Visual artist Vija Celmins is renowned for her extraordinarily detailed Photorealist paintings, prints and drawings of natural phenomena, from the surface of the sea to spiderwebs.
After immigrating to the United States from Latvia with her family in the late 1940s, Celmins found herself drawn to images in American comic books. Their word balloons and narrative captions proved important to the development of her English language skills, and the books' images would also leave a lasting impression as Celmins took to drawing at a young age.
As a budding artist, Celmins studied the fine arts at the John Herron School of Art in Indiana, Yale University and UCLA, where she began drawing everyday objects found around her studio — much like the Pop artists of the era — such as a lamp and a heater as well as photographs from World War II, which haunted her early memories. She visited New York City as a student to see the works of Abstract Expressionists such as Jackson Pollock and Willem de Kooning.
Over time, Celmins developed a fascination with science and, in particular, scientific images, leading to her painting her famous natural subjects, from the night sky to the desert floor. One global event that particularly captivated her was the Apollo 11 moon landing in 1969, which provided the world with photographs of our celestial neighbor. She began drawing the surface of the moon from those images.
“The images are not from observations of nature but are ‘found images’ from old magazines, books and photos,” said Celmins. “Thus they are already flattened and a step removed from nature. My work lies between intimacy and distance.”
Celmins’s first retrospective was held at the Institute of Contemporary Art in Philadelphia in 1962. She has since been the subject of solo exhibitions at the Metropolitan Museum of Art in New York, the Centre Pompidou in Paris and the Menil Collection in Houston. Today, she lives and works in New York.
Find original Vija Celmins art on 1stDibs.
$7,500
"Spider Web" Vija Celmins (Photorealist, Drawing, Spider, Contemporary, Print)
By Vija Celmins
Located in New York, NY
This screen print depicts one of Celmins' signature subjects, the spider web, which she has represented in various media, including charcoal, oil paint, and multiple printmaking tech...
Screen
$7,000
Spider Web
By Vija Celmins
Located in Toronto, Ontario
Vija Celmins (b. 1938) is one of the most accomplished and revered living American artists. Born in Riga, Latvia, her dynamic oeuvre resists merging with any art-historical "ism" or ...
Paper, Screen
$6,750Sale Price|46% Off
Vija Celmins Spider Web-Hand Signed and Numbered Limited Edition
By Vija Celmins
Located in Brooklyn, NY
A wonderful Spider Web by Vija Celmins, commissioned as part of Lincoln Center’s 50th Anniversary celebration. Ms. Celmins recently received an award from the International Print Cen...
Screen
$3,600Sale Price|20% Off
The Sun
By Vija Celmins
Located in Indianapolis, IN
Signed and dated lower right, edition 1/10. Celmin was born in Riga, Latvia in 1938, and in 1944 moved with her family to Germany where they settled in a Latvian refugee camp near E...
Lithograph
Price Upon Request
Spider Web, Vija Celmins Contemporary Screen Prints
By Vija Celmins
Located in New York, NY
Vija Celmins Spider Web, 2009 Signed, dated, and numbered in pencil, recto Screenprint on rag paper (Edition of 117) 17.5 x 19 inches, sheet 11 x 13 inches, image
Screen
$1,413
H 43.31 in W 21.66 in
Tree, Bindu & Five Elements - Original handsigned lithograph /150 copies #INDIA
By Sayed Haider Raza
Located in Paris, IDF
RAZA Sayed Haider Tree, bindu and five elements, 2008 Original Lithograph Handsigned in pencil Numbered / 150 copies On vellum 22 x 43" (56 x 110 cm) Authenticated by the Editor sta...
Lithograph
$24,500
H 38 in W 37 in
American Signs Portfolio of 12 Screen Prints, Hand Signed Edition 69/100, 2009
By Robert Cottingham
Located in Aventura, FL
Each hand signed, titled, numbered and dated, lower margin. Screen print in colors on wove paper with full margins. Each sheet size: 38 x 37. Each image size: 32 x 32. Certificate of Authenticity included. Complete Suite, edition 69/100. Published by Greg Smith...
Screen, Paper
Orange Spray
By Jules Olitski
Located in Toronto, Ontario
Jules Olitski (1922-2007) is one of the most collected and accomplished artists associated with the color-field movement, if not 20th century American abstraction. Olitski came to ...
Lithograph, Screen
$995
H 21.25 in W 17 in
Henri Matisse Lithograph, 1958, Danseuse Creole, The Last Works of Matisse
By (after) Henri Matisse
Located in Washington, DC
Artist: Henri Matisse (after) Title: Danseuse Creole Portfolio: The Last Works of Henri Matisse Medium: Lithograph Date: 1958 Edition: 2000 Frame Size: 21 1/4" x 17" Sheet Size: 14" ...
