Skip to main content

Robert Riggs Paintings

American, 1896-1970

Known for his scenes of prize-fighting and circus-genre, Robert Riggs had a highly successful career as an artist, especially in the ‘30s and ‘40s. His painting, The Brown Bomber, showed the boxing victory of Joe Louis over Max Schmeling. This is one of the paintings that earned Riggs election to the National Academy of Design in 1946. He was born in Decatur, Illinois, and as a young man ran away from home and joined the circus. He studied at the James Milliken University in Illinois and then trained at the Art Students League in New York, but his study was interrupted by Army service in the First World War. He attended the Académie Julian in Paris and then returned to the United States where he settled in Philadelphia and worked for N. W. Ayer & Sons, an advertising agency for whom he did numerous illustrations.

to
2
5
6
3
1
Overall Width
to
Overall Height
to
15
1
9
3
9
4
2
15
9
5
4
3
3
3
2
2
1
1
1
1
1
1
1
1
1
1
1
12
6
6
2
1
22
785
701
652
644
2
15
Artist: Robert Riggs
The Burr - Hamilton Duel
By Robert Riggs
Located in Fort Washington, PA
Medium: Oil Painting Signature: Signed Lower Right
Category

20th Century Robert Riggs Paintings

Materials

Oil

Indian sacrificial ceremony - Aztec Human Sacrifice
By Robert Riggs
Located in Miami, FL
The sacrificial ceremony, Freemans The Collection of Philip Desind Signed Three times Riggs l.r. A powerful account of moments a tribe member is cut open and the heart is handed over to a young brave, There is a reason why there are few contemporary painters who can paint a portrait this good. It's hard to do. It's easy to throw some paint or spray a mess of graffiti on canvas. That's easy. To execute a portrait with a great depth of anatomy and structure takes years of academic training. In Riggs's time there were teachers who knew how to pass on this knowledge. He studied at the Art Students League and the Académie Julian . Today, they are very few and far between. - Robert Riggs was a Gay Artist...
Category

1950s American Realist Robert Riggs Paintings

Materials

Mixed Media

Tribesmen with Headdresses - Gay Artist
By Robert Riggs
Located in Miami, FL
"Riggs openly identified as gay to his friends in the Philadelphia art community, but did not disclose his orientation to his employers." - Woodmere Art Museum Tempera mixed with gum arabic and alcohol on Renaissance Panel "Robert Riggs was awarded the Gold Medal for Excellence by the New York Art Directors Club for ten consecutive years and received many additional awards." He was elected to the Society of Illustrators' Hall of Fame. His work is in the permanent collections of the Metropolitan Museum of Art in New York, the Philadelphia Museum of Fine Arts and the U.S. Library of Congress. Riggs's compositons are "monumental" Walt Reed Riggs was a Gay Artist...
Category

1940s American Realist Robert Riggs Paintings

Materials

Tempera

George Washington Marine Procession New York Presidential Inauguration, Life Mag
By Robert Riggs
Located in Miami, FL
"The Great Man Comes to Take His Oath" Life Magazine Spread, July 4th, 1960, This epic narrative depicts the celebration of George Washington's inauguration, en route to Federal Hall...
Category

1930s American Realist Robert Riggs Paintings

Materials

Oil

Young girl Redhead Holding her father's hand Illustration
By Robert Riggs
Located in Miami, FL
There is a reason why there are few contemporary painters who can paint a portrait this good. It's hard to do. It's easy to throw some paint or spray a mess of graffiti on canvas. ...
Category

1940s American Realist Robert Riggs Paintings

Materials

Oil

Tribesmen with Headdresses - Photo Realism
By Robert Riggs
Located in Miami, FL
Tempera mixed with gum arabic and alcohol on Renaissance Panel "Robert Riggs was awarded the Gold Medal for Excellence by the New York Art Directors Club for ten consecutive years and received many additional awards." He was elected to the Society of Illustrators' Hall of Fame. His work is in the permanent collections of the Metropolitan Museum of Art in New York, the Philadelphia Museum of Fine Arts and the U.S. Library of Congress. Riggs's compositons are "monumental" Walt Reed Riggs was a Gay Artist...
Category

1940s American Realist Robert Riggs Paintings

Materials

Tempera

Mongols
By Robert Riggs
Located in Miami, FL
Tempera mixed with gum arabic and alcohol on Renaissance Panel There is from frame burn and scattered surface abrasions but they are minor. Additionally, there are a 3 or 4 very fine hair line scratches not visible unless you look very closely. The work is varnished and has a reflective quality to it that makes it hard to photograph. In person the viewing experience is much better. You can see more detail in the shadow areas. The colors are rich, deep and saturated. Riggs was very particular in researching the tribal costumes...
Category

1940s American Realist Robert Riggs Paintings

Materials

Tempera

Indian Ritual Walking on Fire, Firewalking Ceremony, Mythology and Religion
By Robert Riggs
Located in Miami, FL
Narrative artist Robert Riggs captures a highly-charged scene of an Indian firewalking ceremony. Firewalking is part of a religious ritual and is associated with the mystical powers...
Category

