Louis Bosa Figurative Paintings
Italian, 1905-1981
Born in Codroipo, a small village only a few miles from Venice, Italy in 1905, the son of a stonemason. Bosa emigrated to the U.S. at age 18 after studies at the Accademia della Belle Arti in Venice and became an American citizen. He then studied under John Sloan, of the Ashcan School, at the Art Students League in New York. A distinguished painter, Louis Bosa's work has been likened to that of artists ranging from Pieter Breughel the Elder to John Sloan and the Ashcan School.
Being an acute observer of the human condition, Bosa's paintings, which are primarily oil on canvas, often focus on people and street scenes from his native Italy. Bosa was known to have followed his subjects around, making many sketches and mental notes, and combined his observations in the final work to create visionary, fantastical images. The subjects of his paintings are highly stylized and expressionistic, and border on caricature. "People are so funny at times they are sad," he said: The people in his paintings are accessible and seem to portray human emotion and everyday life, conquering such concepts as mortality, humility and sometimes futility. His work often reveals comedy in the midst of tragedy. Many of his paintings include whimsical images of nuns riding bicycles and similar authority figures engaged in mundane activities.
He traveled extensively through Europe and often returned to his native Italy. Bosa painted for the Works Progress Administration and the Whitney Museum. He taught at the Cleveland Institute of Art, the New York Art Students League, the Parsons School of Design, Syracuse University, and the University of Notre Dame at South Bend, Indiana. His paintings and watercolors are on display at many well-known art studios and museums across the United States such as:
The Metropolitan Museum of Art - New York The Whitney Museum - New York
The Philadelphia Museum - Pennsylvania
The Worcester Museum - Massachusetts
The Springfield Museum - Massachusetts
The Toronto Art Museum - Canada
Notre Dame University Museum
The Butler Museum - Ohio
The Columbus Museum of Arts and Crafts - Ohio
The University of Illinois - Illinois
The Montclair Museum - New Jersey
The James A. Michener Art Museum - Doylestown, Pennsylvania
The Clearwater Museum - Florida
The Wilmington Museum - Delaware
The Athenian Museum - Connecticut
The Herron Art Institute - Indiana
The Rochester Museum - New York
The Delgado Museum - New Orleans
The Richmond Art Museum - Virginia
The Academy of Arts and Letters
The Hosanna Fund
The Encyclopedia Britannica Collections
International Business Machines
The Syracuse Museum - New Yorkto
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Artist: Louis Bosa
Nuns in My Studio, Self-Portrait, 20th Century Italian-American Artist
By Louis Bosa
Located in Beachwood, OH
Louis Bosa (American, 1905-1981)
Nuns in My Studio
Oil on canvas
Signed lower right
10 x 14 inches
15.5 x 19.5 inches, framed
Born in Codroipo, a small village only a few miles from...
Category
Late 20th Century Louis Bosa Figurative Paintings
Materials
Oil
20th Century Bucks County Colorful Landscape Painting, Italian artist
By Louis Bosa
Located in Beachwood, OH
Louis Bosa (American, 1905–1981)
Bucks County, 1934
Oil on canvas
Signed and dated lower right
17.5 x 21.5 inches
25.5 x 29 inches, framed
Born in Codroipo, a small village only a f...
Category
1930s Expressionist Louis Bosa Figurative Paintings
Materials
Oil
Flood in Venice, Italian Artist, Humorous Landscape/Seascape Scene
By Louis Bosa
Located in Beachwood, OH
Louis Bosa (American, 1905-1981)
Flood in Venice, c. 1970
Oil on canvas
Signed Bosa lower left and verso
34 x 50.5 inches
40.5 x 56.5 inches, framed
Exhibited: 148th Annual Exhibiti...
Category
1970s Louis Bosa Figurative Paintings
Materials
Oil
Costa Brava, Spain, Nuns w/ Umbrellas & Chairs, Surrealist Scene
By Louis Bosa
Located in Beachwood, OH
Louis Bosa (American, 1905-1981)
Costa Brava, Spain
Oil on board
Signed lower right
14 x 24 inches
23 x 33 inches, framed
Born in Codroipo, a small village only a few miles from Ven...
