Robert Funk Fine Art

A child looks on with glee as his "Muscular Heroes of the Cosmos" Toys transform from inanimate objects to real, actionable beings and beat up his father. Signed upper right, Gahan...

Cartoon art is the original Conceptual Art. Renowned British Illustrator Smilby (Francis Wilford Smith) conceptualizes a Playboy cartoon so good that no caption is needed. The exist...

Maud Tausey Fangel - Baby Painter. In profile, we see a charming, young, ruddy-cheeked, blond girl with pig tales in a bright red-orange dress. She is reading Snow White as a sma...

Veiled in subtle gradations of silver and grey, the Chrysler Building proudly rises above a tight interlocking formation of less consequential neighbors. A new, boxy, and clumsy vert...

The metallic crown of the Chrysler Building reflects the golden light of sunset, giving it a jewel-like appearance. It's as if an elegant woman could wear it on her wrist. Horizonta...

The cop admires the car while the viewer admires the drawing of the car. The enduring legacy of Ben Denison may not be that he was an early cartoonist for Playboy, but for his style...

Color photography in the mid-1970s had barely emerged as a recognized fine art form. The few works in color that museum curators considered were mostly nature pictures or snapshot-l...

We are presenting a rare opportunity to acquire one of Leroy Neiman's best and most compelling paintings. It is a statement piece. A combination of enticing subject matter with a mon...

"Mademoiselle X" story illustration for Vogue February 1, 1934, watercolor and ink, reverse signed in pencil "Benito for Madame X," pencil inscription "Feb.1, 1934 / Page 51 / 316," ...

This high-fashion illustration was most likely created between 1938 and 1940 for an inside editorial in a major newspaper, such as Vogue or McCall's. It showcases Ruth Grafstrom's d...

Before Long Island City blossomed into a landscape of high-rise residential development, it was a gritty industrial area. One of the iconic images of the LIC was four monumental smo...

Three High-Fashion figures adorned in flowing gowns are lined up in a row, facing the viewer. They have an Avant-garde complex design reminiscent of Gustav Klimt. The work is constru...

Academic study in profile of a high bow sitter on gray paper with white highlights. Signed lower right and dated faintly 1916 Edith Emerson (July 27, 1888 – November 21, 1981) was a...

The Chrysler Building is one of the most photographed buildings in the world, with millions of images of it taken from various perspectives. Yet, it has never been captured quite li...

What New York City looked like before the modern world robbed it of its charm. In post-impressionist colors, Photographer Mitchell Funk captures a poetic Central Park moment, with a...

"The poor little bridesmaid ... in her pink cotton gown ... though doubtless, there never was such a pretty girl." A kitchen scene is depicted with a young bridesmaid admiring her f...

The innocence of youth is personified in this charming painting, which depicts an older sister and younger brother running on the beach amidst crashing waves. The boy looks at the vi...

Barbara Nessim is an artist/ illustrator who has contributed to Harper's Bazaar, Esquire, New York Magazine, Rolling Stone, Time, Ms among others. Sign...

Barbara Nessim is an artist/ illustrator who has contributed to Harper's  Bazaar, Esquire, New York Magazine, Rolling Stone, Time, Ms among others. She ...

Margery Ryerson paints a stunning portrait of a boy dressed in Scottish clothes. The paint application is quick and loose but based on a sound academic understanding of how to constr...

Two young Scottish women wear smart business jackets and fashionable tartan skirts. They are depicted as discerning Art Connoisseurs evaluating a small bronze dancer. The Artist Hele...

