Stanton Macdonald-Wright (1890–1973) was a pioneering American modernist painter and co-founder of Synchromism, in 1912.
Synchromist paintings were some of the first abstract paintings created in America. The theory of synchromism is based on the idea that color and sound are similar phenomena and that the colors in a painting can be orchestrated in the same harmonious way that a composer arranges notes in a symphony. MacDonald-Wright once said, "Synchromy is to color what symphony is to sound. ...It means everything is done with color."
Stanton MacDonald-Wright was born in Virginia, and moved to Santa Monica with his family at the age of ten. He began studying art at the Art Students League in Los Angeles while in his teens, and in 1907 moved to Paris, studying at major institutions including the Sorbonne, Académie Julian, and Académie Colarossi.
Back in the United States in, he and fellow artist Morgan Russell developed Synchromism. MacDonalnd-Wright and Russell held exhibitions in Paris and Munich in 1913, and MacDonald-Wright lived in New York City from 1914 to 1919 before returning to California.
MacDonald-Wright was instrumental in introducing modern art to Los Angeles, organizing the first exhibition of modernists there in 1920. He served as director of the Art Students League of Los Angeles in 1923 and taught art history and aesthetics at the University of California, Los Angeles from 1942 to 1954. During the 1930s he was a regional director for the Works Progress Administration (WPA) federal art project, creating notable murals in Santa Monica.
MacDonald-Wright spent the rest of his life in California. His paintings are held in the permanent collection of many prestigious museums, including the Museum of Modern Art, the Whitney Museum of American Art, the Museum of Fine Arts in Boston, the Metropolitan Museum of Art, the Los Angeles County Museum of Art, and the National Portrait Gallery.
Modernist figurative drawing by Stanton MacDonald-Wright
By Stanton MacDonald-Wright
Located in Colfax, CA
An early modernist drawing by synchromist artist Stanton MacDonald-Wright. Stanton Macdonald-Wright (1890–1973) was a pioneering American modernist painter and co-founder of Synchrom...
Pencil
Respite
Located in London, GB
Pencil on paper Signed and dated (lower right) 29cm × 21cm (48cm × 39cm framed) A truly original artist, Lear spent most of his 70 year career exploring beautifully proportioned mal...
Paper, Pencil
$800
H 39 in W 21.25 in D 0.5 in
Broadway Costume Illustration by Designer Mabel E. Johnston
Located in New York, NY
Mabel E. Johnston Untitled, c. 1920s Watercolor and pencil on paper Sight: 18 x 12 1/2 in. Framed: 39 x 21 1/4 x 1/2 in. Signed lower right: Mabel E. Johnston The first tidbit I fou...
Paper, Watercolor, Pencil
Blanche Grambs, (Young Owl)
By Blanche Grambs
Located in New York, NY
Blanche Grambs, whose career started with the WPA, was an extremely skilled draftsperson. Her birds are masterful. Although we use the word 'pencil' fo...
Pencil
Isadora Duncan
By Abraham Walkowitz
Located in Fairlawn, OH
Isadora Duncan Graphite with grey wash on paper mounted to cardstock Signed and dated in pencil lower right (see photo) Provenance: Charlotte Bergman, f...
Graphite
$6,500
H 20 in W 23 in
"Female Nude" Louise Nevelson, Modernist, Elegant Flowing Forms, Sweeping Line
By Louise Nevelson
Located in New York, NY
Louise Nevelson Female Nude, circa 1935 Pencil on paper 9 15/16 x 13 7/16 inches Provenance The artist Estate of the artist Bobbie Greenfield Gallery, Santa Monica, California Priva...
Paper, Pencil
Male Torso
By John Koch
Located in London, GB
Pencil, coloured pencil and chalk on paper, titled (lower left), signed (lower right), 31cm x 46cm, (51cm x 68cm framed). John Koch was an American painter and teacher, and an impo...
Paper, Chalk, Pencil, Color Pencil
Emil Ganso, (Reclining Nude)
By Emil Ganso
Located in New York, NY
A classic Emil Ganso nude. Quite large, the sheet is 14 1/8 x 21 inches and the image goes all the way across the sheet from left to right. Very delicately drawn - especially for Ganso.
Pencil
$250
H 8 in W 6 in
Male Lying Nude Drawing, Graphite on Paper, American Modern, Signed
By Jackson Lee Nesbitt
Located in New Orleans, LA
Stone and Press Gallery is excited to offer several works in celebration of the LGBTQ community. This is a drawing from the artist's sketchbooks. This pencil drawing shows a nude male in repose, The drawing is dated November 30 '36 (1936). Clearly the works are authentic and this sketch is signed "Jackson Lee Nesbitt...
Graphite
Reclining Female Nude
By Emil Ganso
Located in Fairlawn, OH
Reclining Female Nude Charcoal on paper, c. 1933 Signed lower right (see photo) Provenance: Weyhe Gallery, New York (Ganso's dealer 1925-1941) Joseph Mark Erdelac, Cleveland, noted c...
Graphite
$15,000
H 16 in W 30 in
WPA Mural Study Mid-Century Modern American Scene Social Realism Workers
By Anton Refregier
Located in New York, NY
WPA Mural Study Mid-Century Modern American Scene Social Realism Workers Anton Refregier (1905-1979) Mural Study, Untitled 7 ¾ x 22 inches (sight) Gouache, pencil, and charcoal on board, c. 1940s Unsigned Provenance: Estate of Seymour Fogel, noted verso Thomas McCormick Gallery...
Charcoal, Gouache, Board, Pencil
$5,500
H 24.5 in W 35.25 in
Nuba 1981 Graphite Drawing on Brown Paper James Brown Galerie Bernd Kluser
By James Brown
Located in Surfside, FL
James Brown (American, 1951-2020) "Study on the Nuba" (African men drawings) 1981 Graphite on brown paper, two works framed together Bears gallery labels verso Dimensions: approx. 16"h x 12"w (each sheet), 24.5"h x 35.25"w (frame) Provenance: Galerie Bernd Klüser, Bears label verso They represented internationally renowned artists such as Joseph Beuys, Tony Cragg, Enzo Cucchi, Jannis Kounellis, Mimmo Paladino and Andy Warhol. Their first exhibitions were with Andy Warhol, Tony Cragg, Julião Sarmento...
Paper, Graphite
Pablo Casals
By August F. Biehle
Located in Fairlawn, OH
Pablo Casals Graphite on paper, 1963 Signed in pencil lower right (see photo) Sheet size: 11 5/8 x 8 inches Condition: glue residue in all four corners of the sheet Drawn from life during an appearance at Carnegie Hall with the Cleveland Orchestra...
Graphite