Thomas French Fine Art Drawings and Watercolor Paintings

Reclining Female Nude Charcoal and colored chalks with white highlights on tan laid paper, c. 1948 Signed and monogrammed by the artist lower right (see photo) A masterpiece dr...

untitled (Maine Autumn Landscape across the narrows from Mt. Desert) Watercolor, 1945-1955 Signed by the artist lower left in pencil (see photo) Provenance: Estate of the artist Cond...

Chicken Ride Pen and ink on paper, c. 1940 Unsigned Annotated by the artist with his color intentions Preliminary study for "Chicken Ride," watercolor, 1940, in the collection of Mr...

Horses Leaving the Barn Watercolor on paper, 1940 Signed and dated lower left corner (see photo) Condition: Excellent Image: 14 1/2 x 21” Frame: 25” x 31” Provenance; Associated American Artists, New York (see photo of label) Mamdouha and Elmer Holmes Bobst Displayed in an original wormy chestnut frame with OP3 Acrylic. Most probably from the AAA Dehn watercolor exhibition of 1940. Vintage original framing chosen by the artist. Note: Elmer Holmes Bobst (1884–1978) was an American businessman and philanthropist who worked in the pharmaceutical industry. His wife, Mamdouha, was also well known philanthropist. Bobst was born in Lititz, Pennsylvania. He aspired to become a doctor, but instead, he taught himself pharmacology. After his wife Ethel composed his interview letter, he became manager and treasurer of the Hoffman-LaRoche Chemical Works by 1920. When Bobst retired from the company in 1944, he was one of the nation's highest paid corporate executives. In 1945 he took charge of the ailing William Warner Company (later Warner–Lambert) and he remained board chairman until his retirement. Bobst had close connections to President Dwight Eisenhower, but was also a close friend of President Richard Nixon. Note: In 1940, the year of this watercolor, Dehn and Elizabeth Timmerman visited Waterville, MN on their way to Colorado Sprint, Colorado where Dehn was to teach lithography and watercolor. This watercolor is obviously a view of the area around Waterville. Adolf Dehn, American Watercolorist and Printmaker, 1895-1968 Adolf Dehn was an artist who achieved extraordinary artistic heights, but in a very particular artistic sphere—not so much in oil painting as in watercolor and lithography. Long recognized as a master by serious print collectors, he is gradually gaining recognition as a notable and influential figure in the overall history of American art. In the 19th century, with the invention of the rotary press, which made possible enormous print runs, and the development of the popular, mass-market magazines, newspaper and magazine illustration developed into an artistic realm of its own, often surprisingly divorced from the world of museums and art exhibitions, and today remains surprisingly overlooked by most art historians. Dehn in many regards was an outgrowth of this world, although in an unusual way, since as a young man he produced most of his illustrative work not for popular magazines, such as The Saturday Evening Post, but rather for radical journals, such as The Masses or The Liberator, or artistic “little magazines” such as The Dial. This background established the foundation of his outlook, and led later to his unique and distinctive contribution to American graphic art. If there’s a distinctive quality to his work, it was his skill in introducing unusual tonal and textural effects into his work, particularly in printmaking but also in watercolor. Jackson Pollock seems to have been one of many notable artists who were influenced by his techniques. Early Years, 1895-1922 For an artist largely remembered for scenes of Vienna and Paris, Adolf Dehn’s background was a surprising one. Born in Waterville, Minnesota, on November 22, 1895, Dehn was the descendent of farmers who had emigrated from Germany and homesteaded in the region, initially in a one-room log cabin with a dirt floor. Adolf’s father, Arthur Clark Dehn, was a hunter and trapper who took pride that he had no boss but himself, and who had little use for art. Indeed, during Adolf’s boyhood the walls of his bedroom and the space under his bed were filled with the pelts of mink, muskrats and skunks that his father had killed, skinned and stretched on drying boards. It was Adolf’s mother, Emilie Haas Dehn, a faithful member of the German Lutheran Evangelical Church, who encouraged his interest in art, which became apparent early in childhood. Both parents were ardent socialists, and supporters of Eugene Debs...