1950s Academic Robert Riggs Paintings

Materials

Varnish, Pigment

Prospector firing Rifle ( Happiness is a Warm Gun ) Gay Art
By Robert Riggs
Located in Miami, FL
Tempera mixed with gum arabic and alcohol on Renaissance Panel Robert Riggs was a gay man. Being gay in American during the 1940's time was something not to flaunt in public. Rigg's had to communicate his underlying feelings in more symbolic ways. Throughout Riggs oeuvre, one sees continuous references to strong hunked out manly men and vulnerable boys. It is a core element of is iconography and is described in a powerful graphic style. In “Prospector firing Rifle” is a Dick Pic. Riggs is clearly making a sexual statement about the moment of climax. The long, straight rifle explodes and is captured at the peak moment of climax. Meanwhile, the bag two bags of gold clearly resemble the other part of the male anatomy. Riggs was a thoughtful and meticulous visual thinker and nothing in any of Riggs’s compositions were haphazardly placed. In tribute to the artist’s suppressed feelings, I have given this work a second title “Happiness is a Warm Gun...
Category

1940s Academic Robert Riggs Paintings

Materials

Tempera

Grizzly Adams, Grizzly bear attacks Frontiersman
By Robert Riggs
Located in Miami, FL
There is a reason why there are few contemporary painters who can paint a portrait of a man and bear this good. It's hard to do. It's easy to throw some paint or spray a mess of graf...
Category

1950s American Realist Robert Riggs Paintings

Materials

Mixed Media, Graphite

Young girl Redhead Holding her father's hand
By Robert Riggs
Located in Miami, FL
There is a reason why there are few contemporary painters who can paint a portrait this good. It's hard to do. It's easy to throw some paint or spray a mess of graffiti on canvas. That's easy art. Executing a portrait with a great depth of anatomy and structure takes years of academic training. In Riggs's time, there were teachers who knew how to pass on this knowledge. He studied at the Art Students League and the Académie Julian . Today, they are very few and far between. Tempera mixed with gum arabic and alcohol on Renaissance Panel - Robert Riggs was a Gay Artist...
Category

1940s American Realist Robert Riggs Paintings

Materials

Oil

Tribesmen with Headdresses
By Robert Riggs
Located in Miami, FL
Tempera mixed with gum arabic and alcohol on Renaissance Panel "Robert Riggs was awarded the Gold Medal for Excellence by the New York Art Directors Club for ten consecutive years and received many additional awards." He was elected to the Society of Illustrators' Hall of Fame. His work is in the permanent collections of the Metropolitan Museum of Art in New York, the Philadelphia Museum of Fine Arts and the U.S. Library of Congress. Riggs's compositons are "monumental" Walt Reed Riggs was a Gay Artist...
Category

1940s American Realist Robert Riggs Paintings

Materials

Tempera

Filling the Biggest Lumber Order on Record
By Robert Riggs
Located in Fort Washington, PA
Date: 1946 Medium: Oil on Paper Dimensions: 20.25" x 18.25" Signature: Signed Lower Right Exhibitions: September 2007: Society of Illustrators
Category

1940s Robert Riggs Paintings

Materials

Paper, Oil

Ringing of the Bell
By Robert Riggs
Located in Fort Washington, PA
Ringing of the Bell Robert Riggs was a painter and a lithographer of monumental compositions, yet achieved his effects through meticulous means. In lithography, he worked from black...
Category

20th Century Other Art Style Robert Riggs Paintings

Materials

Oil, Panel

Tribesmen with Headdresses
By Robert Riggs
Located in Miami, FL
"Robert Riggs was awarded the Gold Medal for Excellence by the New York Art Directors Club for ten consecutive years and received many additional awards." He was elected to the Society of Illustrators' Hall of Fame. His work is in the permanent collections of the Metropolitan Museum of Art in New York, the Philadelphia Museum of Fine Arts and the U.S. Library of Congress. Riggs's compositons are "monumental" Walt Reed - work is unframed. - Riggs was a Gay Artist.
Category

1940s American Realist Robert Riggs Paintings

Materials

Tempera

Related Items
Landscape of Brittany in France
Located in BELEYMAS, FR
Marie RÉOL (Massiac 1880 – Douarnenez 1963) Seaside in Douarnenez ? Oil on canvas H. 54 cm; L. 65 cm Signed lower left Provenance : Private collection, Périgord Born in the heart of Cantal, Marie Réol left to study Fine Arts in Paris, where she met Louis-Marie Désiré-Lucas. This Breton master will become “his” master. Going from teacher, to friend, then husband whose stylistic influence will be felt throughout Marie Réol's career. The couple is divided between Douarnenez where Désiré-Lucas has a large residence, Espalion where they have a house overlooking the Lot and the Vieux Pont, as well as in Paris. Obviously, through his friendship with the Périgord Lucien de Maleville...
Category

1920s French School Robert Riggs Paintings

Materials

Oil, Canvas

'Agay, le château et le Sémaphore'. Oil on canvas. Signed.
By Armand Guillaumin
Located in Paris, FR
'Agay, le château et le Sémaphore'. Oil on canvas. +/- 1922 Signed lower right Measurements : 60 x 73 cm. This painting will be recorded in the second volume of the Catalogue Raisonn...
Category

