Gene Davis Paintings

American, 1920-1985

Davis was born in Washington D.C. in 1920 and spent nearly all his life there. Before he began to paint in 1949, he worked as a sportswriter, covering the Washington Football Team and other local teams. Working as a journalist in the late 1940s, he covered the Roosevelt and Truman presidential administrations, and was often President Truman's partner for poker games. His first art studio was in his apartment on Scott Circle; later he worked out of a studio on Pennsylvania Avenue. Davis's first solo exhibition of drawings was at the Dupont Theater Gallery in 1952, and his first exhibition of paintings was at Catholic University in 1953. A decade later he participated in the "Washington Color Painters" exhibit at the Washington Gallery of Modern Art in Washington, DC, which traveled to other venues around the US, and launched the recognition of the Washington Color School as a regional movement in which Davis was a central figure. The Washington painters were among the most prominent of the mid-century color field painters. Though, he worked in a variety of media and styles, including ink, oil, acrylic, video, and collage, Davis is best known by far for his acrylic paintings (mostly on canvas) of colorful vertical stripes, which he began to paint in 1958. The paintings typically repeat particular colors to create a sense of rhythm and repetition with variations. One of the best-known of his paintings, "Black Grey Beat" (1964), owned by the Smithsonian American Art Museum reinforces these musical comparisons in its title. The pairs of alternating black and grey stripes are repeated across the canvas, and recognizable even as other colors are substituted for black and grey, and returned to even as the repetition of dark and light pairs is here and there broken by sharply contrasting colors. In 1972 Davis created Franklin's Footpath, which was at the time the world's largest artwork, by painting colorful stripes on the street in front of the Philadelphia Museum of Art, and the world's largest painting, Niagara (43,680 square feet), in a parking lot in Lewiston, NY. His "micro-paintings", at the other extreme, were as small as 3/8 of an inch square. For a public work in a different medium altogether, he designed the color patterns of the "Solar Wall," a set of tubes filled with dyed water and backlit by fluorescent lights, at the Muscarelle Museum of Art at the College of William and Mary in Williamsburg, Virginia. Davis began teaching in 1966 at the Corcoran School of Art, where he became a permanent member of the faculty. His works are in the collections of, among others, the Corcoran Gallery of Art, the Solomon R. Guggenheim Museum, The Phillips Collection in Washington, DC, the Walker Art Center in Minneapolis, MN, The Governor Nelson A. Rockefeller Empire State Plaza Art Collection in Albany, NY, and the Smithsonian American Art Museum. He died on April 6, 1985 in Washington, DC.

Artist: Gene Davis

Gene DavisBatman Painting, Graphite and Acrylic on Raw Canvas, Mid-20th Century, 1975

$164,000

Batman Painting, Graphite and Acrylic on Raw Canvas, Mid-20th Century

By Gene Davis

Located in New York, NY

Gene Davis (1920-1985) American, Washington, D.C. “Batman” 1975 Graphite and acrylic on raw canvas Signed on reverse: Gene Davis 1975 Batman Davis is known primarily for the stripe...

Category

Mid-20th Century Color-Field Gene Davis Paintings

Materials

Canvas, Acrylic, Graphite

Deirdre SchanenContemporary abstract oil painting purple pink yellow green minimalist, 2009

$5,100

H 36 in W 50 in

Contemporary abstract oil painting purple pink yellow green minimalist

By Deirdre Schanen

Located in Milwaukee, WI

"Changing Memories 2" is an abstract acrylic on canvas by Deirdre Schanen, signed on verso. Layers of browns, pinks, golds, and purples fill the canvas, reflecting a style reminiscen...

Category

Early 2000s Color-Field Gene Davis Paintings

Materials

Canvas, Acrylic

Douglas M. Olsen#28, Elemental Concerns (Abstract Expressionist Color Field Painting), 1979

$200

H 22.5 in W 15.5 in

#28, Elemental Concerns (Abstract Expressionist Color Field Painting)

By Douglas M. Olsen

Located in Wilton Manors, FL

Douglas M. Olsen (b. 1960). #28, Elemental Concerns, 1980. Watercolor on rag paper, 15.5 x 22.5 inches. Signed, titled and dated on verso.

