American Modern Drawings and Watercolor Paintings

A Fine 1930s, Modern Academic Anatomical Figure Study Drawing of a Male Model (Study, Male Legs) by Notable Chicago Artist, Harold Haydon (Am. 1909-1994). An exceptionally well exe...

A Fine 1930s Modern Academic Figure Study Drawing, Standing Male Nude Model by Notable Chicago Artist, Harold Haydon (Am. 1909-1994). An exceptionally well executed early 1930s char...

A Fine 1930s, Modern Academic Anatomical Figure Study Drawing of a Standing Male Nude Model (Study of Legs) by Notable Chicago Artist, Harold Haydon (Am. 1909-1994). An exceptionall...

Gouache, Crayon, Pencil, Film on Paper, not framed Cover Atlantic Monthly Magazine August 1994

A Fine 1930s, Modern Academic Anatomical Pastel Figure Study Drawing of a Female Nude Model (Study of Shoulder, Arm Legs) by Notable Chicago Artist, Harold Haydon (Am. 1909-199...

A Fine 1930s, Modern Academic Figure Study Drawing of a Seated Male Nude Model by Notable Chicago Artist, Harold Haydon (Am. 1909-1994). An exceptionally well executed early 1930s c...

Charles Demuth was one of the most complex, talented, and deeply sensitive artists of the American modern period. Whether he was painting floral still lifes, industrial landscapes, or Turkish bathhouses, art was, for Demuth, fraught with personal meaning. A fixture of the vanguard art scene in New York, Demuth navigated the currents of Modernism, producing some of the most exquisite watercolors and original oil paintings in twentieth-century American art. Demuth was born in Lancaster, Pennsylvania, the only child of a well-to-do family. He had an awkward and introverted childhood shaped by a childhood illness, Perthes, a disease of the hip that not only left him permanently lame, but, as part of the “cure,” bedridden for two years in the care of his mother. This long period of incapacitation had a deep impact on Demuth, who came to see himself as an invalid, an outsider who was different from everyone else. It was perhaps during this period of indoor confinement that his keen interest in art developed. Several relatives on his father’s side had been amateur artists, and, following his convalescence, his mother encouraged his artistic pursuits by sending him to a local painter for instruction. The majority of his early pictures are of flowers, a subject for which Demuth maintained a lifelong passion. Following high school, Demuth enrolled at the Drexel Institute of Art in Philadelphia, a school renowned for its commercial arts program. He advanced through the program rapidly, and, in 1905, at the encouragement of his instructors, he began taking courses at the Pennsylvania Academy of the Fine Arts. The two leading teachers then at the Academy were William Merritt Chase and Thomas Anshutz. Anshutz, himself a former student of Thomas Eakins, was well liked by his students, and is best known as the teacher of Robert Henri, John Sloan, and several of the other artists of the Ashcan School. Demuth, too, adopted a similar idiom, working in a controlled, realistic manner while at the Academy, where he remained until 1910. In 1907, Demuth made his first trip to Europe, staying in Paris. He spent time on the periphery of the art scene composed of the numerous American artists there, including John Marin and Edward Steichen. He returned to Philadelphia five months later, and immediately resumed courses at the Academy. Despite his introduction to advanced modern styles in Europe, Demuth’s work of this period retains the academic style he practiced before the trip. It wasn’t until he had summered at New Hope, Pennsylvania, in 1908 and 1911, that his style began to evolve. New Hope was a prominent American Impressionist art colony whose members were largely affiliated with the Pennsylvania Academy. Demuth dropped the conservative tone of his style and adopted a freer and more colorful palette. Although he remained based in Philadelphia, Demuth frequently went to New York during this period. Many of the same American artists of the Parisian art scene Demuth had encountered on his earlier European trip now formed the nucleus of New York’s avant-garde, which centered around Alfred Stieglitz’s 291 gallery. It wasn’t long before Demuth began to apply modernist-inspired strategies to his work. He was particularly influenced by the watercolor work of John Marin, also a former student of Anshutz, whose bold use of color in the medium Demuth freely adapted into looser washes of color. In 