Framed Cuban Artist/Caricaturist Conrado Walter Massaguer presents Hollywood star Adolphe Menjou in a satirical dual portrait. In the foreground, the subject is seen in a dapper top hat, tux, fashionable cigarette and boutonnière, and is shown as being the epitome of being stylishly debonair. To make a larger point about this subject, Massaguer paints a cast shadow of Menjou as a burning red devil who studies his alter ego from above. Keeping with the artist's sarcasm, we see the good and bad in one image. Works by Massaguer are rare and this work is in keeping with his signature style. This work was most likely done on assignment for Life Magazine, Cosmopolitan, The New Yorker or Vanity Fair. Signed upper right. Inscribe lower right. Titled on verso. Unframed, Slight bend to board; toning to board; scattered faint foxing; pin point abrasions to margins, not affecting image. 19-1/2 x 15-1/8 inches board size. Conrado Walter Massaguer y Diaz was a Cuban artist, political satirist, and magazine publisher. He is considered a student of the Art Nouveau. He was the first caricaturist in the world to broadcast his art on television.He was first caricaturist to exhibit on Fifth Avenue. He was the first caricaturist in the world to exhibit his caricatures on wood. He, and his brother Oscar, were the first magazine publishers in the world to use photolithographic printing. Self portrait of Conrado Walter Massaguer, depicted on a carrousel ride, with the devil over his left shoulder and an angel over his right. (1945) He created the magazine Social with his brother Oscar to showcase Cuban artistic talent. The duo later created the magazine Carteles, which became for a period the most popular magazine in Cuba, which was purchased by Miguel Ángel Quevedo in 1953. In his life, he met and drew caricatures of Franklin D. Roosevelt, Walt Disney, Albert Einstein, the King of Spain, and many others.[ In sum total, he was the author of more than 28 thousand caricatures and drawings.Ernest Hemingway once had to refrain himself from punching Massaguer in the face after the artist drew an unflattering caricature of him. The dictator Gerardo Machado, however, did not punch Massaguer for his own unflattering caricature - he had the artist deported. He was one of the most internationally renowned Cuban artists of his day, and his art is still regularly featured in galleries across the Western Hemisphere and Europe. Early life Massaguer was born on October 18, 1889, in Cárdenas, Cuba.[In 1892, his family moved to Havana. When the Cuban War of Independence broke out, Massaguer's family escaped the country. From 1896 to 1908, he lived in Mérida, Mexico. However, during this time, his parents enrolled him in the New York Military Academy, where he stayed during school years. In 1905, after graduating the military academy, he briefly attended the San Fernando school in Havana, where he was tutored by Ricardo de la Torriente and Leopoldo Romañach. In 1906, less than a year later, he returned to the family home in Mexico. Career as artist Early career While living in Yucatán, Mexico, Massaguer published his first caricatures in local newspapers and magazines. These included La Campana, La Arcadia, and the Diario Yucateco. In 1908, he moved back to Havana. After returning to the island in 1908, Massaguer began mingling with Havana's aristocratic circles, forming close friendships with some of the city's most powerful and influential men, as well as winning the favor of many women who were quickly charmed by him. Massaguer, largely self-taught, honed his style using the avant-garde techniques he studied from the European and American magazines that were widely available in Cuba at the time. Cover of the immensely popular Cuban magazine El Figaro, drawn by Massaguer in 1909. This cover depicts two bumbling, incompetent American tourists to the island. He started drawing for El Fígaro, and was featured prominently on the cover in 1909. After two years of refining his craft, Havana announced a poster contest aimed at attracting North American tourists to stay in the city during the winter months. Notable figures like Leopoldo Romañach, Armando Menocal, Rodríguez Morey, Jaime Valls, and others also entered the competition. The jury was particularly impressed by the modern execution and creative solution of one piece, signed by Massaguer, who was relatively unknown at the time. The jury deliberations caused a great controversy.