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Ernest Trova Art

American, 1927-2009
In the early 1960s, St. Louis Sculptor Ernest Trova—who was entirely self-taught—began developing his pivotal theme of Falling Man, a stark and startling image that combines references to classical sculpture with an industrial aesthetic. In his Profile Canto series, Falling Man—depicted as an androgynous, mechanical figure—is folded and segmented as to be nearly undetectable amid the various geometric forms that comprise these works.
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Flowing Man
By Ernest Trova
Located in Boca Raton, FL
Edition 37/99
Category

21st Century and Contemporary Contemporary Ernest Trova Art

Materials

Stainless Steel

1969 Ernest Trova 'Man is Only a Memory' Pop Art Silk-screen
By Ernest Trova
Located in Brooklyn, NY
“Man is Only a Memory” is a captivating silkscreen by Ernest Trova, published in 1969 by Multiples, Inc. This artwork, part of a small edition of fewer than 300 pieces, was created f...
Category

1960s Pop Art Ernest Trova Art

Materials

Screen

Double Walking Figure
By Ernest Trova
Located in Boca Raton, FL
rnest Trova was an artist whose signature creation, a gleaming humanoid known as “Falling Man,” appeared in a series of sculptures and paintings and became a symbol of an imperfect humanity hurtling into the future. Mr. Trova was largely known as a sculptor, but his “Falling Man,” a standard of Pop Art, began life as a painted figure, taking shape on his easel in the early 1960s. Faceless, armless, with a hint of a belly and, its name notwithstanding, of indeterminate sex, the figure struck a variety of poses, sometimes juxtaposed with other like figures, sometimes with mechanical appendages. In October 1963 his one-man show, “Falling Man Paintings,” was the inaugural exhibition of the Pace Gallery on West 57th Street in Manhattan; it sold out, with the works purchased by the Museum of Modern Art, the Whitney Museum, the architect Philip Johnson and others. In three dimensions, the “Falling Man” figure was made from different materials over the years — nickel and chrome-plated bronze, enamel on aluminum, stainless steel — and often, like the Oscar statuette, was polished to an industrial sheen. It was clearly a space age creation, a forerunner of C3PO, the golden robot in “Star Wars.” “He found the space age both inspiring and dehumanizing,” Arne Glimcher, who founded the Pace Gallery, now PaceWildenstein, said in an interview on Friday. By the end of the 1960s, “Falling Man” had become Mr. Trova’s trademark, provoking Hilton Kramer, the art critic of The New York Times, to write that Mr. Trova had subjected his favorite figure “to almost as many variations as the Kama Sutra describes for the act of love.” Ernest Tino Trova Jr. was born in St. Louis on Feb. 19, 1927. Shortly after his high school graduation his father, an industrial tool designer and inventor, died, and young Ernie, as he was known, went to work, most significantly as a window dresser for a department store. His early paintings were in the Abstract Expressionist mode, but his attentiveness to the mannequins had an influence on his art. Through the 1970s and 1980s he continued with “Falling Man,” though he also became interested in formalized, almost mechanical-seeming landscapes, and the figures began to appear, reduced in size, within the context of abstractly rendered gardens. A self-taught artist with an impish wit and an eccentric turn of mind, Mr. Trova craved the recognition that was available to artists only in New York City, but he never visited for more than a week at a time and made almost no friends among New York artists. He did befriend Ezra Pound. As a fevered fan of Julio Iglesias, he went to the singer’s concerts all over the United States. “Ernie had a fabulous fantasy life,” Richard Solomon, the president of Pace Prints, the publishing arm of PaceWildenstein, said in an interview. “He had a persona he used to hide behind that he called ‘Junior Person.’ He was a wonderful man, but an oddball to beat the band.” Mr. Trova left the Pace Gallery in the mid-1980s and signed with an inexperienced dealer in St. Louis. His profile went into decline, except in his hometown, where his donation of many of his works helped create the Laumeier Sculpture Park. He continued to work until shortly before his death. Most recently he was making collages using magazine...
Category

20th Century Ernest Trova Art

Materials

Stainless Steel

"2:30 Chair" by Ernest Trova
By Ernest Trova
Located in Los Angeles, CA
The 2:30 chair was designed for 2:30 Productions and was exhibited in the Herman Miller showroom in New York in 1978. The chair is a piece of functional art being that the sitter can...
Category

1970s American Mid-Century Modern Vintage Ernest Trova Art

Materials

Stainless Steel

Ernest Trova, Recent Sculpture 1967 Hayden Gallery M.I.T. Framed Poster
By Ernest Trova
Located in Clifton Springs, NY
Offset lithograph and silkscreen original poster, published by Pace Editions for Hayden Gallery Massachusetts Institute of Technology exhibition in February-March 1967, features Ern...
Category

