Skip to main content

Karl Zerbe Paintings

American, German, 1903-1972
Karl Zerbe was born on September 16, 1903 in Berlin, Germany. The family lived in Paris, France from 1904–1914, where his father was an executive in an electrical supply concern. In 1914 they moved to Frankfurt, Germany where they lived until 1920. Karl Zerbe studied chemistry in 1920 at the Technische Hochschule in Friedberg, Germany. From 1921 until 1923 he lived in Munich, where he studied painting at the Debschitz School, mainly under Josef Eberz. From 1924 until 1926 Karl Zerbe worked and traveled in Italy on a fellowship from the City of Munich. In 1932 his oil painting titled, ‘’Herbstgarten’’ (autumnal garden), of 1929, was acquired by the National-Galerie, Berlin; in 1937, the painting was destroyed by the Nazis as "Degenerate art." From 1937 until 1955, Karl Zerbe was the head of the Department of Painting, School of the Museum of Fine Arts, Boston. In 1939 Karl Zerbe became a U.S. citizen and the same year for the first time he used encaustic. He joined the faculty in the Department of Art and Art History at Florida State University in 1955, where he taught until his death. He was grouped together with the Boston artists Kahlil Gibran (sculptor), Jack Levine and Hyman Bloom as a key member of the Boston Expressionist school of painting,[5] and through his teaching influenced a generation of painters, including, among others, David Aronson, Bernard Chaet, Reed Kay, Arthur Polonsky, Jack Kramer, Barbara Swan, Andrew Kooistra, and Lois Tarlow. His works are thought significant because they record "the response of a distinguished artist of basically European sensibility to the physical and cultural scene of the New World"
to
1
3
Overall Width
to
Overall Height
to
3
1
2
1
1
1
2
1
3
1
1
1
1
4
781
717
711
694
1
3
Artist: Karl Zerbe
Boston Modernist Painting Floral Foliage Collage German Expressionist Karl Zerbe
By Karl Zerbe
Located in Surfside, FL
Karl Zerbe (1903-1972) A mixed-media Painting collage of mod neon colored leaves on canvas with parchment backing. Hand signed "Zerbe" bottom left and dated bottom right 1965-65. Dimensions: Collage: 36 in tall x 24 in wide. Frame: 40 in tall x 28 in wide. Karl Zerbe (1903 – 1972) was a German-born American realist painter and educator. Karl Zerbe was born on September 16, 1903 in Berlin, Germany. The family lived in Paris, France from 1904–1914, where his father was an executive in an electrical supply concern. In 1914 they moved to Frankfurt, Germany where they lived until 1920. Karl Zerbe studied chemistry in 1920 at the Technische Hochschule in Friedberg, Germany. From 1921 until 1923 he lived in Munich, where he studied painting at the Debschitz School, mainly under Josef Eberz. From 1924 until 1926 Karl Zerbe worked and traveled in Italy on a fellowship from the City of Munich. In 1932 his oil painting titled, ‘’Herbstgarten’’ (autumnal garden), of 1929, was acquired by the National-Gallery, Berlin; in 1937, the painting was destroyed by the Nazis as "Degenerate art." Entartete Kunst was what they deemed all the Avant Garde, Modernism Movements. In the visual arts, sucf innovations as Expressionism, Fauvism, Cubism, Dada, Bauhaus, Post Impressionism were disdained. Artists such as Käthe Kollwitz, Otto Dix, George Grosz, Max Beckmann, Max Ernst, Oskar Kokoschka, El Lissitzky, Franz and Marc Chagall were among those who despite having made significant contributions to the German modernist movement were banned even if they were not necessarily Jewish. From 1937 until 1955, Karl Zerbe was the head of the Department of Painting, School of the Museum of Fine Arts, Boston. In 1939 Karl Zerbe became a U.S. citizen and the same year for the first time he used encaustic. He joined the faculty in the Department of Art and Art History at Florida State University in 1955, where he taught until his death. He was grouped together with the Boston artists Kahlil Gibran (bronze sculpture), Jack Levine and Hyman Bloom as a key member of the Boston Expressionist school of painting, and through his teaching influenced a generation of painters,[including, among others, David Aronson, Bernard Chaet, Reed Kay, Arthur Polonsky, Jack Kramer, Barbara Swan, Andrew Kooistra, and Lois Tarlow. Select solo exhibitions 1922: Gurlitt Gallery, Berlin, Germany 1926: Georg Caspari Gallery, Munich, Germany; Kunsthalle, Bremen, Germany; Osthaus Museum, Hagen, Germany 1934: Germanic Museum (now Busch-Reisinger Museum), Harvard University, Cambridge, Massachusetts 1934, 1935, 1936, 1937: Marie Sterner Galleries, New York City 1936, 1938, 1939, 1940: Grace Horne Galleries, Boston, Massachusetts 1941: Vose Galleries, Boston; Buchholz Gallery, New York City 1943: Mount Holyoke College, South Hadley, Massachusetts 1943, 1946, 1948, 1951, 1952: The Downtown Gallery, New York City 1943, 1947: Berkshire Museum, Pittsfield, Massachusetts 1945, 1946: Art Institute of Chicago, Illinois 1946: Detroit Institute of Arts, Detroit, Michigan 1948, 1949: Philadelphia Art Alliance, Pennsylvania 1948, 1955: Boris Mirski Gallery, Boston, Massachusetts 1950: Munson-Williams-Proctor Arts Institute, Utica, New York 1951-1952: Retrospective Exhibition circulated by the Institute of Contemporary Art, Boston, traveled to: Baltimore Museum of Art; Colorado Springs Fine Arts Center; Currier Gallery of Art, Manchester, New Hampshire; Florida Gulf Coast Art...
Category

