Mid-20th Century Drawings

Landscape Drawing, Black Marker Boat and Harbor Scene, France 1966. This vintage black felt-tip pen drawing from 1966 captures a scene of the Cape Antibes, located on the French Riv...

Pointillist drawing by Dora Maar. Authenticity stamp of the auction that took place in 1998 in Paris. Black ink on cream white paper. 20th Century, undated. Framed and si...

Large Framed Lithograph by Tony Friedlaender. Signed and numbered 44/95. Nicely framed over canvas.

The posters and prints may display signs of aging, such as paper discoloration, tears, folds, and other imperfections. These pieces were part of an art collection owned by a German ...

This classic and important drawing by Jacques Azéma depicts two Moroccan male youth in the hammam or bath house, relaxing in the nude and imbibing in tea...

Sketch for a poster against tuberculosis "Donate money for the poor sick ones with tuberculosis" made using a mixed technique of pastel and watercolor for the Italian National Campai...

Ivan Alexandrovich Gerassimoff, 1885-1954, was active in the 30s in Shanghai and Harbin, moving to Tashkent after WWII. His style was strongly influenced by Alexander Yakovlev, a not...

pencil on paper by filippo de pisis from 1931, 21 x 30 cm, authentic pandolfini with auction catalog Very good condition, as shown in the photos, already framed signed in penc...

The Drawings of Parmigianino by A. E. Popham. Publisher: New York, The Beechhurst Press 1953. 1st Ed hardcover with Gaylord covered dust jacket. Illustrated with 82 of his drawings. ...

Pencil Drawing on Paper by the Bolivian Surrealist artist, Benjamin Mendoza y Amor Flores (1935 - 2014), untitled of a Man laying on his back holding a large fish on top of him and b...

Honore Daumier. Catalogue Raisonné of the paintings watercolors and drawings. Published by New York Graphic Society Ltd., 1968. 1st Limited E...

Italian painting from 20th century. Oil painting on cardboard depicting a countryside landscape with houses in impressionist style. Small size framework, for antique dealers and coll...