1920s Impressionist Robert Riggs Paintings

Materials

Oil

Catalan Landscape with Masia oil on board painting spain spanish eupean art
Located in Barcelona, Barcelona
Artist: Antoni Llobet Aracil (Barcelona, 1910 - 1983) Title: Catalan Landscape with Masia Technique: Oil on board Dimensions: 13 x 16.1 in Support: Board Framing: Unframed Period: 19...
Category

1930s Impressionist Robert Riggs Paintings

Materials

Oil, Board

"Child Star" Mid Century Portrait of a Boy with Brown Eyes Oil on Canvas
By William Robert Shulgold
Located in Soquel, CA
"Child Star" Mid Century Portrait of a Boy with Brown Eyes Oil on Canvas Stately portrait of a boy by William Robert Shulgold (Russian-American, 1897-1989). The subject is looking o...
Category

1950s American Realist Robert Riggs Paintings

Materials

Oil, Linen

Sitges beach Barcelona Spain mediterranean seascape oil on canvas painting
By Joan Abello Prat
Located in Barcelona, Barcelona
Title: Playa de Sitges Artist: Joan Abelló Prat (1922–2008) Medium: Oil on canvas Dimensions: 33 x 41 cm (12.99 x 16.14 in) Framed dimensions: 37 x 45 cm (14.57 x 17.72 in) Date: 200...
Category

Early 2000s Post-Impressionist Robert Riggs Paintings

Materials

Oil, Canvas

Resting Boats oil on canvas painting spanish mediterranean seascape
Located in Barcelona, Barcelona
Title: Resting Boats Artist: Enric Beltrán Messa (1940–2006) Technique: Oil on canvas Dimensions: 15 x 18.1 in Support: Canvas, unframed Signature: Signed in the lower right corner P...
Category

1970s Impressionist Robert Riggs Paintings

Materials

Canvas, Oil

Landscape oil on cardboard painting impressionism spanish
By Joaquin Terruella Matilla
Located in Barcelona, Barcelona
Joaquin Terruella Matilla (1891-1957) - Landscape - Oil cardboard Oil measures 33x41 cm. Frame measures 47x55 cm. Joaquim Terruella Matilla (1891 - 1957) Joaquim Terruella Matilla,...
Category

1920s Impressionist Robert Riggs Paintings

Materials

Oil, Cardboard

Mid Century Figurative Portrait of a Boy with Toy Car
By Ralph Edward Joosten
Located in Soquel, CA
Realistic mid century portrait of a boy playing with an antique toy car by Ralph Joosten (American, 1928-2009). Signed "R. Joosten" in the lower left ...
Category

1960s American Realist Robert Riggs Paintings

Materials

Canvas, Oil

Sitges oil on canvas painting Spain mediterranean village european art
Located in Barcelona, Barcelona
Title: Paseo de Sitges Artist: Jordi Curós Ventura (1930–2017) Medium: Oil on canvas Dimensions: 23.6 x 28.7 in Signature: Signed in the lower right corner Estimated date: 1980s or 1...
Category

1980s Fauvist Robert Riggs Paintings

Materials

Canvas, Oil

Antique American Oil Painting Portrait Young Woman Necklace Period Frame Rare
Located in Buffalo, NY
A beautiful and rare antique American portrait of a young woman in a stunning period frame, likely original to the piece. Unsigned but beaut...
Category

1890s American Realist Robert Riggs Paintings

Materials

Canvas, Oil

Post Office WPA Mural Study American Scene Social Realism Modern 20th Century
By Carlos Lopez
Located in New York, NY
Post Office WPA Mural Study American Scene Social Realism Modern 20th Century Carlos Lopez (1910-1953) "Bounty" WPA Mural Study for Michigan Post Office 19 ½ x 22 ½ inches Oil on B...
Category

1940s American Realist Robert Riggs Paintings

Materials

Oil, Board

Park with lake oil painting european art seascape urbanscape
By Rafael Duran Benet
Located in Barcelona, Barcelona
Rafael Duran Benet (1931-2015) - Park with lake - Oil on cardboard paid to canvas Oil measurements 50x65 cm. Frame measurements 66x81 cm. Rafael Duran Benet (Terrassa, 1931 - Barc...
Category

1980s Post-Impressionist Robert Riggs Paintings

Materials

Oil, Canvas, Cardboard

Robert Riggs paintings for sale on 1stDibs.

Find a wide variety of authentic Robert Riggs paintings available for sale on 1stDibs. You can also browse by medium to find art by Robert Riggs in paint, oil paint, tempera and more. Not every interior allows for large Robert Riggs paintings, so small editions measuring 11 inches across are available. Customers who are interested in this artist might also find the work of Spencer Douglass Crockwell, Amos Sewell, and Alex Roulette. Robert Riggs paintings prices can differ depending upon medium, time period and other attributes. On 1stDibs, the price for these items starts at $12,500 and tops out at $92,000, while the average work can sell for $40,000.

Recently Viewed

View All