soon identified by Erhard Weyhe who went on to show Ganso's work at the Weyhe Gallery. Ganso first exhibited at the Society of Independent Artists in 1921, as well as at the Salons of America from 1922–25. By 1925, Weyhe Gallery began to represent Ganso, which gave him the funds to spend his first summer in the art colony of Woodstock, New York in 1926. Weyhe Gallery continued to exhibit Ganso's work through the 1940s. In Woodstock, Ganso met George Ault, Doris Lee, Charles Rosen, Katherine Schmidt, Eugene Speicher, Alexander Brook, Louis Bouché, Konrad Cramer, Leon Kroll and George Bellows leading Ganso to settle in Woodstock and continue to benefit from Woodstock connections throughout his life. In 1927, the same year he settled in Woodstock, Ganso began to share a studio with Jules Pascin. Ganso printed Pascin's lithographs and prepared a paper for him in 1927–28 while Pascin was in America. In 1929, Ganso visited Pascin in Paris. Perhaps it was this Paris trip that sparked Ganso's interest in photography. By 1930, he was exploring photography as an art form, as well as an aid to his art compositions. Konrad Cramer, Yasuo Kuniyoshi, and Russell Lee were other Woodstock artists who joined Ganso in these photography pursuits. Ganso received a Guggenheim Fellowship in 1933, which he used to study and paint in Europe. In the 1930s, Ganso also kept a studio at 54 West 74th Street, an artists' building, where Walter Pach and Theresa Bernstein also had studios. Leonard Bocour who founded Bocour Artists Colors, which in the late 1940s developed Magna paints and the first acrylics credits Ganso, inspiring him to create artist paints and introduced him to the major artists of the 1930s, including Yasuo Kuniyoshi and Reginald Marsh. Ganso was the first artist Bocour visited while still in high school in 1930 and Ganso taught Bocour how to mix paints and grind his pigments. According to an oral history Bocour gave to the Archives of American Art, Ganso was the master theoretician and leading technical person in Woodstock who all the major artists came to for help with their color due to Ganso's library of German art books including Alexander Dorner's The Way Beyond "Art": The Work of Herbert Bayer which was not translated into English until 1947. In 1930, Ganso began to be invited to exhibit at the Corcoran Gallery of Art, Washington, DC (1930–35); the Art Institute of Chicago; the Wichita Art Museum, Kansas; the Pennsylvania Academy of the Fine Arts (1931–38); and the Whitney Museum of American Art (1927–41). Ganso also exhibited at both the 1939 New York World's Fair and the Golden Gate Exposition in San Francisco that same year. Ganso was awarded the “Pennell Memorial Medal” from the Pennsylvania Academy of the Fine Arts in 1938. As a result of the success of his art, Ganso was offered an artist-in-residence position in 1940 at the University of Iowa. It was there that he died in 1941. A retrospective exhibition for Emil Ganso was held at the University of Iowa Museum of Art both upon his death and in December 1979.

Artist: Emil Ganso

Emil GansoSeated Semi-Nude, 1935

$1,075Sale Price|50% Off

Seated Semi-Nude

By Emil Ganso

Located in Los Angeles, CA

EMIL GANSO "SEATED NUDE" CHARCOAL WITH COLOR WASH, SIGNED AMERICAN, C.1930 21.5 X 15.5 INCHES Biography from Butler Institute of American Art Emil Ganso 1885-1941 Ganso was born in Germany in 1895. At age 14, he apprenticed to a baker and then worked his way to America when he was 17. He worked in bakeries in Scranton, Pennsylvania; and Cincinnati and Akron, Ohio. By 1916, Ganso was out of a job, and living the life of a bohemian in New York City, sometimes on less than 30 cents a week. In 1921, Ganso painted on a realistic nude on a bedsheet and was forced by the police to remove it from an exhibition. The bedsheet with the painting was later stolen. He soon had a job baking again at $140 a month, and with time to spare for painting and study. Ganso quit baking in 1925 when a New York dealer game him financial backing of $50 a week. Ganso has prospered from his art ever since. His work is in over 15 American museums, and the Print Club of Cleveland awarded him a $500 purchase prize for a wood engraving. A versatile artist, he paints a variety of subjects. Source: from a profile written by Clyde Singer...