Divertimento I (Picasso) Graphite, color wash and oil paint on coated glossy paper, c. 1940 Signed C. Metcalf lower left (see photo) Inscribed Matisse, Picasso, C. Metcalf lower left...

Untitled, Still Life of Shell Graphite on paper, 1945-1951 Signed lower right in pencil "Bisttram" (see photo) Condition: Excellent Sheet size: 9.63 x 7 .5 inches EMIL BISTTRAM (189...

Untitled (Wizard Fantasy) Pen and ink on paperboard, 1948 Signed and dated by the artist lower right Extremely rare "Middle Period" drawing. One of two drawings that were given by the artist to Jeanette Kear, Chevy Chase, MD which were signed and dated by the artist. All others in the exhibition are from sketchbooks and have the estate stamp and numbering. Exhibited at National Collection of Fine Arts, Smithsonian Institution, Dec. 6 1979-Feb. 3, 1980 and Fogg Museum of Art, Harvard University, Feb. 22-April6, 1980 Illustrated twice in the resulting catalog, The Drawings of Morris Louis, by Diane Upright Headly, Harvard Univeristy and author of the catalog essay and entries. (See photos) Condition: Mounted to paper board by owner, Jeanette Kear for framing Glazed with glass Image size: 13 7/8 x 16 5/8 inches Frame size: 20 x 23 x 3/4 inches Provenance: Jeanette F. Kear, Chevy Chase, MD Illustrated: National Collection of Fine Art, 1979: "The Drawings of Morris Louis," Catalog No. 1, illustrated D1, reproduced p. 73 Morris Louis Bernstein (November 28, 1912 – September 7, 1962), known professionally as Morris Louis, was an American painter. During the 1950s he became one of the earliest exponents of Color Field painting. While living in Washington, D.C., Louis, along with Kenneth Noland and other Washington painters, formed an art movement that is known today as the Washington Color Schoo Early life and education From 1929 to 1933, he studied at the Maryland Institute of Fine and Applied Arts (now Maryland Institute College of Art) on a scholarship, but left shortly before completing the program. Louis worked at various odd jobs to support himself while painting, and in 1935 was president of the Baltimore Artists' Association. From 1936 to 1940, he lived in New York City and worked in the easel division of the Works Progress Administration Federal Art Project. During this period, he knew Arshile Gorky, David Alfaro Siqueiros, and Jack Tworkov. He also dropped his last name. Work Color field painting He returned to his native Baltimore in 1940 and taught privately. In 1948, he pioneered the use of Magna paint—a newly developed oil-based acrylic paint made for him by his friends, New York paintmakers Leonard Bocour and Sam Golden. In 1952, Louis moved to Washington, D.C. Living in Washington, D.C., he was somewhat apart from the New York scene and he was working almost in isolation. During the 1950s he and a group of artists that included Kenneth Noland, Gene Davis, Thomas Downing, Howard Mehring, Anne Truitt and Hilda Thorpe...

Nude with Headdress and Drape Charcoal and colored pencil on paper, c. 1940 Signed by the artist in pencil lower left (see photo) Painter, lithographer and woodblock printer, born at...

Veillee Sepulchrale Verso: Study of two figures in a landscape Pen and ink on rose colored Canson watermark paper, 1944 Signed in ink with the artist's initials lower center (see photo) Dated 1944 lower center; Titled in ink upper left corner (see photo) Provenance: Swann Galleries, 2010, realized $900. John Popplestone (1928-2013), Akron, OH collector, noted psychologist and author Berman brothers (painters) From Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia Jump to navigationJump to search This article is about the painters. For the American songwriters/producers, see Berman Brothers (producers). Eugene Berman in Italy in the 1960s Eugène Berman (Russian: Евгений Густавович Берман; 4 November 1899, Saint Petersburg, Russia – 14 December 1972, Rome) and his brother Leonid Berman...