[5] The prize was ultimately awarded to the Galician painter Mariano Miguel, who had recently married the daughter of Nicolás Rivero, the wealthy owner of the conservative newspaper Diario de la Marina. Although Massaguer received only an honorable mention, the fraud scandal caused such an uproar that his name quickly entered the public spotlight, and he became an overnight sensation. In 1910, he became co-owner of the advertising agency Mercurio, with Laureano Rodríguez Castells. At Mercurio, he led the Susini cigar campaign, and earned substantial wealth. Massaguer has been described as a restless man, in both mind and body.After earning enough money from his art to begin traveling, he was almost always doing so. He constantly traveled between New York City and Havana, Mexico and France, Europe and the Americas. In 1911, his reputation among the Havana socialites solidified when he organized his own first public caricature exhibit, and also the first Caricature Salon ever held in the Americas, hosted at Athenaeum of Havana (the Ateneo), and the Círculo de La Habana. Other exhibitors here included Maribona, Riverón, Portell Vilá, Valer, Botet, Barsó, García Cabrera, Carlos Fernández, Rafael Blanco, and Hamilton de Grau. "Messaguer Visits Broadway." Caricatures of theatrical and literary figures. Elsie Janis, Raymond Hitchcock, S. Jay Kaufman (columnist), Ibanez, author of The Four Horsemen, and Frances White In 1912, in the New York American Journal, he published his first Broadway drawings. From 1913 to 1918, he was an editor for Gráfico. Social Main article: Social (magazine) Cover of the magazine Social, July 7, 1923 In 1916, he created the magazine Social with his brother, Oscar H. Massaguer. Social's contributors included Guillén Carpentier, Chacón y Calvo, Enrique José Varona and others.Social has been described as Massaguer's great love in the magazine industry, and was the property that historians say he cared the most about. Social was an innovative magazine, being the first magazine in the world to use a modern printing process called photolithographic printing. Social set cultural trends, not only in the fashion of Cuba, but in art, politics, and Cuban identity.[11] Social catered to a certain aesthetic in Cuba - that of the sophisticated elite socialite - but Massaguer would also use this magazine to ridicule and jibe against that same class of society when he found their personalities worthy of his contempt. In Social, readers could find a variety of content, including short stories, avant-garde poetry, art reviews, philosophical essays, and serialized novels, as well as articles on interior design, haute couture, and fashion. Occasionally, the magazine also featured reports on sports such as motor racing, rowing, tennis, and horse riding.The cultural promotion efforts of both Massaguer and Emilio Roig de Leuchsenring are evident in the magazine. Notably, this period overlaps with their involvement in the Minorista Group, which was then at the forefront of the country's intellectual life.[5] Many contributors were devoted members of the group, leading some experts to consider Social as the cultural voice of the Minoristas. One of the features of Social magazine was its section called "Massa Girls," which was a play on his own name, and pronounced with a glottal 'g' in a similar fashion to the letter in Massaguer.[12] Massaguer drew women as independent and free-thinking, and never drew the woman celebrity as a caricature of herself, but as a free agent surrounded by caricatures.[11] However, Massaguer himself has been described as a womanizer in his personal life, and hesitant to fully embrace every facet of women's liberation. In 1916, he also established la Unión de Artes Gráficas and the advertising agency Kesevén Anuncios.[9] The art critic Bernardo González Barroa wrote: “Massaguer has solved the problem of working hard, living comfortably off what his art produces and not missing any artistic, sporting or social event. His broad, childish laugh, of a carefree individual who carries his luck hidden in a pocket, appears everywhere for the moment, disguising the pranks of pupils that lurk, mock and, finally, flash with satisfaction at finding the characteristic point after having analyzed a soul... Massaguer's personality is beginning to solidify now. He has been the best-known and most popular caricaturist for a long time, but his technique had not reached the security, the mastery of values that he presents in his latest works, which is very natural and explainable”[5] Carteles Main article: Carteles Cover of the magazine Carteles, November 29, 1931 In 1919, Massaguer and his brother created the magazine Carteles.[9] Carteles gained the widest circulation of any magazine in Latin America, and the most popular magazine in Cuba for a time, until that title was claimed by Revista Bohemia. Carteles remained in print until July 1960.This magazine showcased Cuban commerce, art, sports, and social life before the revolution. In 1924, Carteles took a more political turn, with articles criticizing Gerardo Machado's government. it became a prime example of the humor and graphic design employed by artists like Horacio Rodríguez Suria and Andrés García...