1912, Demuth again left for Paris, this time studying in the Académie Moderne, Académie Colorossi, and Académie Julian. In Paris Demuth met the American modernist Marsden Hartley. Hartley, a principal figure in the expatriate art circle, acted as a mentor to Demuth, and introduced him to the wide array of modern styles currently practiced in Europe. Hartley also introduced Demuth to many of the members of the Parisian avant-garde, including Gertrude Stein. Demuth was an aspiring writer, and he spent many hours in conversation with Stein. He wrote extensively during this period, and published two works shortly after his return to America. He also developed an interest in illustrating scenes from literary texts. From 1914 to 1919, Demuth produced a series of watercolors of scenes from books such as Emile Zola’s Nana and Henry James’s The Turn of the Screw. Upon his return to America, Demuth settled in New York. In 1914, Demuth had his first one-man show at Charles Daniel’s gallery, which promoted emerging modern American artists, including Man Ray, Rockwell Kent, Yasuo Kuniyoshi, Stuart Davis, and Max Weber. Demuth drew closer to the artistic vanguard in New York, becoming friends with many in the Stieglitz and Daniel circles, including Georgia O’Keeffe, Marcel Duchamp, Carl Van Vechten, and Edward Fiske. New York’s cosmopolitan atmosphere and active nightlife appealed greatly to Demuth. In a sketchy style well suited to watercolor, he painted many vaudeville and circus themes, as well as nightclub, café, and bathhouse scenes. Often with Duchamp, Demuth took part in an urban subculture replete with nightclubs, bars, drugs, and sexual permissiveness, which, for a homosexual artist like himself, allowed room for previously unattainable personal expression. Demuth’s pictures of sailors, bathhouses, and circus performers embody a sensual and sexual undercurrent, expressing the artist’s sense of comfort and belonging in the bohemian subculture of New York. Simultaneously, Demuth deepened his interest in floral pictures, painting these almost exclusively in watercolor. His style evolved from the broad color washes of his earlier pictures to more spare, flattened, and sinuous compositions, inspired by the drawings of Aubrey Beardsley and other artists of the Aesthetic Movement. Demuth’s flower watercolors are moody and atmospheric, sensuous and elegant, introspective and yet full of expressive power. Moreover they are beautiful, and are unequivocally among the finest still lifes in American art. Despite numerous subsequent artistic undertakings that led him in a variety of directions, Demuth never stopped painting flower pictures, ultimately adding fruits and other still-life objects to his repertoire. In 1916, Demuth began to develop a style later known as Precisionism, a form of landscape painting infused with Cubism, in which space is divided into precisely drawn geometric regions of color. Demuth first began to paint the landscape in an appropriated Cubist mode while on a trip with Hartley to Bermuda. In these early landscapes, in which the curvilinear forms of trees intersect the geometrically articulated architectural forms, Demuth explored ideas that shaped the future development of modernism in America. The full realization of Demuth’s explorations came after his return to America in 1917, when he turned his attention to industrial subjects. These works derive from a “machine aesthetic,” espoused by New York artists such as Francis Picabia, Joseph Stella, Albert Gleizes, and Duchamp, by which artists viewed machines as embodying mystical, almost religious significance as symbols of the modern world. Rather than painting the skyscrapers and bridges of New York as did most of his like-minded contemporaries, Demuth returned to his home town of Lancaster, where he painted factories and warehouses in a Precisionist idiom. The titles for these pictures are often contain literary references, which serve as clues for the viewer to aid in the decoding of the artist’s meaning. In 1923, Demuth planned a series of abstract “poster portraits” of his friends and contemporaries in the New York art and literary scene. In these “portraits,” Demuth combined text and symbolic elements to evoke the essential nature of his sitters’ distinguishing characteristics. In this fashion, he painted portraits of such artists as Georgia O’Keeffe, John Marin, and Arthur Dove. His most famous poster portrait, I Saw the Figure 5 in Gold...