Category

1930s Art Deco Emil Ganso Paintings

Materials

Charcoal

Primary Hughes"Amber" by Primary Hughes, Original Female Nude Portrait Charcoal Drawing, 2023

$400

H 19.75 in W 15.75 in

"Amber" by Primary Hughes, Original Female Nude Portrait Charcoal Drawing

Located in Denver, CO

"Amber" by Primary Hughes (United States) is a handmade nude portrait of a woman, made with charcoal and pastel on paper. This piece of artwork is framed and ready to hang.

Category

21st Century and Contemporary Realist Emil Ganso Paintings

Materials

Paper, Charcoal, Pastel

Primary Hughes"Esme" by Primary Hughes, Original Female Nude Portrait Charcoal Drawing, 2023

$400

H 18.5 in W 16.5 in

"Esme" by Primary Hughes, Original Female Nude Portrait Charcoal Drawing

Located in Denver, CO

"Esme" by Primary Hughes (United States) is a handmade nude portrait of a woman, made with charcoal and pastel on paper. This piece of artwork is framed and ready to hang.

Category

21st Century and Contemporary Realist Emil Ganso Paintings

Materials

Paper, Charcoal, Pastel

Jain WallisLife Study: Figurative Drawing, 2004

$460

H 30 in W 23 in

Life Study: Figurative Drawing

By Jain Wallis

Located in Brecon, Powys

Previously Exhibited in the Royal Academy of Arts Summer Exhibition of 2004 this is a fine drawing by this artist. RA label verso Image 26" x 19" Well framed and in good condition.

Category

21st Century and Contemporary Contemporary Emil Ganso Paintings

Materials

Paper, Charcoal

Victor CartagenaUntitled, 2021

$3,750

H 35.13 in W 26.5 in

Untitled

Located in San Francisco, CA

Victor Cartagena Untitled, 2021 Charcoal and India Ink on paper Unframed dimensions: 30 x 22 inches Framed dimensions: 35.12 x 26.50 in

Category

21st Century and Contemporary Contemporary Emil Ganso Paintings

Materials

Charcoal, India Ink, Paper

French SchoolMid Century French School Standing and Seated Nude Figure Study, Mid 20th Century

$657

H 25.75 in W 19.75 in

Mid Century French School Standing and Seated Nude Figure Study

Located in Cirencester, Gloucestershire

Title: Mid Century French School Standing and Seated Nude Figure Study Medium: Charcoal and graphite on paper, unframed Size: 25.75 x 19.75 inches (height x width) Provenance: privat...

Category

20th Century French School Emil Ganso Paintings

Materials

Charcoal, Graphite

French SchoolFrench School Mid Century Standing Male Nude Figure Study Charcoal, Mid 20th Century

$602

H 19.75 in W 12.75 in

French School Mid Century Standing Male Nude Figure Study Charcoal

Located in Cirencester, Gloucestershire

Title: French School Mid Century Standing Male Nude Figure Study Charcoal Medium: Charcoal and white chalk on brown artists paper, unframed Size: 19.75 x 12.75 inches (height x widt...

Category

20th Century French School Emil Ganso Paintings

Materials

Chalk, Charcoal, Pencil

French SchoolFrench School Mid Century Cubist Female Portrait Charcoal Study, Mid 20th Century

$814

H 23.25 in W 18 in

French School Mid Century Cubist Female Portrait Charcoal Study

Located in Cirencester, Gloucestershire

Title: French School Mid Century Cubist Female Portrait Charcoal Study Medium: Charcoal on artists paper unframed Size: 23.25 x 18 inches (height x width) Provenance: private collec...

Category

20th Century French School Emil Ganso Paintings

Materials

Charcoal, Pencil

Richard TosczakThe Pleiades-Taygete - nude, female, figurative, charcoal and ink on canvas, 2010

$4,200

H 72 in W 36 in

The Pleiades-Taygete - nude, female, figurative, charcoal and ink on canvas

By Richard Tosczak

Located in Bloomfield, ON

Richard Tosczak creates life size paintings and sketches of his models which he then recreates in bronze. This large scale canvas reflects speed, gesture and the effect of capturing ...

Category

2010s Contemporary Emil Ganso Paintings

Materials

Canvas, Charcoal, Acrylic Polymer, Archival Ink, Watercolor

French SchoolCharcoal Seated Female Nude With Cast Shadow On Plinth French Academic Study, Mid 20th Century

$657

H 25.25 in W 19.5 in

Charcoal Seated Female Nude With Cast Shadow On Plinth French Academic Study

Located in Cirencester, Gloucestershire

Title: Charcoal Seated Female Nude With Cast Shadow On Plinth French Academic Study Medium: Charcoal on paper, unframed Size: 25.25 x 19.5 inches (height x width) Provenance: private...