1960s Expressionist Karl Zerbe Paintings

Materials

Mixed Media, Paint

Arctic Light - Orange Sun
By Karl Zerbe
Located in Fairlawn, OH
Arctic Light-Orange Sun Unsigned Gouache on Japanese fibrous paper Series: Tundra Paintings Exhibited: Karl Zerbe, Gouaches of the Artic Nordness Gallery, (Madison Avenue, NY) Feb 3 through Feb 23, 1958 Cat. No. 12 (label with work, see photo...
Category

1950s American Modern Karl Zerbe Paintings

Materials

Gouache

"Boy from Mansos, " Karl Zerbe, Green Figurative "Degenerate" Art Collage
By Karl Zerbe
Located in New York, NY
Karl Zerbe (1903 - 1972) Boy from Mansos, 1963 Collage and acrylic on canvas 35 x 23 inches Signed lower right Provenance: Lee Nordness Galleries, New York Karl Zerbe was born on September 16, 1903 in Berlin, Germany. The family lived in Paris, France from 1904–1914, where his father was an executive in an electrical supply concern. In 1914 they moved to Frankfurt, Germany where they lived until 1920. Karl Zerbe studied chemistry in 1920 at the Technische Hochschule in Friedberg, Germany. From 1921 until 1923 he lived in Munich, where he studied painting at the Debschitz School, mainly under Josef Eberz. From 1924 until 1926 Karl Zerbe worked and traveled in Italy on a fellowship from the City of Munich. In 1932 his oil painting titled, ‘’Herbstgarten’’ (autumnal garden), of 1929, was acquired by the National-Galerie, Berlin; in 1937, the painting was destroyed by the Nazis as "Degenerate art...
Category

1960s Post-War Karl Zerbe Paintings

Materials

Canvas, Acrylic

Related Items
Still Life Painting of Two Plants on an Orange Table by Fauvist British Artist
By Steve Capper
Located in Preston, GB
Still Life Painting of Two Plants on an Orange Table by Fauvist British Artist, Steve Capper Art measures 20 x 28 inches Frame measures 25.5 x 33.5 inches Presented in a high quality black wooden moulding Steve Capper attended Manchester’s High School of Art in 1955, the Manchester College of Art in 1962 and Bretton Hall College in 1965. He taught painting for thirty years as head of a large art faculty in an Oldham comprehensive school, before taking early retirement in 1996 to concentrate on producing his own work. Capper produces on-the-spot sketches which are then taken into his studio where he re-works them into a painting. Both his landscapes and his still-life paintings reflect the influences of the cubists and the fauves. The work of Picasso, Braque and Matisse are amongst his major influences. Capper still lives and works near Oldham, in the Pennines...
Category

2010s Expressionist Karl Zerbe Paintings

Materials

Canvas, Paint, Cotton Canvas, Mixed Media, Acrylic, Board

Refreshing Gelato, Yellow & Blue Modern Painting, Diptych, Stripped Cabin Beach
Located in Barcelona, ES
"Refreshing Gelato Grid" is an abstract painting by Spanish artist Natalia Roman. It is a beautiful series of rhythmic brushstrokes combined with subtle tones and unique shapes that is both classy and fresh. The use of vivid colors on a white background reminds the beautiful vintage beach cabins...
Category