White Bunny Drawing by Oleg Cassini for Playboy October 1979, Signed. Illustration of a woman wearing a white body suit, choker, and hat. Signed by Oleg Cassini. Notice the body suit is in the shape of the head of a bunny with clever use of the 'whiskers'. Approximate Measurements: Length: 11" Width: 14" Property from the Collection of Steven Rosengard, Chicago, Illinois This original drawing was commissioned by Playboy and included in the October 1979 issue of Playboy Magazine (pages 225-227) in a feature that included works from designers such as Bill Blass, Oleg Cassini, Edith Head, Fernando Sanchez, and Monika Tilley, among others, who create their versions of the Playboy bunny costume. Candace Collins can be seen modeling some of the designs in the feature. Oleg Cassini is an icon of twentieth-century fashion. Though born to Russian aristocracy and raised in Italy, he built a fashion empire that was unmistakably American. Cassini is perhaps best known for the hundreds of designs he created for First Lady Jacqueline Kennedy (see images 4-8), but his achievements as a collector, connoisseur, and quintessential twentieth-century man go far beyond Camelot. In 1913, Oleg Cassini was born in Paris to the Russian diplomat Count Alexander Loiewski and Countess Marguerite Cassini, a Russian aristocrat of Italian ancestry who also had an interesting link to America. The daughter of Count Arthur Cassini, Russian Ambassador to the United States during the McKinley and Roosevelt administrations, Marguerite dazzled turn-of-the-century Washington as her father’s official hostess and left her mark on the capital city. Stationed in Denmark when the Russian Revolution toppled the czar, Ambassador Cassini and family were exiled to Switzerland before settling in Florence, Italy, where young Oleg was raised. A true Renaissance man, he spoke Russian, French, and Danish before adding Italian and English; he studied medieval and modern European military history and costume and learned to draw; he learned horseback riding, fencing, and the art of chivalry; and, most importantly, he came to understand the struggles of the Russian titled class and other European aristocrats in the wake of the Russian Revolution and World War I. Countess Cassini started a successful fashion business in Florence, and soon the talented young Oleg was sent to Paris to sketch the latest collections for recreation in Italy. In Rome in his early 20s, Cassini created fashions for high society women and designed for a few films, which planted the seed for his move to Hollywood. The drive to reinvent himself brought Cassini to America in the 1930s; in his autobiography he describes arriving nearly penniless in mid-Depression New York City where his title as an exiled Russian Count meant even less than in war-devastated Europe. Down and out, Cassini struggled for employment, having sketching skills but no knowledge of the wholesale trade required for survival in Manhattan’s Seventh Avenue fashion district. However, he excelled at making connections, and Cassini slowly entered New York society. He was soon joined by younger brother Igor (who had studied in America and travelled with the young Emilio Pucci) and his parents, the once-dazzling Countess and his father, the displaced diplomat still loyal to Russia. The family settled in Washington, D.C., and Igor worked his way up the Hearst newspaper chain to become the famous society columnist Cholly Knickerbocker. In New York, Oleg Cassini married the troubled socialite Merry Fahrney (who would go on to marry eight times), but the marriage ended in scandal for Oleg, and he decided to follow his original intention and head for Hollywood. Despite initial difficulties, Cassini gained access to Hollywood’s elite (partially through his skills on the tennis court), and was soon hired as a designer at Paramount Pictures alongside the redoubtable Edith Head. In her 1941 film debut I Wanted Wings, Veronica Lake wore a memorable Cassini design. That same year, Cassini met and married the newest young Hollywood star on the scene, the beautiful 20th Century Fox–talent Gene Tierney. With the outbreak of World War II, Cassini enlisted in the Coast Guard but was transferred to the U.S. Army Cavalry which allowed officers of foreign birth. He attended basic training at Fort Riley, Kansas, and the horsemanship he learned as a boy served him greatly. He attended Officer Candidate School and reached the rank of First Lieutenant (he also became an American citizen at this time, losing his title of Count). Cassini spent several years posted at Fort Riley, where Tierney joined him before he landed a convenient military post in Hollywood. As Tierney’s career thrived (she played the title role in Otto Preminger’s Laura in 1944), she was able to assert her influence over 20th Century Fox’s head Daryl Zanuck, who hired Cassini as designer for Tierney on her 1946 film The Razor’s Edge, which proved to be a brilliant showcase for his talents. The pair separated the same year and, again seeking reinvention, Cassini re-established himself in New York City as a fashion designer. By 1950, the Oleg Cassini label was born. Combining his knowledge of Old World and modern Europe, Hollywood, the tennis courts of Palm Beach and Newport, and of course, New York City, Oleg Cassini invented a new brand of fashion that was distinctly American and of its moment. For his first collection, Cassini took to the stage, narrating the looks and imbuing the scene with his personality, unusual in an industry where the designers typically remained backstage and the models were called by number over a PA. The first collection was a smash — the president of Lord & Taylor devoted all of their storefront windows to his designs — and by 1955 sales had reached $5,000,000. Oleg Cassini’s career had turned a very positive corner. Cassini spent the early 1950s traversing the country, personally selling his collections to department stores in the interior, something his predecessors had never done, and moving between the Hollywood and New York scenes. Cassini’s brother Igor coined the term “the Jet Set” for this generation that constantly flew from New York to Los Angeles (then a ten-hour flight), Las Vegas, Paris, Rome, and the Riviera. In 1954, Cassini set out to woo Grace Kelly and sent her roses every day. The two were briefly engaged before her marriage to Prince Rainier of Monaco. In December 1960, Cassini’s career-defining opportunity came when he was chosen by Jacqueline Kennedy to design her fashions for the White House. Cassini had long known Joe Kennedy and his war-hero son John, and had first met Jacqueline Bouvier before her marriage in the early 1950s. Invited by President-Elect Kennedy to meet Jacqueline at Georgetown Hospital (she had just given birth to son John Jr.) to present to her drawings of potential dresses and First Lady looks, Cassini worked furiously to prepare a new line for the First Lady. Mrs. Kennedy had always had her clothes made by the top French couturiers of the day, but for the White House she wanted an American designer. Cassini wrote in his autobiography that he told the First Lady: “‘You have an opportunity here,’ I said, ‘for an American Versailles.’ She understood completely what I was trying to communicate; she began to talk excitedly about the need to create an entirely new atmosphere at the White House. She wanted it to become the social and intellectual capital of the nation” (Oleg Cassini, In My Own Fashion, 1987, p. 327). Mrs. Kennedy loved Cassini’s design for a gown to wear to the Inaugural Gala (she had already ordered a dress from Bergdorf’s for the Inaugural Ball), and Cassini was selected as the First Lady’s designer and was soon dubbed the “Secretary of Style.” From 1960 to 1963, Oleg Cassini would design over 300 items for Mrs. Kennedy, creating the “Jackie Look” that contributed not only to a fashion revolution but also the dawn of a new age. Cassini wrote that “Jackie played a very active role in the selection of her clothes. She loved brilliant colors — pistachio, hot pink, yellow, and white among others. Her sense of style was very precise; she would make editorial comments on the sketches I sent her. She always knew exactly what she wanted; her taste was excellent” (Oleg Cassini, In My Own Fashion, 1987, p. 334). After the Camelot years, Cassini’s business flourished and grew into a major industry; his name appeared on everything from couture to tennis-, sport-, and swimwear, car interiors, housewares, and perfume. He collected beautiful and rare artwork, arms and armor, and antique furniture, and lived the lifestyle projected by his image. From this period onward, Cassini also came to live in important homes. Of his Gothic Gramercy Park townhouse on Manhattan’s 19th Street he would write imaginatively, “I walked into the foyer and immediately fell in love. It was a place unlike any other in New York, a sixteenth-century Dutch house transported brick by brick from Europe by the Wells Fargo family in the early twentieth century. There was a vaulted, twenty-foot ceiling in the living room, leaded windows, elegantly carved wood paneling...