Category
Mid-20th Century Surrealist Louis Bosa Figurative Paintings
Materials
Oil
Cathedral in Venice, large 20th century oil painting, Italian-American artist
By Louis Bosa
Located in Beachwood, OH
Louis Bosa (American, 1905-1981)
Cathedral in Venice
Oil on canvas
Signed lower left
60.25 x 40.25 inches
66.5 x 46.5 inches, framed
Born in Codroipo, a small village only a few mi...
Category
Mid-20th Century Expressionist Louis Bosa Figurative Paintings
Materials
Oil
20th century painting of monks in Venice, Italian pink figural work
By Louis Bosa
Located in Beachwood, OH
Louis Bosa (Italian-American, 1905–1981)
Island of the Monks, c. 1930
Oil on masonite
Signed lower right
14 x 24 inches
23 x 33 inches, framed
Born in Codroipo, a small village only...
Category
1930s Expressionist Louis Bosa Figurative Paintings
Materials
Oil
Industrial Railroad WPA Mid 20th Century American Scene Rural Modern Realism
By Louis Bosa
Located in New York, NY
Industrial Railroad WPA Mid 20th Century American Scene Rural Modern Realism
Large oil on canvas genre painting depicting laborers working on a railroad, with rural landscape in the...
Category
1940s American Realist Louis Bosa Figurative Paintings
Materials
Canvas, Oil
Moody Beach Scene, Surreal Mid-Century Figurative Familial Scene Italian Artist
By Louis Bosa
Located in Beachwood, OH
Louis Bosa (American, 1905-1981)
The Beach, c. 1960
Oil on board
Signed lower left
11.75 x 19.5 inches
20 x 28 inches, framed
Born in Codroipo, a small village only a few miles fro...
Category
1960s Louis Bosa Figurative Paintings
Materials
Oil
Skinny Dippers, 20th Century Landscape, Swimming Family, Italian Artist
By Louis Bosa
Located in Beachwood, OH
Louis Bosa (American, 1905-1981)
Skinny Dippers
Oil on board
Signed lower right
15.5 x 20 inches
21.25 x 25.5 inches, framed
Born in Codroipo, a small village only a few miles from ...
Category
1960s Louis Bosa Figurative Paintings
Materials
Oil
Rockport, Massachusetts Seascape, Cape Ann, Shoreline, Italian American Artist
By Louis Bosa
Located in Beachwood, OH
Louis Bosa (American, 1905, 1981)
Rockport , 1971
Oil on Masonite
Signed lower right, signed, dated and titled verso
10 x 16 inches
17 x 23 inches, framed
Born in Codroipo, a small ...
Category
1970s Louis Bosa Figurative Paintings
Materials
Oil
Mid-20th Century Venetian Canal Cityscape, Italian-American artist
By Louis Bosa
Located in Beachwood, OH
Louis Bosa (American, 1905-1981)
Venice Canalscape, c. 1950
Oil on board
Signed lower right
11.75 x 21.75 inches
19.75 x 29.75 inches, framed
Born in Codroipo, a small village only ...
Category
1950s American Modern Louis Bosa Figurative Paintings
Materials
Oil
Two Wagons, Bucks County, PA 20th Century Farm Landscape
By Louis Bosa
Located in Beachwood, OH
Louis Bosa (American, 1905–1981)
Two Wagons, Bucks County, PA, 1934
Oil on canvas
Signed and dated lower right
20 x 24 inches
30 x 34 inches, framed
Born in Codroipo, a small villag...
Category
1930s Expressionist Louis Bosa Figurative Paintings
Materials
Oil
$1,400 Sale Price
68% Off
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Previously Available Items
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An Evening Prayer, Italian church scene with nun and priests
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Louis Bosa figurative paintings for sale on 1stDibs.
Find a wide variety of authentic Louis Bosa figurative paintings available for sale on 1stDibs. You can also browse by medium to find art by Louis Bosa in oil paint, paint, canvas 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 Louis Bosa figurative paintings, so small editions measuring 17 inches across are available. Customers who are interested in this artist might also find the work of Yves Brayer, Charles Kvapil, and Edgardo Corbelli. Louis Bosa figurative paintings prices can differ depending upon medium, time period and other attributes. On 1stDibs, the price for these items starts at $3,250 and tops out at $15,000, while the average work can sell for $6,440.