Leon Dolice New York Harbor Nocturne Signed lower right Pastel on paper 12 x 19 inches The romantic backdrop of Vienna at the turn of the century had a life-long influence upon the...

Original Painting Fortune Cover Published 1937 American Modern - Met Museum NEWS: A printed copy of this magazine is included in The Metropolitan Museum of Art’s recent exhibition, “Art for the Millions: American Culture and Politics in the 1930s” Antonio Petruccelli...

Leon Bibel, 'Untitled (Death March)', brush and ink, c. 1936. Estate stamped, verso. A fine expressionist rendering, on cream wove drawing board, with margins (3/8 to 5/16 inch). Minor toning at the board edges, otherwise in very good condition. Image size 12 5/16 x 9 3/8 inches; sheet size 13 x 10 inches. Matted to museum standards, unframed. One of a series of powerful Anti-fascist brush and ink drawings created by the artist at the commencement of the Spanish Civil War...

A Finely Drawn, 1930s Modern Figure Study of a Seated Male Nude Model by Notable Chicago Modern Artist, Harold Haydon (Am. 1909-1994). An early charcoal drawing by Haydon (a compos...

A Fine, Modern 1930s Academic Anatomical Figure Study Drawing of Male Arms by Notable Chicago Artist, Harold Haydon (Am. 1909-1994). A well executed, early 1930s charcoal study (a c...

NYC Cityscape American Scene Social Realism Mid-Century Max Arthur Cohn (1903-1998) New York City Skyline 14 x 21 1/2 inches Watercolor on paper, c. 1...

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...

A Fine 1930s Modern Academic Figure Study Drawing, Depicting an Artist's Sketch Class and a Seated Young Male Mode by Notable Chicago Artist, Harold Haydon (Am. 1909-1994). An excep...

A Quirky, Humorous 1950s Mid-Century Modern Cartoon Illustration Ink Drawing by Notable Chicago Artist, Harold Haydon (Am. 1909-1994). Depicting a young soldier returning home, dise...

A Sandstorm on the Little Colorado River, Arizona. 1920. Watercolor on watercolor board. Study for Seeber 189. 10 3/8 x 14 1/4. Signed lower left; titled verso. An exquisitely subtl...

A stunning Modern Cubist watercolor on paper of purple irises by Chicago and New York artist Rita Duis (Astley-Bell). Signed and inscribed "Duis A.W.S." (American Watercolor Society...

A Fine, Modern 1930s Academic Anatomical Figure Study Drawing of a Seated Young Male Nude Model by Notable Chicago Artist, Harold Haydon (Am. 1909-1994). An exceptionally well execu...

A Fine 1930s, Modern Academic Figure Study Drawing of a Seated Male Nude Model by Notable Chicago Artist, Harold Haydon (Am. 1909-1994). An exceptionally well executed, early 1930s ...

A Fine, Modern 1930s Academic Anatomical Figure Study of a Seated Female Model (Leg, Knee and Foot) by Notable Chicago Artist, Harold Haydon (Am. 1909-1994). A well executed, early ...

Mystery American Artist Untitled (waterfall), c. 20th century Watercolor on paper Sight: 20 1/2 x 14 in. Framed: 21 1/2 x 17 1/2 x 1 in.

