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Larry Rivers Paintings

American, 1923-2002

Figurative artist Larry Rivers was born in the Bronx in 1923 to Ukrainian Jewish parents, and was named Yitzak Loiza Grossberg. Rivers belonged to the second generation of the New York School of painters, although unlike most of his contemporaries he stayed away from abstraction instead preferring narrative paintings. He began his artistic career playing the jazz saxophone, and when one night his group was introduced as "Larry Rivers and the Mudcats," he decided to keep the name.

After a brief period in the army during World War II, Rivers attended Juilliard School of Music for one year before returning to the jazz saxophone. After he met the painter Jane Freilicher, he decided to devote himself to painting. Rivers attended Hans Hofmann's school for nearly two years. In 1949, he had his first solo show at the Jane Street Gallery, an artist's co-op in the Village. Rivers received favorable reviews and was invited to join the Tibor de Nagy Gallery uptown.

Rivers continued to show annually at the Tibor de Nagy Gallery from 1952 to 1962. In 1963, he joined the Marlborough Gallery, where he stayed until his death. In 1955, The New York Museum of Modern Art acquired his painting Washington Crossing the Delaware, and in 1956 the Whitney Museum purchased Double Portrait of Berdie, two of his more famous paintings. He had periodic museum shows in Europe and the United States throughout his career.

Rivers had two sons, Joseph and Steven, by his first wife, Augusta. In 1961 he married Clarice Price and had two more children, Gwynne and Emma. In the 1970s he had another son with the painter Daria Deshuk.

The subjects of River's figurative paintings were family, history, politics, religion and sex. His work done in oils often included the use of stencils, cutouts, blank canvas and image reversals. He often painted family members including his mother in law, his sons and his ex-wife. Rivers favored historical subjects such as History of Matzah: The Story of the Jews (1984-85), History of the Russian Revolution (1965) and often painted parodies including his Washington Crossing the Delaware. He enjoyed controversial subjects and shocking the public. Lapman Loves It (1966) is a nine-foot electrified assemblage complete with strategically located light bulbs. French Vocabulary Lesson (1961-62) is a nude with body parts labeled in French.

Rivers was also a writer. In 1979 he published Drawings and Digressions with Carol Brightman. In 1992 he published What Did I Do? The Unauthorized Autobiography with Arnold Weinstein.

Find original Larry Rivers prints and paintings on 1stDibs.

(Biography provided by Lincoln Glenn)

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Artist: Larry Rivers
“Make Believe Ballroom”
By Larry Rivers
Located in Warren, NJ
Larry Rivers “Make Believe Ballroom” Signed Acrylic Oil Photolithograph Cast Resin Wood 1989. In good condition measures 48x48
Category

20th Century Larry Rivers Paintings

Materials

Oil

LARRY RIVERS (hand signed and inscribed first edition book)
By Larry Rivers
Located in New York, NY
Larry Rivers LARRY RIVERS (hand signed and inscribed first edition book), 1989 Hardback monograph with a dust jacket (hand signed and inscribed "Enjoy the Matisse" Signed, dated and inscribed by Larry Rivers in red marker on the title page 11 3/5 × 9 4/5 inches Lavishly illustrated hardback monograph with dust jacket on the occasion of the artist's career retrospective. Text is by the distinguished art historian and Princeton professor Sam Hunter. Hand signed, dated and dedicated in red marker on the title page. Inscription reads: To Joanne and Ira Enjoy the Matisse Larry Rivers, April 2, 1992 About the book: Hunter, Sam. LARRY RIVERS. 358 pp. with 400 illustrations, including 155 plates in color. Folio, cloth. New York, Rizzoli, 1989. New York: Rizzoli, 1989. First edition. Hardcover. 358 pages. Retrospective monograph on Larry Rivers. Features text by Sam Hunter. Includes 400 illustrations of which 155 are in color. Publisher's Blurb: Rivers' public persona as an artist combines that of bohemian outsider, sensualist and entertainer. His best-known images of the 1960s--Dutch Masters cigars, French money, cigarette packs--became Pop icons. Eschewing abstraction, he came up with startling, disquieting figures, such as his obese, sagging mother-in-law depicted in the nude with brutal honesty ( Double Portrait of Berdie ). Yet there is more to Rivers than the hipster, as this lavishly illustrated monograph by a former Princeton art historian shows. Hunter makes a case for Rivers as a social realist: witness his powerful construction piece Ghetto Stoop or recent works that include searching portraits of Primo Levi...
Category

1980s Pop Art Larry Rivers Paintings

Materials

Mixed Media, Permanent Marker, Lithograph, Offset

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Larry Rivers paintings for sale on 1stDibs.

Find a wide variety of authentic Larry Rivers paintings available for sale on 1stDibs. You can also browse by medium to find art by Larry Rivers in lithograph, mixed media, offset print and more. Much of the original work by this artist or collective was created during the 1980s and is mostly associated with the Pop Art style. Not every interior allows for large Larry Rivers paintings, so small editions measuring 10 inches across are available. Customers who are interested in this artist might also find the work of Zane Fix, Chloe Hedden, and Mark Kostabi. Larry Rivers paintings prices can differ depending upon medium, time period and other attributes. On 1stDibs, the price for these items starts at $550 and tops out at $550, while the average work can sell for $550.

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