Category

20th Century Color-Field Gene Davis Paintings

Materials

Watercolor, Rag Paper, Graphite

Mala Breuer9.77, 1977

$11,250

H 71.25 in W 48 in D 1.75 in

9.77

By Mala Breuer

Located in Phoenix, AZ

Mala Breuer grew up attending classes in painting and drawing from a young age at the California College of Arts and Crafts. After high school she attended the, now, San Francisco A...

Category

1970s Color-Field Gene Davis Paintings

Materials

Canvas, Acrylic

Kikuo Saito"Larry Beans" Kikuo Saito, Color Field, Lyrical Abstraction, Stain Painting, 1976

$40,000

H 36 in W 42 in

"Larry Beans" Kikuo Saito, Color Field, Lyrical Abstraction, Stain Painting

By Kikuo Saito

Located in New York, NY

Kikuo Saito Larry Beans, 1976 Signed and titled on the reverse Acrylic on canvas 36 x 42 inches Provenance The artist Gifted by the artist Private collection, New York Kikuo Saito...

Category

1970s Color-Field Gene Davis Paintings

Materials

Canvas, Acrylic

Larry Zox"Untitled" Larry Zox, Hard-edge, Color Field, Red, Orange, Pink, Large Abstract, circa 1965

$45,000

H 66 in W 72 in

"Untitled" Larry Zox, Hard-edge, Color Field, Red, Orange, Pink, Large Abstract

By Larry Zox

Located in New York, NY

Larry Zox Untitled, circa 1965 Signed on the stretcher Acrylic on canvas 66 x 72 inches Provenance Hokin Gallery, West Palm Beach Dorothy Blau Gallery, Bay Harbor Islands, Florida ...

Category

1960s Color-Field Gene Davis Paintings

Materials

Canvas, Acrylic

Douglas M. OlsenThe Purple People Eaters 9Abstract Expressionist Color Field Painting), 1979

$200

H 22.5 in W 15.5 in

The Purple People Eaters 9Abstract Expressionist Color Field Painting)

By Douglas M. Olsen

Located in Wilton Manors, FL

Douglas M. Olsen (b. 1960). The Purple People Eaters, 1979. Watercolor on rag paper, 15.5 x 22.5 inches. Signed, titled and dated on verso.

Category

20th Century Color-Field Gene Davis Paintings

Materials

Watercolor, Rag Paper, Graphite

Angela WakefieldSmall Square Abstract Canvas Art Study using Turquoise & Black from 2026, 2026

$1,127

H 11.5 in W 11.5 in D 2 in

Small Square Abstract Canvas Art Study using Turquoise & Black from 2026

By Angela Wakefield

Located in Preston, GB

Small Square Abstract Landscape Canvas Art Study by Contemporary Artist, Angela Wakefield Art measures 6 x 6 inches Frame measures 11.5 x 11.5 inches Angela Wakefield - Unique Orig...

Category

2010s Color-Field Gene Davis Paintings

Materials

Canvas, Paint, Cotton Canvas, Acrylic, Board

Mala Breuer4.4.99, 1999

$11,500

H 59.75 in W 60 in D 1.25 in

4.4.99

By Mala Breuer

Located in Phoenix, AZ

acrylic on canvas 1927 - 2017 Mala Breuer grew up attending classes in painting and drawing from a young age at the California College of Arts and Crafts. After high school she att...

Category

1990s Color-Field Gene Davis Paintings

Materials

Canvas, Acrylic

Mala Breuer1976 (7), 1976

$14,500

H 54.75 in W 85 in D 1.5 in

1976 (7)

By Mala Breuer

Located in Phoenix, AZ

acrylic on canvas 1927 - 2017 Mala Breuer grew up attending classes in painting and drawing from a young age at the California College of Arts and Crafts. After high school she att...