Perfect for your hockey enthusiast! A dynamic 1950s pastel on paper drawing of a hockey game by famed Chicago Modern artist, Francis Chapin. Image size: 9 x 12 inches. Matted size: 14 x 18 inches. Estate stamped on reverse. Provenance: Estate of the artist. Francis Chapin, affectionately called the “Dean of Chicago Painters” by his colleagues, was one of the city’s most popular and celebrated painters in his day. Born at the dawn of the 20th Century in Bristolville, Ohio, Chapin graduated from Washington and Jefferson College near Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania before enrolling at the Art Institute of Chicago in 1922. He would set down deep roots at the Art Institute of Chicago, exhibiting there over 31 times between 1926 and 1951. In 1927 Chapin won the prestigious Bryan Lathrop Fellowship from the Art Institute – a prize that funded the artist’s yearlong study trip to Europe. Upon his return to the United States, Chapin decided to remain in Chicago, noting the freedom Chicago artists have in developing independently of the pressure to conform to pre-existing molds (as was experienced by artists in New York, for example). Chapin became a popular instructor at the Art Institute, teaching there from 1929 to 1947 and at the Art Institute’s summer art school in Saugatuck, Michigan (now called Oxbow) between 1934 – 1938 (he was the director of the school from 1941-1945). Chapin’s contemporaries among Chicago’s artists included such luminaries as Ivan Le Lorraine Albright...

Robert Blackburn, Untitled (Reclining Nude), brush and ink, c. 1948, unsigned. A fine, spontaneous work, on cream wove paper. Slight toning to the sheet edges; otherwise in excellent condition. Matted to museum standards, unframed. Image size 18 3/4 x 23 1/2 inches (476 x 597 mm). Provenance: Adrienne E. Wheeler Collection, acquired from the artist. ABOUT THE ARTIST Robert Blackburn (1920 - 2003) participated in the rich mix of art programs and creative groups available in Harlem as he grew up, including Charles Alston's Harlem Arts Workshop, the Harlem YMCA, and later the Harlem Artist's Guild. In 1937 he joined the WPA at the Harlem Community Art Center, the largest New York center for instruction in the arts. There he was exposed to Harlem's most prominent artists, Aaron Douglas, William Henry Johnson...

An Intimate, 1940s Modern Portrait Drawing of a Young Woman by Notable Chicago Artist, Harold Haydon (Am. 1909-1994). A finely drawn, introspective portrait in pastel and charcoal o...

A vibrant 1950s Modern watercolor of a standing male bather in red orange tones by notable French artist Andre Delfau. Painted in the south of France along the Cote d' azure (...

A Charming, 1930s Modernist Portrait Study of a Seated Young Male Bather by Notable Chicago Artist, Harold Haydon (Am. 1909-1994). Most likely completed at a summer lake house in Al...

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...

A ca. 1915 portrait of a gentleman by artist Anthony Stuffers. This artist died at the age of 26--so this is a rare drawing, indeed! Image size: 19 1/2" x 14 3/4". The watercolor...

A colorful 1950s textile design (Black, yellow, blue, pink, red tones) by noted set and costume designer Andre Delfau. Born in Paris, France in 1914, Andre Delfau became an internationally acclaimed stage, set and costume designer who worked world-wide from the 1930s to the 1980s. Delfau was a life long artist and painted independently of his noted design career. His artwork is recognized for it’s vibrant color and form, and a particularly keen use of line. He was highly influenced by the French Modern trends of Cubism and Surrealism, and his artwork is often infused with a dramatic sense of architecture and perspective. Delfau created fashion designs for such major Paris couture houses as Balmain, Jean Patou and Balenciaga. He completed noteworthy set designs and costumes for numerous international operatic and ballet productions, including those at the Royal Danish Ballet, the Royal Ballet of Great Britain, the Paris Opera, the Dance Theater of Harlem, the Ruth Page International Ballet, the Civic Ballet of Chicago, the Chicago Opera Ballet and the Lyric Opera of Chicago, among others. Most notably, Delfau designed the elaborate stage sets and costumes for the 1986 PBS television production of the Viennese operetta, "Die Fledermaus...

A Charming 1930s Charcoal Study of Three Young Men in a Lake House Window by Notable Chicago Modern Artist, Harold Haydon (Am. 1909-1994). Most likely completed during the summer mo...

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.

A Stunning Mid-Century Modern Ink Drawing of a Seated Female Nude by Noted Chicago Artist, Rudolph T. Pen. Completed in the 1960s, this compelling studio ink drawing is executed in ...