Mid-century Artist Victory Kalin was too good an artist for his paperback assignments. He was as much a virtuoso graphic designer as an illustrator. The present work exemplifies his ...

Pioneering Color Photographer Mitchell Funk experiments with multiple in-camera exposures of the Chrysler Building, producing a triumph of color and design in motion. No less than t...

Sotheby's New York . work is elegantly matted and framed with the Sotheby's sticker on verso

This work clearly has homosexual overtones which in the mid-'40s was as daring as showing nudity. I am not sure if this was the artist's intention but the salesgirl and the model look identical and she signs it twice Shermond. Added to this is a strobe light effect where the model's image is partly replicated giving the impression of 2 figures. She's lost in thought pondering the notion of removing the bows and seeing the consequences. Meanwhile, the sales girls ( perhaps her alta ego - perhaps an admirer ) eggs her on. Caption: "You can always remove the bows if you think they're too fussy." Cover cartoon for unknown publication - Signed "Shermund" twice in the lower right image, dated on verso, and captioned in graphite in the lower margin. Original Matte and not framed - Barbara Shermund...

The mid-century glamour portrait of an elegant, long-necked woman in silhouette with a straw sun hat. Signed and dated Grafstrom Palm Beach 1947 - Condition is good with some scatter...

An elegantly rendered mid-century Parisian model with a stylish hat is masterfully rendered by American female illustrator Ruth Sigrid Grafstrom ...

Mid-century female illustrator/artist Gladys Rockmore Davis paints a compelling portrait of a contemplative beauty who looks like Elizabeth Taylor. Frontal and lateral forces work together in this pyramidal composition. The sitter stares down at the viewer creating a frontal tension. Her hypnotic gaze is counterbalanced by the lateral movement of her crossed hands and triggers an emotional response. Gladys Rockmore Davis is both a work-for-hire illustrator and a fine artist- She was an illustrator for clients such as Upjohn, Munsingwear, Elgin Watches, and Johnson & Johnson. Davis had a show at the prestigious Midtown Gallery and Babcock Gallery in New York. She studied at the California School of Fine Arts, Art Institute of Chicago, and Art Students League. William R. French Gold Medal...

When the Eiffel Tower was conceived in 1886, it was to be a symbol of aesthetic avant-garde thinking. In 1994, Photographer Mitchell Funk pays homage to Gustave Eiffel's spirit of ...

This little gem of a compact artwork was executed in the Arts and Crafts style for an interior illustration for "The Wise Book," J.M. Dent & Co, London, 1906. "You can't eat your ca...

Portrait of an Old Man circa 1900 - 1925 Oil on canvas Signed lower left h: 25 x w: 29 in / h: 63.5 x w: 73.7 cm Private Collection unframed