1960s American Vintage Ernest Trova Art

Materials

Paper

Ernest Trova "The World of Mickey Mouse" Lithograph
By Ernest Trova
Located in Pasadena, TX
This is a lithograph by Ernest Trova of Mickey Mouse and the World. Trova was born in 1927 and Mickey Mouse was created in 1928. He and Mickey grew up together. This a tribute of sor...
Category

Late 20th Century American Mid-Century Modern Ernest Trova Art

Materials

Paper

Post-Modernist Sculpture signed Ernest Trova, Profile Canto #83 in Matt Gray
By Ernest Trova
Located in New York, NY
This exceptional Post-Modernist sculpture, titled Profile Canto #83, was created in 1987 by renowned American artist Ernest Trova. A celebrated figure in the contemporary art world, ...
Category

1980s American Post-Modern Vintage Ernest Trova Art

Materials

Metal, Nickel

Ernest Trova, 1969 - "Editions At Pace" Exhibition Poster
By Ernest Trova
Located in Winterswijk, NL
1969 exhibition poster by Ernest Trova, Editions at Pace, created as a color lithograph. This vibrant piece highlights Trova’s distinctive style, making it a valuable addition for co...
Category

20th Century Abstract Ernest Trova Art

Materials

Paper

Ernest Trova Surrealist Pop Original Silkscreen Print 1969
By Ernest Trova
Located in Cincinnati, OH
A original silkscreen by Ernest Trova ( 1927- 2009 ) titled " Man Is Only a Memory " printed in 1969 by Domberger Germany . Very well mounted in a aluminum clear floating and ready t...
Category

Mid-20th Century American Mid-Century Modern Ernest Trova Art

Materials

Aluminum

Artist Ernest Tino Trova - Falling Man Medallion - 1970s Art Jewelry Pendant
By Ernest Trova
Located in St. Louis, MO
Artist Ernest "Tino" Trova (1927-2009), Art Jewelry Falling Man in circle enamel and gold plate pendant, necklace or brooch. Walking figure in gold tone, with red ball on chest, back...
Category

1970s American Mid-Century Modern Vintage Ernest Trova Art

Materials

Metal

Hardback monograph of renowned sculptor: TROVA (hand signed by Ernest Trova)
By Ernest Trova
Located in New York, NY
Ernest Tino Trova TROVA (hand signed by Ernest Trova), 1978 Hardback monograph with dust jacket (hand signed by Ernest Trova) Hand signed by Ernest Trova on the half title page 11 × ...
Category

1970s Abstract Ernest Trova Art

Materials

Paper, Ink, Mixed Media, Lithograph, Offset

Pair of Ernest Trova Museum of Modern Art Kaleidescopes
By Ernest Trova
Located in Pasadena, TX
This is a pair of Ernest Trova Kaleidescopes from the .museum of Modern Art. Circa. 1970
Category

Late 20th Century American Ernest Trova Art

Materials

Plastic, Paper

Double Flapman
By Ernest Trova
Located in Boca Raton, FL
AP 2 Ernest Trova was an artist whose signature creation, a gleaming humanoid known as “Falling Man,” appeared in a series of sculptures and paintings and became a symbol of an imperfect humanity hurtling into the future. Mr. Trova was largely known as a sculptor, but his “Falling Man,” a standard of Pop Art, began life as a painted figure, taking shape on his easel in the early 1960s. Faceless, armless, with a hint of a belly and, its name notwithstanding, of indeterminate sex, the figure struck a variety of poses, sometimes juxtaposed with other like figures, sometimes with mechanical appendages. In October 1963 his one-man show, “Falling Man Paintings,” was the inaugural exhibition of the Pace Gallery on West 57th Street in Manhattan; it sold out, with the works purchased by the Museum of Modern Art, the Whitney Museum, the architect Philip Johnson and others. In three dimensions, the “Falling Man” figure was made from different materials over the years — nickel and chrome-plated bronze, enamel on aluminum, stainless steel — and often, like the Oscar statuette, was polished to an industrial sheen. It was clearly a space age creation, a forerunner of C3PO, the golden robot in “Star Wars.” “He found the space age both inspiring and dehumanizing,” Arne Glimcher, who founded the Pace Gallery, now PaceWildenstein, said in an interview on Friday. By the end of the 1960s, “Falling Man” had become Mr. Trova’s trademark, provoking Hilton Kramer, the art critic of The New York Times, to write that Mr. Trova had subjected his favorite figure “to almost as many variations as the Kama Sutra describes for the act of love.” Ernest Tino Trova Jr. was born in St. Louis on Feb. 19, 1927. Shortly after his high school graduation his father, an industrial tool designer and inventor, died, and young Ernie, as he was known, went to work, most significantly as a window dresser for a department store. His early paintings were in the Abstract Expressionist mode, but his attentiveness to the mannequins had an influence on his art. Through the 1970s and 1980s he continued with “Falling Man,” though he also became interested in formalized, almost mechanical-seeming landscapes, and the figures began to appear, reduced in size, within the context of abstractly rendered gardens. A self-taught artist with an impish wit and an eccentric turn of mind, Mr. Trova craved the recognition that was available to artists only in New York City, but he never visited for more than a week at a time and made almost no friends among New York artists. He did befriend Ezra Pound. As a fevered fan of Julio Iglesias...
Category