A Dynamic, Avant-Garde, Mid-Century Modern Abstract Female Figure Study by Harold Haydon (Am. 1909-1994). A striking, black white figural studio ink drawing on paper depictin...

A Finely Drawn, 1940s Modern Female Figure Study, Portrait of a Young Woman by Notable Chicago Artist, Harold Haydon (Am. 1909-1994). An exquisite studio portrait study, charcoal on...

A dynamic 1930s, WPA era industrial scene watercolor of a steel mill and factory workers by notable Chicago Modern artist, Harold Haydon. A wonderful example of early Twentieth Cent...

Donald Stacy "Red Sun" c.1950s Gouache and oil pastel on paper 13.75" x 17" unframed Unsigned Came from artist's estate *Custom framing available for additional charge. Please expect framing time between 3-5 weeks. Donald Stacy (1925-2008) New Jersey Studied: Newark School of Fine Art The Art Students League...

British-born, New Jersey-based, George Drittler was primarily know for landscapes. In this still life that expansive approach serves him well. Richly drawn, with pottery, books and a...

A charming 1933 studio scene watercolor of a reclining young woman in a red dress by famed Chicago Modern artist, Malvin Marr Albright (Zsissily), Image size: 12 x 18 inches. Arch...

Robert Gilberg (1911-1970) "Pink Cheeks" c.1950s Ink and pastel on paper 12"x13.75" unframed Unsigned Good Condition - Wear consistent with age and history. Deep creases on upper le...

(Note: This work is part of our exhibition Connected by Creativity: WPA Era Works from the Collection of Leata and Edward Beatty Rowan) Watercolor on paper, 7 ¾ x 10 ½ inches unframed, 14 ½ x 16 ½ inches framed, signed, dated, and located lower left as follows: “David McCosh...

"Showers Today" San Francisco's Chinatown on an Overcast Day Original Watercolor A two sided watercolor on Arches paper by San Francisco and Maryland artist Harolod Gretzner (America...

A stylish, vintage, 1940s fashion study featuring elegant designs for women's clothing, shoes and accessories. Artwork size: 11 x 8 1/2 inches. Archivally matted to 16 x 12 inches...

A Very Finely Drawn Mid-Century Modern Figure Study of a Seated Young Male Nude Model by Notable Chicago Modern Artist, Harold Haydon (Am. 1909-1994). A well executed studio figure...

Clinton Hill (1922-2003), created quintessential mid-century images. He lived in SoHo, New York, and was a frequent Gallery visitor. Born in Idaho and raised on a working ranch, ...

A striking 1940s Modern cubist still life drawing by Notable Chicago and Michigan artist Stanley Bielecky. Image size: 4 x 5 inches. Archivally matted to 13 1/4 x 16 inches. Estate stamped and numbered 58, lower left. Stanley Bielecky was an Indiana artist who painted the American Scene, from the industrial factories and workers around East Chicago to the pastoral settings of Mackinac Island...

A dynamic 1930s, WPA era industrial scene watercolor of a steel mill and factory workers by notable Chicago Modern artist, Harold Haydon. A wonderful example of early Twentieth Cent...

A stylish, vintage, 1940s woman's fashion study featuring an elegant graphic design for a portfolio cover for ladies resort clothes by Hattie Carnegie . Artwork size: 11 x 8 1/2 in...

Blanche Grambs, whose career started with the WPA, was an extremely skilled draftsperson. Her birds are masterful. Although we use the word 'pencil' fo...