Category

1970s Color-Field Gene Davis Paintings

Materials

Canvas, Acrylic

Larry ZoxLarry Zox - Dexter's Choice State II, signed watercolor (unique variant), Framed, 1990

$10,000

H 42 in W 62 in D 1.5 in

Larry Zox - Dexter's Choice State II, signed watercolor (unique variant), Framed

By Larry Zox

Located in New York, NY

Larry Zox Dexter's Choice, State II, ca. 1990 Mixed media, Watercolor pochoir, and Oil stick Wax, Water-Based Crayons, on heavy Arches museum watercolor rag paper with deckled edges ...

Category

1990s Color-Field Gene Davis Paintings

Materials

Crayon, Mixed Media, Oil, Watercolor, Graphite, Monoprint

Claudia SisemoreBlue and Green Abstract, 1975

$4,800

H 43.5 in W 46 in

Blue and Green Abstract

By Claudia Sisemore

Located in Salt Lake City, UT

"Blue and Green Abstract" by Claudia Sisemore, acylic on canvas, 43.5 x 46 inches, $4,800. "I have a vague idea of what I am going to paint. I...

Category

1970s Color-Field Gene Davis Paintings

Materials

Canvas, Acrylic

Mala Breuer12.1.98, 2998

$11,500

H 60.25 in W 59.75 in D 1.25 in

12.1.98

By Mala Breuer

Located in Phoenix, AZ

acrylic on canvas Mala Breuer grew up attending classes in painting and drawing from a young age at the California College of Arts and Crafts. After high school she attended the, no...

Category

1990s Color-Field Gene Davis Paintings

Materials

Canvas, Acrylic

Previously Available Items

Gene DavisPopsicle, 1969

Sold

H 68.5 in W 67.5 in

Popsicle

By Gene Davis

Located in Washington, DC

Artist: Gene Davis Title: Popsicle Medium: Acrylic on canvas Date: 1969 Edition: Unique Canvas Size: 68 1/2" x 67 1/2" Signature: Stamped signature, verso

Category

1960s Abstract Gene Davis Paintings

Materials

Acrylic

Gene DavisGene Davis Original Drawing, 1970s

Sold

H 17.5 in W 21.5 in D 1 in

Gene Davis Original Drawing

By Gene Davis

Located in Washington, DC

Original work on paper by Washington Color School artist Gene Davis (1920-1985). Signed bottom left and dedicated to "Patti". Work has been archival framed. Unframed the work measur...

Category

1970s Color-Field Gene Davis Paintings

Materials

Paper, Crayon, Color Pencil

Gene DavisLunar Sand Box, 1970

Sold

H 65 in W 67 in

Lunar Sand Box

By Gene Davis

Located in Rancho Santa Fe, CA

PROVENANCE: Max Protetch Gallery, Wshington, D.C.; Private Collection, Washington D.C. Signed, titled and dated verso. Framed

Category

1970s Color-Field Gene Davis Paintings

Materials

Cotton Canvas, Acrylic

Gene DavisSky Cycle, 1978

Sold

H 49 in W 35 in

Sky Cycle

By Gene Davis

Located in Long Island City, NY

Artist: Gene Davis, American (1920 - 1985) Title: Sky Cycle Year: 1978 Medium: Oil on Raw Canvas, signed and dated verso Size: 47 x 33 in. (119.38 x 83.82 cm) Frame Size: 49 x 35 i...

Category

1970s Minimalist Gene Davis Paintings

Materials

Canvas, Oil

Gene Davis paintings for sale on 1stDibs.

Find a wide variety of authentic Gene Davis paintings available for sale on 1stDibs. You can also browse by medium to find art by Gene Davis in canvas, fabric, paint and more. Much of the original work by this artist or collective was created during the 20th century and is mostly associated with the minimalist style. Not every interior allows for large Gene Davis paintings, so small editions measuring 16 inches across are available. Customers who are interested in this artist might also find the work of Yvette Cohen, Jan Maarten Voskuil, and Clifford Singer. Gene Davis paintings prices can differ depending upon medium, time period and other attributes. On 1stDibs, the price for these items starts at $12,000 and tops out at $60,000, while the average work can sell for $36,000.