Mid-Century abstract pencil drawing, framed and matted, signed by renowned artist S. Mitruk dated 8/21/57, drawing measures 8" x 10", framed size 15" x 19". Stanley Matthew Mitruk w...

This drawing is a highly important and rare window into a relationship that impacted the larger world of Abstract Expressionism in New York just a few years after it was made in 1949...

During her first years in New York Blaine's work, which had previously been tightly realist, turned abstract, inspired by Mondrian, Leger and Jean Helion. At one time she was the you...

Reproduction of a Flipart engraving, "The Holy Virgin". He made reproductions from contemporary artists, often burdened by severe chiaroscuro.

This elegant, hand-drawn pencil portrait captures the legendary ballet dancer Rudolf Nureyev at the height of his career. Known for his extraordinary ta...

An early drawing by the famous French/American Pop/New Realist artist. Combining two of the artists motifs- paint tubes and multiplicity. A period 'Pop' work retains an Andrew Crispo...

Pointillist composition by Dora Maar. Hand signed in the lower right corner. Authenticity stamp of the auction that took place in 1998 in Paris. Black ink on cream white paper, 20th...

This ink and watercolor figurative abstract expressionist piece on paper is signed by its creator, noted New York School artist Salvatore Grippi. Though undated, the piece is fits in...

French painting from the first half of the 20th century. Oil on canvas framework depicting still life with game of good pictorial quality. Modern ...

Although there is no evidence that Paul Cadmus knew Robert F. Kennedy, this portrait of a handsome, youthful man with blue eyes and a thick head of hair suggests that the artist admi...

architectural etching ink drawing. Made in Italy. Signed Laurenzi. Black ink on paper. Framed. Secret message (a mirror is required for reverse handwri...

This dramatic drawing of St. George and the dragon was executed in 1954 by Gaston Goor, who was famous for illustrating a number of books by Roger Peyrefitte and others in France. Go...

Italian painting from 20th century. Oil painting on Masonite depicting the Lombard countryside in Impressionist style of good pictorial hand. Framework of good size and pleasant deco...

Violets Flowers Chart wall Poster , Italy 1960s A rare 1960s flower chart poster with a solid wood frame. Language on the poster: italian Shipping is ...

A magnificent abstract organic hand-drawing, a draft of an ornamental composition in strong, bright colors by Fritz Klee. Colored pencils on paper, signed and dated 'Fritz Klee 1955'...

Emil Betzler German Expressionist painting 'Legend', 1962 ('Sage') Pen and brush ink drawing on velin paper.  Signed and dated by the artist. Shown in 'Emil Betzler' - monograph...

The posters and prints may display signs of aging, such as paper discoloration, tears, folds, and other imperfections. These pieces were part of an art collection owned by a German ...

Project of the ship Ortac; launched in 1937 at the Morgan Giles shipyard, length 10.68m overall, width 3.39m, it has a mast rather tail-heavy and it won many races of RORC class. Mea...

A mid century ink and watercolor on paper by Elliott Barowitz circa 1961. Signed ‘E. O. Barowitz’, titled ‘Standing Nude’ and date...

Aquarelle attributed J.Rene Prou probably for Le France paquebot , dimensions with frame H 42 by 55 cm

Project coming from the archives of Uffa Fox and never entered the commercial circuit depicting Northele, a sloop 14 m long, made by Berthon Boats in Lymington Dorset in 1949 accordi...