Bertha Corbett Melcher's The Sunbonnet Babies, with their flat, minimalist, semi-abstract, and symbolic style, are an early example of American Modernism/Surrealism by a lesser-known female artist/illustrator. The present work demonstrates a delicate balance between abstraction and representation and between the commonplace and the mysterious. Her signature use of a hat or sunbonnet to hide the identity of her subjects is a big conceptual and visual idea that has been overlooked in the fine art canon. The exact meaning of this is unknown, but 120 years after they were done, it resonates as somewhat surrealistic. Her work is a contradiction. She shows innocent children engaging in everyday activity but are depicted in vail of mystery. Why does she not show the faces of her subjects? Watercolor on paper (each) Six drawings in all on one board. 6-1/8 x 5 inches (15.6 x 12.7 cm) (each) One signed; two initialed; three not signed. Six drawing in all on one board. 6-1/8 x 5 inches (15.6 x 12.7 cm) (each) One signed; two initialed; three not signed The Sunbonnet Babies characters were created by illustration Bertha L. Corbett when she was challenged to create a faceless character who nonetheless was engaging and appealing. The characters were a wild hit and appeared in books, comics, and popular collectibles. They also became a popular motif in quilting. Few of Corbett's original drawings for the babies are known to survive, making this a rare offering. From: Wikipedia Sunbonnet Babies are characters created by commercial artist Bertha Corbett Melcher (1872–1950). Sunbonnet Babies featured two girls in pastel colored dresses with their faces covered by sunbonnets. Sunbonnet Babies appeared in books, illustrations and advertisements between the years of 1900 and 1930. Sunbonnet Babies were later used as a popular quilting pattern also known as Sunbonnet Sue.[1] Melcher created a male version of the Sunbonnet Babies, named the 'Overall Boys' in 1905.[2][3] History Bertha L. Corbett Melcher Sunbonnet Babies were created by Bertha Corbett Melcher (1872–1950).[4] Melcher was born in Denver and moved with her family to Minneapolis in the 1880s. Melcher attended art school in Minneapolis with plans to become a commercial artist.[5] She may have also studied with Howard Pyle.[6] By the 1920s, Melcher had moved to Topanga, California.[7][4] Melcher started drawing the Sunbonnet Babies in 1897. The origin of the signature style of the faces being covered by sunbonnets is contested by different members of Melcher's family and by Melcher herself. In an interview, Melcher's brother said their mother suggested Bertha avoid the difficulty of drawing faces by covering them with sunbonnets.[4] Melcher herself said that covering faces allowed her to communicate with body position.[4] Melcher has also said that the design came about in "answer to a friend’s challenge to convey emotion without a face."[2] Melcher published her first book, The Sun-Bonnet Babies in 1900.[3] Later, she shopped her illustrations to publisher Rand McNally of Chicago, and nine subsequent books were written by Eulalie Osgood Grover and illustrated by Bertha Corbett. In 1905, Melcher wrote The Overall Boys.[3] Many of these books were used as primers and used widely in primary schools in the midwest. Melcher used the sunbonnet babies in advertising and later established the Sunbonnet Babies Company. She started a studio to illustrate and create merchandise of the Sunbonnet Babies.[2] The characters also appeared in a comic strip.[2] Quilting Melcher herself did not originate the use of the sunbonnet babies as quilting pattern. The Sunbonnet Babies quilting pattern appeared in textile art 1910's in the Ladies Home Journal 1911–1912 in a quilt stitched by Marie Webster. The pattern was popular during the Great Depression. In the American South, it was often known as "Dutch Doll" until the 1970s.[3] There was also a quilt pattern based on the "Overall Boys," known by the various names including “Overall Bill, “Overall Andy,” “Sunbonnet Sam,” “Suspender Sam,” “Fisherman Jim."[3] Many patterns for quilts and sewing were designed by Ruby Short McKim and published in nationally syndicated newspapers.[8] Sunbonnet Sue became symbolic of 'female innocence and docility'.[9] Linda Pershing collected accounts from women quilters who depicted 'Sues' doing activities such as smoking, wearing more revealing clothing, and subverting feminine stereotypes.[10] In 1979, the “Seamsters Union Local #500," a group of quilters from Lawrence, Kansas, created “The Sun Sets on Sunbonnet Sue," a quilt depicting the character murdered in a variety of ways.[3] Collectibles Sunbonnet Babies merchandise includes school books, valentines cards, postcards, china, and quilts.[2][5][11] Sunbonnet Babies were adapted into three dimensional porcelain collectibles and pottery made by Royal Bayreuth Company in the early 1900s. The Royal Bayreuth China...

Giraffe Man. A man's acute inquisitive nature creates an unexpected physical change. Initialed R. T. lower left . Framed under glass. Framed size 13.5 x 10.38 Source: Biography f...

Tug with Club Street Violence rendered in high contrast dayglow like red and inky black black. Untitled, 2018 Acrylic on canvas 36 x 24-1/4 inches (91.4 x 61.6 cm) Signed and dated ...

The Dryads… Ancient beings of old growth forests, with wisdom of ages long forgotten, knowing much of what us busy folk have forgotten. The Forest of Arden is famously featured in S...

A giant moon is unexpectedly pictured resting between two skyscrapers on Park Avenue. This image was done as an assignment for a Business Week cover. The editors wanted a high-drama ...

