Mathias Werthmeister Art

Zygmund Jankowski (1925–2009) painted traditional subjects with exuberant irreverence for traditional rules of color, composition, and perspective. He disparaged imitation and deligh...

Provenance: Selma Herringman, New York, ca. 1955-2013; thence by descent to: Private Collection, New York, 2013-2020 This seventeenth century Spanish still-life of a laden table, known as a bodegón, stands out for its dramatic lighting and for the detailed description of each object. The artist’s confident use of chiaroscuro enables the sliced-open squash in the left foreground to appear as if emerging out of the darkness and projecting towards the viewer. The light source emanates from the upper left, illuminating the array, and its strength is made apparent by the reflections on the pitcher, pot, and the fruit in the basket. Visible brush strokes accentuate the vegetables’ rough surfaces and delicate interiors. Although the painter of this striking work remains unknown, it is a characteristic example of the pioneering Spanish still-lifes of the baroque period, which brought inanimate objects alive on canvas. In our painting, the knife and the large yellow squash boldly protrude off the table. Balancing objects on the edge of a table was a clever way for still-life painters to emphasize the three-dimensionality of the objects depicted, as well a way to lend a sense of drama to an otherwise static image. The knife here teeters on the edge, appearing as if it might fall off the table and out of the painting at any moment. The shape and consistency of the squash at left is brilliantly conveyed through the light brush strokes that define the vegetable’s fleshy and feathery interior. The smaller gourds—gathered together in a pile—are shrouded partly in darkness and stand out for their rugged, bumpy exterior. The stoneware has a brassy glaze, and the earthy tones of the vessels are carefully modulated by their interaction with the light and shadow that falls across them. The artist has cleverly arranged the still-life in a V-shaped composition, with a triangular slice of cheese standing upright, serving as its pinnacle. Independent still-lifes only became an important pictorial genre in the first years of the seventeenth century. In Italy, and particularly through the revolutionary works of Caravaggio, painted objects became carriers of meaning, and their depiction and arrangement the province of serious artistic scrutiny. Caravaggio famously asserted that it was equally difficult to paint a still-life as it was to paint figures, and the elevation of this new art form would have profound consequences to the present day. In Spain Juan Sanchez Cotan...

Exceptional pair of paintings by Manon Cleary (1942-1911). Paintings are oil on canvas. Dated 1980 and signed in the front lower right corner and on reverse. Manon Cleary's work is ...

Juan Sánchez Cotán (1560 - 1627) was one of the most important still life painters in Spain and beyond. He developed a certain type of still life with a ...

Chani Cohen Zada Afterbirth , 2018 oil on canvas 100 x 100 cm 39 x 39 in Exhibited: 'Between Holy and Mundane', Lewinski College, Tel Aviv. Israel 11.1-...

Albert Benaroya (Israeli) Red an Purple Orchids oil on canvas 81x56 cm Born in Istanbul, Benaroya is an Israeli artist, a master of depiction in hype...

Early substantial, expressionist abstract still life by Lee Lippman (American 1926-2020). Bursting with color and movement titled "Still life with onions" ...

Albert Benaroya (Israeli) Red Tulips oil on canvas 81x56 cm Born in Istanbul, Benaroya is an Israeli artist, a master of depiction in hyper - realism...

Surreal hyper realistic trompe l'oeil oil painting by Latin American artist Victor Del Castillo. Peaches, grapes and cherries in rich brilliant colors and incredible detail. Measures...

LaValley is an American artist born in New York in 1858. His style is realism and most of his paintings were either landscapes or still lifes. This perticular painting is an exclent ...

Gabriel Deschamps (1919 - , France) "Le Bouquet Blanc" / The White Bouquet. Oil on Canvas, framed, under glass. The frame is 48 5/8” x 34 3/4," the canvas is 39 1/2" high by 26" wi...

Moonlite, 2021, Daniel Blagg, Oil on canvas, 38 x 58" By meticulously depicting forgotten road signs and roadside debris, Daniel Blagg invites his viewers to re-consider objects th...