This is a rare set of 5 drawings concerning the Free Masons Lodge on the Schwind Gasse number 8, in the 4th district of Vienna. The drawings were made in ...

Spanish neoclassical style bedroom indoor home scene. Original watercolor, ink and gouache drawing on vellum paper, project for a home deco...

Northele is a sloop, length 14 m, made by Berthon Boats in Lymington Dorset in 1949 on shipyard project. Measures: 103.5 x 61.3 (H) cm, inches 40.74 x 24.13 (H). Project coming from ...

Project of the ship Ortac; launched in 1937 at the Morgan Giles shipyard, length 10.68m overall, width 3.39m, it has a mast rather tail-heavy and it won many races of RORC class. Mea...

An extraordinary and rare drawing produced by one of the great artists associated with the Harlem Renaissance, this depiction of a devil figure whis...

Sketch for a Futurist poster, 1930s, "National Campaign against tuberculosis," made using a mixed technique of pastel and watercolor for the Italian National Campaign to fight tuberc...

One of a series of drawings Bernard Boutet de Monvel made circa 1922 while participating in the Croisière Citroën, an expedition comprising scientists and artists who traversed the S...

Original abstract drawing, pencil and graphite on artist paper, in colours black and white, by Oregon born artist Milton Wilson. This is part of a selection of 3 works marked Oct 76 ...

Niobe Greek mythology theme signed, 1938 framed (1 chip off on frame finish).

During the early 1950s Guy Bourdin had established himself as an artist with the eye of a painter, working primarily on paper Bourdin created images containing fascinating stories and compositions. His early experimental work bridges the gap between Surrealism and his later photography which at the time was still in its infancy. This early cat drawing...

Mid century 1950s framed German pastel painting of a hilly landscape by a river centered on a stone castle or chateau and farmhouse. Purchased in the 50s in Frankfurt. Measures: 3...

Pointillist composition by Dora Maar. Authenticity stamp of the auction that took place in 1998 in Paris. Black ink on cream white paper. 20th century, undated. Frame not inclu...

HELENA BOUCHER (Unknown/Unidentified Artist) - Vintage pastel landscape drawing on buff paper - featuring a horse in the foreground set agains...

Italian painting dated 1930. Framework oil on panel depicting still life with shell and apples of good pictorial quality. Painting signed lower right S. Bonfantini (see photo) refera...

Spanish classical bedroom indoor home scene. Original watercolor, ink and gouache drawing on vellum paper, Project for a home decoration. Cabinet maker archives stamp at the bottom p...

Sketch of the futurist poster "Day of two crosses, 16th April 1939, XVII", mixed technique of pastel and water-color, for an Italian campaign against tuberculosis, to inform people a...

Set of three architectural furniture drawings by the Sweedish arquitect Carl G. Bergsten. Circa 1930. Pencil on paper. Dimenssions: WITH FRAME Motto Gesundheit: W 31.5" x H 23.75" ...

Brutalist, abstract ink impression on tracing paper, masking taped to the back of a sheet of bond paper. Signed and dated 1952 lower left. Image size 7 3/4" x 5".

Charcoal Drawing Inspired by the Mano dell Davide, Venice.Overall, charcoal drawing is a dynamic and expressive medium that offers artists a wide range of creative possibilities. It'...

Spanish Colonial Indoor home scene. Original watercolor, ink and gouache drawing on vellum paper, Project for a home decoration. Cabinet maker archives stamp top Lef: 'J. Anguera. Ca...

Pablo Picasso Lithograph "Portrait de Pierre Crommelynck", 25/50. Circa 1966. Intaglio print of Pierre the youngest of the Crommelynck brothers who printed 45% of Picassos intaglio prints. Signed in pencil in lower right and numbered 25/50 in left corner. Great Vintage condition consistent with usage and age. Image dimensions: 15.25" W x 21.75" H, Overall dimensions: 25" W x 33" H. Born in Malaga...

Italian still life drawing, or "natura morta," involves creating detailed and realistic depictions of inanimate objects through the medium of drawing.

Italian Midcentury Large Drawing: Nude Man, Pencil and Charcoal. 1960s: Accademia di Belle Arti, Venezia. It is not framed so it can be shipped standard parcel .

An original Jansen pencil drawing depicting an architectural detail "Rosace de Plafond" page 137. Stamped: Jansen, 9 Rue Royale Paris 8e.