Category

20th Century French School Emil Ganso Paintings

Materials

Charcoal

French SchoolMid Century French School Reclining Nude Female Life Study Drawing, Mid 20th Century

$746

H 19.75 in W 25.25 in

Mid Century French School Reclining Nude Female Life Study Drawing

Located in Cirencester, Gloucestershire

Title: Mid Century French School Reclining Nude Female Life Study Drawing Medium: Charcoal and graphite on paper, unframed Size: 19.75 x 25.25 inches (height x width) Provenance: pri...

Category

20th Century French School Emil Ganso Paintings

Materials

Graphite, Charcoal

French SchoolMid Century French School Male Female Nude Figure Studies Drawing, Mid 20th Century

$753

H 25.5 in W 19.75 in

Mid Century French School Male Female Nude Figure Studies Drawing

Located in Cirencester, Gloucestershire

Title: Mid Century French School Male Female Nude Figure Studies Drawing Medium: Charcoal and graphite on paper, unframed Size: 25.5 x 19.75 inches (height x width) Provenance: private collection Condition: Good overall with visible age toning light creasing minor edge wear and slight surface marks consistent with age and studio handling Description: A compelling mid century French School academic life drawing depicting a seated male and female nude figure study rendered in expressive charcoal and graphite. The composition presents both figures in a natural seated pose, their bodies angled toward one another, creating a subtle sense of interaction and structural balance. The female figure is modelled with soft tonal shading and careful contour, her posture relaxed yet grounded. In contrast, the male figure is defined through sharper linear construction and angular modelling, highlighting musculature and anatomical structure. The interplay between the two forms gives the sheet compositional depth and visual rhythm. The artist employs confident cross hatching and layered charcoal strokes to build volume, while retaining the immediacy characteristic of a working atelier study. The restrained monochrome palette focuses attention on form, proportion and movement. Likely produced during a formal life drawing session in a mid twentieth century French studio, the sheet retains visible paper toning and light handling wear that reinforce its authenticity. This dual figure composition will particularly appeal to collectors of mid century modern works on paper, French academic nude...

Category

20th Century French School Emil Ganso Paintings

Materials

Charcoal, Graphite

French SchoolMid Century French School Seated Nude Female Figure Life Study Drawing, Mid 20th Century

$712

H 22 in W 17.75 in

Mid Century French School Seated Nude Female Figure Life Study Drawing

Located in Cirencester, Gloucestershire

Title: Mid Century French School Seated Nude Female Figure Life Study Drawing Medium: Charcoal and graphite on tracing paper, unframed Size: 22 x 17.75 inches (height x width) Proven...

Category

20th Century French School Emil Ganso Paintings

Materials

Charcoal, Graphite

Previously Available Items

Emil GansoStanding Nude Woman in an Interior Scene, Early 20th Century

Sold

H 31.5 in W 24.25 in D 1.25 in

Standing Nude Woman in an Interior Scene

By Emil Ganso

Located in Astoria, NY

Emil Ganso (German/American, 1895-1941), Standing Nude Woman in an Interior Scene, Oil on Canvas, signed lower left, silvered wood frame. Image: 24.5" H x 17.25" W; frame: 31.5" H x ...

Category

Early 20th Century Modern Emil Ganso Paintings

Materials

Canvas, Oil

Emil GansoStill Life with Flowers, c. 1935

Sold

H 18 in W 15 in D 1.75 in

Still Life with Flowers

By Emil Ganso

Located in Fairlawn, OH

Still Life with Flowers oil on board, c. 1935 Signed lower left on table cloth (see photo) Done while the artist was in Woodstock, New York in the 1930's Provenance: Weyhe Gallery, N...

Category

1930s American Modern Emil Ganso Paintings

Materials

Oil

Emil Ganso paintings for sale on 1stDibs.

Find a wide variety of authentic Emil Ganso paintings available for sale on 1stDibs. You can also browse by medium to find art by Emil Ganso in charcoal, oil paint, paint and more. Much of the original work by this artist or collective was created during the 1930s and is mostly associated with the modern style. Not every interior allows for large Emil Ganso paintings, so small editions measuring 15 inches across are available. Customers who are interested in this artist might also find the work of Leon Dolice, Simka Simkhovitch, and Patricia Gren Hayes. Emil Ganso paintings prices can differ depending upon medium, time period and other attributes. On 1stDibs, the price for these items starts at $1,075 and tops out at $3,500, while the average work can sell for $2,288.