20th Century Contemporary Ernest Trova Art

Materials

Stainless Steel

The Encounter
By Ernest Trova
Located in Missouri, MO
Ernest Trova "The Encounter" 1994 Chrome Plated Steel Approx 24 x 26 x 24 inches Edition 1/8 Known for his Falling Man series in abstract figural sculpture, he created hard-edge ima...
Category

1990s American Modern Ernest Trova Art

Materials

Stainless Steel

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A very nice signed limited edition serigraph entitled "F.M. Manscapes #2" by Ernest Trova, circa 1969 The piece is has a great look and vibrant color; it is hand signed, numbered and dated in pencil by the artist (lower right) and is numbered 142 from the edition of 175. The art work is presented in a silver metal frame with a white mat and measures 28" x 28" overall. The print is from Trova's signature "Manscape" series demonstrating powerful works with a strong graphic quality incorporating triangles, circles and squares with his distinctive silhouette of a human figure. There are two stickers on the back side identifying the work as originally coming from the Margo Leavin Art Gallery in Los...
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Mid-20th Century American Modern Ernest Trova Art

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Ernest Trova Pace Editions Prospectus for F. M. Manscapes Portfolio, 1969
By Ernest Trova
Located in Keego Harbor, MI
A surreal modern screenprint on paper from the F.M. Manscapes portfolio, 1969, by pop art artist Ernest Trova. Hand signed in pencil on the bottom r...
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Ernest Trova Falling Man Manscape vi 1969 Limited Edition Serigraph Framed
By Ernest Trova
Located in Keego Harbor, MI
A graphic modern serigraph titled falling man manscape VI by Earnest Trova. Created in 1969. Hand signed in pencil on the bottom margin. Published by Pa...
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1960s Vintage Ernest Trova Art

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1972 Ernest Trova 'Falling Man' Pop Art Blue, Red USA Serigraph
By Ernest Trova
Located in Brooklyn, NY
Paper Size: 25.75 x 25.75 inches ( 65.405 x 65.405 cm ) Image Size: 24.5 x 24.5 inches ( 62.23 x 62.23 cm ) Framed: No Condition: A: Mint Additional Details: Limited edition s...
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1970s Ernest Trova Art

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Screen

1969 Ernest Trova 'Man is Only a Memory' Pop Art Silk-screen
By Ernest Trova
Located in Brooklyn, NY
“Man is Only a Memory” is a captivating silkscreen by Ernest Trova, published in 1969 by Multiples, Inc. This artwork, part of a small edition of fewer than 300 pieces, was created f...
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Screen

1972 Ernest Trova 'Falling Man' Pop Art Blue, Red USA Serigraph
By Ernest Trova
Located in Brooklyn, NY
Paper Size: 25.75 x 25.75 inches ( 65.405 x 65.405 cm ) Image Size: 24.5 x 24.5 inches ( 62.23 x 62.23 cm ) Framed: No Condition: A: Mint Additional Details: Limited edition s...
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1970s Ernest Trova Art

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Ernest Trova Brass Folding Man Objet d'Art Sculpture
By Ernest Trova
Located in Los Angeles, CA
1927-2009 known for his 'Falling Man' figures that he painted and made sculptures of, trademarked 'Folding Man' is part of his iconic mechanical figures limited production piece sol...
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Mid-20th Century American Modern Ernest Trova Art

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Walking Man with Disc
By Ernest Trova
Located in Wilton Manors, FL
Beautiful figural sculpture by American artist, Ernest Tino Trova (1927-2009). Walking Man with Disc (working study), 1966. Brass sheet with cut-out figure in profile, sheet measures...
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Mid-20th Century Abstract Ernest Trova Art

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Shadows, Planes and Targets
By Ernest Trova
Located in Fairlawn, OH
Shadows, Planes and Targets Screen print, 1972 Unsigned (as usual for this format) Screen print announcement for Pace Columbus exhibition of Trova's artwork, 1972, announcing the por...
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1970s American Modern Ernest Trova Art

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Screen

Ernest Trova art for sale on 1stDibs.

Find a wide variety of authentic Ernest Trova art available for sale on 1stDibs. You can also browse by medium to find art by Ernest Trova in metal, stainless steel, paper and more. Much of the original work by this artist or collective was created during the 20th century and is mostly associated with the contemporary style. Not every interior allows for large Ernest Trova art, so small editions measuring 9 inches across are available. Customers who are interested in this artist might also find the work of Richard Tuttle, Peter Reginato, and Robert Holmes. Ernest Trova art prices can differ depending upon medium, time period and other attributes. On 1stDibs, the price for these items starts at $250 and tops out at $55,000, while the average work can sell for $6,600.

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