2010s Expressionist Karl Zerbe Paintings

Materials

Archival Ink, Mixed Media, Oil, Acrylic, Watercolor, Archival Paper

City at Night (Cityscape)
By Abram Tromka
Located in Wilton Manors, FL
Abram Tromka (1895-1964) City at Night, ca. 1940. Oil on canvas, 16 x 20 inches; 20 x 24 inches in antique oak frame. Signed lower right. Frame is of the period, but probably not ...
Category

1930s American Modern Karl Zerbe Paintings

Materials

Canvas, Oil

Woman and Child in the Woods - Midcentury Abstracted Landscape in Oil on Canvas
Located in Soquel, CA
Woman and Child in the Woods - Midcentury Abstracted Landscape in Oil on Canvas Dramatic abstracted painting of a woman holding a child in the woods by Maley (20th Century). This pi...
Category

1970s American Modern Karl Zerbe Paintings

Materials

Canvas, Oil, Stretcher Bars

Shanty Town
By Robert Noel Blair
Located in Buffalo, NY
You are viewing a modernist American acrylic painting depicting a charming but rundown seaside town at night. Robert Noel Blair (American, 1912-2003) was an American artist, paint...
Category

1950s American Modern Karl Zerbe Paintings

Materials

Acrylic, Archival Paper

"Owl by Night" A Post-War Expressionistic Oil Painting by British Joseph Duncan
Located in Frederiksberg C, DK
Introducing a beautifully gripping post-war oil painting by British artist Joseph Duncan. Within this intense expressionistic work, the powerful use of c...
Category

1960s Post-War Karl Zerbe Paintings

Materials

Oil, Canvas

Untitled, Figure Study
By Hans Burkhardt
Located in Palm Desert, CA
"Untitled, Figure Study" is an abstract figurative Post War pastel on paper paintings by Hans Burkhardt in 1967. The artwork is 21 1/4 x 16 1/4 inches and, with the frame, is 28 3/4...
Category

20th Century Post-War Karl Zerbe Paintings

Materials

Paper, Pastel

Paracentese de L'homme C Post-Minimalist Original Art Monumental Museum Piece
By Emilio Rodríguez Larraín
Located in Soquel, CA
Paracentese de L'homme C Post-Minimalist Original Art Monumental Museum Piece by Peruvian artist Emilio Rodriquez-Larrain (Peruvian, 1928-2015). His work was featured at MOMA as part of their permanent collection and was exhibited as part of Nelson Aldrich Rockefeller Collection exhibit in 1969. The artists is significant and works of this quality are in the Metropolitan Museum, auction high is $25,000. Stunning post-minimalist earth toned abstract with organic forms titled "Paracentese de L'homme C" (Paracenthesis of the man C) by Peruvian artist Emilio Rodriquez-Larrain (Peruvian, 1928-2015), 1964. This was entered into the XXXII 1964 Venice Biennale, arguably one of the most prestigious art events. Signed on verso and entry label for XXXII 1964 Venice Biennale, and Staempfli Gallery label attached to verso. Condition: Very good: professionally cleaned, structurally sound with no issues beyond normal wear with age. Image size: 56.50"H x 55.50"W. Presented in rustic wood slat shadow box frame. Emilio Rodríguez Larraín was a Peruvian postwar and contemporary painter and sculptor who was born in 1928. He was trained at the Lima School of Engineers (currently the National University of Engineering) from 1945 to 1949. This is how he entered art and was able to learn tools and techniques that would help him in his future works. In the 1950s he ventured into painting under the influence of the French architect and abstract art painter Jean Dewasne, thus developing a painting style based on the abstract and the geometric until his trip to Europe where he migrated to the style of modernist informalism. and made paintings that alluded to the cultures of ancient Peru. His work demonstrates versatile artwork of horizontal geometric constructions, expressive paintings and architectural interventions categorized as post minimalism. Received a John Simon Guggenheim Foundation award for his art. Fellow: Awarded 1976 Field of Study: Fine Arts Competition: Latin America & Caribbean His work was featured at MOMA as part of their permanent collection and was exhibited as part of Nelson Aldrich Rockefeller Collection exhibit in 1969. key galleries and museums, including the Revolver Galeria, Lima and the Galeria Lucia de la Puente. His work has also been exhibited in Lima, Madrid, Florence, Venice, Milan, Bergamo, Frankfurt, Berlin, Copenhagen, Mexico City, and Paris. In 2016, the Lima Art Museum presented a retrospective exhibit of his paintings and sculptures, calling Rodriquez Larraine "An important avant-garde sculptor, architect and painter who knew how to adapt to the artistic changes of the time and play a very important role in the visual arts of Peru." The piece we offered the front over of Staempfli Gallery's exhibit of Rodriquez-Larrain work. The write-up of Rodriquez-Larrain's work by The New Yorker, November 3, 1962 states: "Talk story about Emilio Rodriguez-Larrain, a Peruvian painter, who currently has 46 paintings on display at the Staempfli Gallery. A photograph of Emilio, distributed by the gallery, showed a great resemblance to Zero Mostel. He doesn't look like Mostel at all. The picture was taken in Paris last May, when he had the mumps. He was born in Lima in 1928, the son of an industrialist. His father's family came to Peru in the 17th century. Mr. Staempfli met Emilio in Llansa, Spain, last summer. Gordon Washburn, the director of fine arts at the Carnegie Institute in Pittsburgh, who had shown him last year, told Staempfli to look up Emilio, because he knew a tailor in Llansa who would make you a corduroy suit...
Category