Lithograph
$975
H 14 in W 21 in
Henri Matisse Lithograph Print, Abstract, 1958, Cocquelicots, The Last Works
By (after) Henri Matisse
Located in Washington, DC
Artist: Henri Matisse (after) Title: Cocquelicots Portfolio: The Last Works of Henri Matisse Medium: Lithograph Date: 1958 Edition: 2000 Sheet Size: 14" x 21" Signature: No Reference...
Lithograph
$200
H 8 in W 6 in
Cobblestone Screenprint Paint Collage on Panel, Contemporary Art
By Miriam Singer
Located in Philadelphia, PA
This piece titled "cobblestone" is original artwork made from screenprint Tyvek paint collage on panel by Miriam Singer. This piece measures 6"h x 6"w. Miriam Singer grew up in Buffalo, New York, In 2000 she received her BA from Brandeis University, and in 2003 her MFA from Massachusetts College of Art. Since moving to Philadelphia in 2004; Miriam Singer has exhibited at James Oliver Gallery. Stanek Gallery, LG Tripp Gallery, Woodmere Art Museum, Space 1026, Friends of the Print and Picture Collection...
Panel, Screen, Paint
$471
H 20.08 in W 27.56 in D 0.04 in
Silenzio Screenprint, Abstract Art, Signed, Edition of 60, 1974
By Mario Schifano
Located in Roma, IT
Silkscreen on paper realized in 1974. Hand signed and numbered. Edition of 60. Very good condition.
Screen
$3,500
H 37 in W 34 in
"Land Fall" by John Gibson (Balls, Geometric, Blue, Colorful, Screen print)
By John Gibson (b. 1958)
Located in New York, NY
This print has a deep blue background and brightly colored red and orange billiards balls. John Gibson has been painting delicate still-life arrangements of balls since the 1990s. T...
Screen
$695
H 15 in W 22 in
Alexander Calder Lithograph, Abstract, 1975, Derriere le Miroir #221
By Alexander Calder
Located in Washington, DC
Artist: Alexander Calder Title: Cover, from Derriere le Miroir # 221 Portfolio: Derriere le Miroir #221 Medium: Lithograph in colors Date: 1975 Edit...
Lithograph
$20,000
H 43 in W 31.25 in D 1 in
Monotype w/hand painting, geometric art famed color field painter, signed Framed
By Kenneth Noland
Located in New York, NY
Kenneth Noland Untitled, 1987 Monotype with hand painting on wove paper Signed and dated in pencil on the reverse, with the artist's initials blind stamped lower right Unique Frame i...
Acrylic, Monotype, Screen
Porsche, Photorealist Screenprint by Ron Kleemann
By Ron Kleemann
Located in Long Island City, NY
Ron Kleemann, American (1937 - 2014) - Porsche, Year: 1980, Medium: Screenprint on Arches Paper, signed and numbered in pencil, Edition: 250, Size: 23.5 x 33 in. (59.69 x 83.82...
Screen
$715
H 22 in W 29.25 in
Alexander Calder Lithograph, Abstract, 1963, Derriere le Miroir #141
By Alexander Calder
Located in Washington, DC
Artist: Alexander Calder Title: Derriere le Miroir #141 Portfolio: Derriere le Miroir #141 Medium: Original lithograph Date: 1963 Edition: Unnumbered Frame S...
Lithograph
Vija Celmins-Spider Web-HAND SIGNED
By Vija Celmins
Located in Brooklyn, NY
Sku: LC1196-B Artist: Vija Celmins Title: Spider Web Year: 2009 Signed: Yes Medium: Serigraph Paper Size: 17.5 x 19 inches ( 44.45 x 48.26 cm ) Image Size: 11 x 13 inches ( 27.94 x 3...
Screen
Vija Celmins "Ocean with Cross #1", 2005
By Vija Celmins
Located in Toronto, Ontario
Born in Riga, Latvia in 1938, Vija Celmins’ is one of the most accomplished and revered living American artists. Her impressive and dynamic oeuvre resists merging with any art-histor...
Screen
Spider Web
By Vija Celmins
Located in New York, NY
Vija Celmins Spider Web, 2009 Screen Print 17.38 x 19 in
Screen
SPIDER WEB, Vija Celmins (screen print of spiderweb)
By Vija Celmins
Located in New York, NY
This screen print depicts one of Celmins' signature subjects, the spider web, which she has represented in various media, including charcoal, oil paint, and multiple printmaking tech...
Screen
Starfield
By Vija Celmins
Located in San Francisco, CA
Edition 1 of 10 APs
Mezzotint