Self Portrait with Arms Over Head, vignette on Paul Cadmus on left Graphite drawing on thin wove paper, c. 1940's Unsigned Provenance: Paull Cadmus Jon F. Anderson (1937-2018) Condition: Sheet size: 15 x 10 1/4 inches Born in Hoboken, New Jersey, Margaret Hoening (1906–1998) was a painter and an etcher perhaps best known for her photographs as part of the PaJaMa photography collective. After attending Smith College, she settled in New York, where she pursued formal artistic training at the Art Students League. There, she met the artist couple Paul Cadmus and Jared French. In 1937, she married French, fifteen years her junior, who had spent the previous decade with Cadmus. The trio formed a tight bond, with Cadmus and French continuing their relationship. Born in Hoboken, New Jersey, Margaret Hoening (1906–1998) was a painter and an etcher perhaps best known for her photographs as part of the PaJaMa photography collective. After attending Smith College, she settled in New York, where she pursued formal artistic training at the Art Students League. There, she met the artist couple Paul Cadmus and Jared French. In 1937, she married French, fifteen years her junior, who had spent the previous decade with Cadmus. The trio formed a tight bond, with Cadmus and French continuing their relationship. Together, the three formed PaJaMa (a mashup of their first names, Paul, Jared, and Margaret). Using Hoening’s Leica, they captured themselves, their artist friends, and members of the gay community posing in artful tableaux on the beaches of Fire Island, Provincetown, and Nantucket over the following eight years. Those captured by their camera include the photographer George Platt Lynes; Cadmus’s sister and artist Fidelma; artist Bernard Perlin; and Monroe Wheeler, director of exhibitions at the Museum of Modern Art, among others. Though she produced few canvases, Hoening’s paintings demonstrate the influences of French and Cadmus, particularly with her adoption of the time-intensive, traditional medium of egg tempera that they championed. In the 1940s, the Frenches’ social circle continued to expand. They befriended the British author E.M. Forster, who stayed with them on his first trip to New York in 1947, spending a few days with them in Provincetown, and visiting them again in 1949. When Cadmus began a relationship with the young artist George Tooker in 1944, the trio became a foursome, with Tooker regularly vacationing with the group and appearing in PaJaMa’s photographs...

Self Portrait sketching with Vignette in Profile Graphite on thin wove paper, c. 1940's Unsigned Condition: Small nicks in the right margin, not affecting the image Sheet size: 14 1/2 x 10 inches Provenance: Paul Cadmus Jon F. Anderson (1937-2018) Born in Hoboken, New Jersey, Margaret Hoening (1906–1998) was a painter and an etcher perhaps best known for her photographs as part of the PaJaMa photography collective. After attending Smith College, she settled in New York, where she pursued formal artistic training at the Art Students League. There, she met the artist couple Paul Cadmus and Jared French. In 1937, she married French, fifteen years her junior, who had spent the previous decade with Cadmus. The trio formed a tight bond, with Cadmus and French continuing their relationship. Born in Hoboken, New Jersey, Margaret Hoening (1906–1998) was a painter and an etcher perhaps best known for her photographs as part of the PaJaMa photography collective. After attending Smith College, she settled in New York, where she pursued formal artistic training at the Art Students League. There, she met the artist couple Paul Cadmus and Jared French. In 1937, she married French, fifteen years her junior, who had spent the previous decade with Cadmus. The trio formed a tight bond, with Cadmus and French continuing their relationship. Together, the three formed PaJaMa (a mashup of their first names, Paul, Jared, and Margaret). Using Hoening’s Leica, they captured themselves, their artist friends, and members of the gay community posing in artful tableaux on the beaches of Fire Island, Provincetown, and Nantucket over the following eight years. Those captured by their camera include the photographer George Platt Lynes; Cadmus’s sister and artist Fidelma; artist Bernard Perlin; and Monroe Wheeler, director of exhibitions at the Museum of Modern Art, among others. Though she produced few canvases, Hoening’s paintings demonstrate the influences of French and Cadmus, particularly with her adoption of the time-intensive, traditional medium of egg tempera that they championed. In the 1940s, the Frenches’ social circle continued to expand. They befriended the British author E.M. Forster, who stayed with them on his first trip to New York in 1947, spending a few days with them in Provincetown, and visiting them again in 1949. When Cadmus began a relationship with the young artist George Tooker in 1944, the trio became a foursome, with Tooker regularly vacationing with the group and appearing in PaJaMa’s photographs...