1960s Post-War Karl Zerbe Paintings

Materials

Oil, Board, Stretcher Bars

Colorful Abstracted Landscape in the Style of Diebenkorn
Located in Soquel, CA
Colorful Abstracted Landscape in the Style of Diebenkorn by Ellis Hopkins (American, b. 1952). This dynamic piece features textured blocks of color which resemble an abstracted lan...
Category

Late 20th Century American Modern Karl Zerbe Paintings

Materials

Canvas, Stretcher Bars, Oil

Mid Century Palace of Fine Arts, San Francisco Landscape
Located in Soquel, CA
Palace of Fine Arts, San Francisco by Garrett Price (American, 1896-1979). Signed "Garrett" lower right. Unframed. Image size, 11.75"H x 15.25"W. G...
Category

1950s American Modern Karl Zerbe Paintings

Materials

Paper, Watercolor

Trafalgar, London
Located in San Francisco, CA
Artist: Thelma Speed Houston – American (1914-2000) Title: Trafalgar Year: unknown Medium: Watercolor on heavy watercolor paper Sheet size: 18 x 24 inches Signature: Signed lower lef...
Category

Mid-20th Century American Modern Karl Zerbe Paintings

Materials

Paper, Watercolor

Weehawken Sequence
By John Marin
Located in Bryn Mawr, PA
Weehawken Sequence, c. 1910-16 Oil on canvas board, 9 x 12 inches (22.9 x 30.5 cm) Framed dimensions: 13 3/8 x 16 1/4 inches John Marin’s long and prolific career is best marked by ...
Category

20th Century American Modern Karl Zerbe Paintings

Materials

Canvas, Oil, Board

Previously Available Items
Closed Doors
By Karl Zerbe
Located in Los Angeles, CA
Closed Doors, 1957, polymer tempera on Masonite, signed lower right, 20 x 40 inches, inscribed verso “Zerbe Closed Doors June 1957,” label verso reads: “Artist Karl Zerbe / No. T / T...
Category

1950s Abstract Karl Zerbe Paintings

Materials

Masonite, Polymer

Closed Doors
Closed Doors
H 20 in W 40 in D 2 in

Karl Zerbe paintings for sale on 1stDibs.

Find a wide variety of authentic Karl Zerbe paintings available for sale on 1stDibs. You can also browse by medium to find art by Karl Zerbe in paint, acrylic paint, board and more. Much of the original work by this artist or collective was created during the 20th century and is mostly associated with the Expressionist style. Not every interior allows for large Karl Zerbe paintings, so small editions measuring 26 inches across are available. Customers who are interested in this artist might also find the work of Jonah Kinigstein, Frederick B. Serger, and Giulio da Milano. Karl Zerbe paintings prices can differ depending upon medium, time period and other attributes. On 1stDibs, the price for these items starts at $2,800 and tops out at $9,500, while the average work can sell for $4,800.

Recently Viewed

View All