Standing Male Nude, Arms upraised (Kouros) Graphite on wove paper, c. 1930 Signed lower right (see photo) Possibly exhibited in May 8-June 1,1973 at Alan Stone Gallery entitled Erotica, which lists Lachaise as one of the artists exhibited. Part of small group of drawings of the male nude, done late in the artist's life, many of which are in museums (MMA, FAMSF, Whitney, Yale, Princeton). Almost identical to the Lachaise drawing in the Fine Arts Museums of San Francisco, which is the same size and depicts the same model. (see photo) Very similar to the smaller Lachaise drawing in the Whitney Museum of American Art (Accession number 32.2). The Metropolitan Museum has a Lachaise male nude drawing with one arm upraised (Accession Number: 68.91.1) Provenance: Alan Stone Gallery, New York Alan Stone Projects, New York (see photo of label) Condition: excellent Archival framing with OP3 Acrylic for UV protection 22K gold leaf frame Image size: 17 3/4 x 12 inches Frame size: 26 1/2 x 20 1/2 inches Regarding Alan Stone Gallery: "Founded in 1960 by visionary connoisseur and dealer Allan Stone (1932 – 2006), the gallery known today as Allan Stone Projects has been admired for over half a century. Celebrated for his eclectic approach and early advocacy of pivotal artists of the 20th Century, Allan Stone was a leading authority on Abstract Expressionism, the New York dealer for Wayne Thiebaud for over forty years, and a passionate collector of Willem de Kooning, Franz Kline, Arshile Gorky, Joseph Cornell, John Graham and John Chamberlain. He also promoted and collected the work of a younger generation of artists, including Robert Arneson, Jack Whitten, Robert Mallary, Lorraine Shemesh...

A ca. 1937 watercolor Titled "Sad Girl" by Institute of Design artist Eugene Dana. Image size: 19 3/4" x 12 1/2". Matted to 24 1/4" x 18 1/4". Provenance: Estate of the artist. ...

Gloria Dudfield "Leaning Over" c. 1960s Gouache and charcoal on newsprint Unsigned 18" x 12" framed silver bamboo frame black mat 19.25"x25.25" Gloria...

Pablita Velarde Two Pueblo Dancers, Santa Clara, 1993 Signed and dated lower right Casein on paper 7 1/2 x 7 1/4 inches Provenance Adobe Gallery, New Mexico Private Collection, Texa...

House Beautiful Cover Proposal. American Scene Social Realism Industrial WPA Antonio Petruccelli (1907 – 1994) Mixing Mortar 12 1/2 X 14 3/4 inche...

John Brock Lear, Jr., an American Modernist artist from Philadelphia, Pennsylvania. His works are in the collections of the Philadelphia Museum of Art, the Woodmere Art Museum, the D...

Will Barnet is one of America's best loved and known artists of the Post War era. He is highly distinctive for his figurative and narrative work and in some ways he is the Edgar All...

This work is part of our exhibition - America Coast to Coast: Artists of the 1940s Untitled (Industrial Street), c. 1940s, watercolor on paper mounted on illustration board, estate stamp verso (signed by Peter Corbridge, the artist’s son); 14 x 21 inches; unframed Edgar Corbridge was a Massachusetts-based precisionist painter who mainly worked in watercolor. In 1916, three years after immigrating from England, Corbridge completed a course of study in sign painting at the Fall River, Massachusetts Technical High School and obtained an apprenticeship with the Armour Sign Shop. Throughout his career, Corbridge was mainly self-taught as a fine artist. In 1918, Corbridge received his first recognition as an artist for his entry in a Fall River Women’s Club poster competition. During much of his professional life, Corbridge worked as a self-employed window trimmer and operator of the Corbridge Display Service, supplemented by income from the occasional sale of his paintings. Corbridge gleaned the subjects for his works in and around his home in Fall River, Massachusetts, as well as Provincetown. In the 1940s, Corbridge began to exhibit frequently, including at the annual exhibitions at the Jordan Marsh Company...

Gloria Dudfield Tractor at Work 6-10-64 Gouache and Oil Pastel on Paper 36"x32 1/2" Unframed Signed and dated lower right in crayon Very Good Condition - Minor wear consistent with ...

A Fine, 1950s Mid-Century Modern Academic Anatomical Figure Study of a Model's Hand Feet by Notable Chicago Artist, Harold Haydon (Am. 1909-1994). A well executed composite fi...

Estate stamp lower right