Untitled Abstraction Graphite on paper, c. 1946 Signed with the estate stamp verso Provenance: estate of the Artist Inherited by his neighbor/caregiver Conditio...

untitled (Maine Landscape near Mt. Desert Island) Watercolor on paper, c. 1945-1955 Signed by the artist lower left (see photo) Provenance: Estate of the artist Condition: Excellent ...

untitled (Mt. Desert Narrows) Watercolor on paper, c. 1945-1955 Unsigned Provenance: Estate of the Artist Condition: Excellent Image/sheet size: 11 1/4 x 15 3/8 inches Regarding the ...

Blizzard in Woods Graphite on paper, c. 1945-1963 Unsigned Provenance: Sid Deutsch Gallery, New York Annotated with notes for completing the drawing. Deutsch Gallery has handled Bur...

Reclining Female Nude Charcoal and colored chalks with white highlights on tan laid paper, c. 1948 Signed and monogrammed by the artist lower right (see photo) A masterpiece dr...

untitled (Maine Autumn Landscape across the narrows from Mt. Desert) Watercolor, 1945-1955 Signed by the artist lower left in pencil (see photo) Provenance: Estate of the artist Cond...

West Gouldsboro (Looking Across Mt. Desert Narrows) Watercolor on paper, c. 1945-1955 Unsigned Provenance: Estate of the Artist Condition: Excellent Image/Sheet size: 9 7/8 x 12 1/2 inches Regarding the Maine subject matter of her watercolors, we know that Allen taught art in West Gouldsboro, ME, located near Arcadia National Forest. This watercolor was most probably done in that vicinity. A local Maine newsletter mentions “the artist Greta Allen’s house” as artist residing in West Gouldsboro, Maine in a house formerly owned by James Hill. West Gouldsboro is located just east of the Mt. Desert Narrows, across Frenchman Bay from Mt. Desert Island and Arcadia National Park. Please see attached images for detailed information about the artist's life and time in Maine. Greta Allen, who is sometimes listed under her married name Dietz, was born in Boston in 1881. At the Massachusetts Normal Art School she took elementary lessons from Joseph R. DeCamp, then Frank Benson was her teacher at the School of the Museum of Fine Arts, Boston. Although her work seems to be only in private collections today, Allen exhibited at the Boston Art Club, at the Copley Society...

Untitled Abstraction Graphite on paper. c. 1946 Unsigned Provenance: Estate of the Artist Inherited by his neighbor/caregiver Condition: Staining at corners ...

Irish Sea Watercolor, 1947 Signed and dated by the artist lower right Condition: Excellent Image/Sheet size: 12 x 18 inches Provenance: Estate of the Artist ...

Breaking Up of the Penelope watercolor on artists watercolor board, 1942 Signed and dated by the artist lower right (see photo) Exhibitions: Cleveland, OH, The Cleveland Museum of Art, May 3 - June 11, 1944: "The 26th Annual Ehibition of Works by Artists and Craftsmen of the Western Reserve," , (label on verso) Youngstown OH, The Butler Insititue of American Art, 1943: "1943 New Year Show," , (label on verso) "Ed Dobrotka was one of comic-book illustrator Joe Shuster's early assistants. In the studio, he worked on the 'Superman' series, inking the pencils of artists including Shuster, John Sikela, Leo Nowak and Wayne Boring. Dobrotka did do some pencilling of his own, however he returned to inking exclusively in 1945. In the following years, he worked with Sikela on the 'Superboy' series until the 1950s. He has also work on the solo 'Lois Lane...

Cobwebs and Rocks Watercolor, 1940 Signed, dated, and copyrighted lower right Exhibited: Zimmerli Art Museum, Benjamin Benno: Retrospective Exhibition, 1988 Illustrated: Gustafson, Zimmerli Museum: Benjamin Benno: Retrospective Exhibition, 1988 Color Plate 14 copy copy of the catalog accompanies the watercolor Condition: excellent Image size: 14 3/4 x 21 inches Provenance: Estate of the Artist Ruth O...