Marius de Zayas was born in Veracruz, Mexico and emigrated to New York with his family in 1907. He joined the art staff of the New York Evening World newspaper and quickly became kno...

Photographer Mitchell Funk demonstrates the link between minimalism and street photography, which is usually associated with a loose snapshot style. The present image fuses differen...

Famed Disney artist Mary Blair was also an illustrator for assignments outside Disney. The present work appears to be for a Gelolo Mchugh children's book called Baby's House. There i...

Eva Tanguqy-A Strange Request, New York Evening World newspaper and Puck magazine interior (two works), 1910s India ink and blue pencil on heavyweight paper 16-1/2 x 10-1/2 inches (4...

Saturday Evening Post, Story Illustration Depicts Connecticut train station with possible drunk commuter being assisted by good samaritan Signed lower left Provenance: Illustration ...

This charming portrait is a statement piece for any space. The two elegantly handsome sitters are brother and sister and are accompanied by their loyal dog. With 18th and 19th centu...

This surreal Men's Fashion illustration with a dragonfly is staged in an inside/outside setting against dreamlike Rene Magritte clouds. Of particular note is how the artist cropped t...

Flapper Fanny - Female Cartoonist of the Golden Age Sylvia Sneidman was originally a fashion illustrator, but assumed the helm of the famous jazz-age panel cartoon "Flapper Fanny Sa...

A simple yet complex structure always characterizes Mitchell Funk's work. In present work, the first concept is that old New York City icons emerge above new construction. The secon...

The Artist captures a "caught moment" of cloths blowing in the wind. It's being witnessed by an inquisitive bird, while be ducklings and a cute kitty cat accompany her. Signed lower...

Framed Size 28.5 x 21 Jaro Fabry was a brilliant illustrator with a defined style of his own. There is not a brushstroke out of place in his works that appear loosely rendered. He is best known for his depiction of Golden Age of Hollywood...

Quick and loose expressionist portrait of stage and screen actress Paula Laurence Portrait of Paula Laurence (1916-2005). Oil and graphite on linen. Signed top right. Exhibited: "Lil...

Famed female illustrator and satirical caricaturist depicts a scene of three figures in a landscape, seen searching in the tall grass. It appeared on page 96 of Number 5, Hackberry ...

"Six Breasts No Waiting" showcases Haitian Master Salnave Philippe-Auguste's whimsically fruitful imagination. He executes it in a distinctive painting style of simplified compos...

In the present work, Wilson McLean departs from a typical expected fashion setting and places his two male models in a surreal world. The outdoors comes indoors with cotton ball clo...

A sadistic laughing Devil grinning a big smile is pictured hovering over a Hellfire. He is reveling while witnessing tiny ant-like sinners engage in eternal torture, torment, and co...

Street Photographer Mithcell Funk captures the Chrysler Building as it stands between two neighbors. Compositional exactitude adds to the overall visual appeal of Funk's formal compo...

Wherever you look, you see The Chrysler Building, which is particularly true from Gramercy Park looking uptown. In this tightly cropped view, Photographer Mitchell Funk composes the ...

This is a parody portrait of the famed Duke of Urbino, Federico da Montefeltro, by Piero della Francesca, in the Uffizi Galleries in Florence. Hispanic Illustrator Ignacio Gomez pain...

Wherever you look, you see the Chrysler Building, which is particularly true from the Lower East Side. Street Photograph Mitchell Funk isolates a red pre-war parking sign from a busy...

Complex Art Nouveau patterns intertwined with gracefull figures define this work by American Artist and illustrator, teacher and lecturer Mildred Bailey Carpenter. Signed in cartouc...

Wherever You Look, You See The Chrysler Building. A Third Avenue bus creates a blur of color as it passes in front of the Chrysler Building. Photographer Mitchell Funk took the pres...

In a continuing project, "Mitchell Funk Photographs the Chrysler Building for 50 years," the present work is a stellar example of how Funk takes one of the most photographed world i...