Analytic Cubist Still-life Paintings

Welcome to the creative and varied world of artist Richard Proctor, where each artwork offers a delightful surprise awaiting discovery. In this signed and dated (1964) watercolor, P...

Yellow & Brown Still Life (Mid Century Modern Cubist Oil Painting on Linen) by New York School Painter, Lionel Gilbert Mid century modern, abstracted still life painting by New York City artist c. 1969. oil on linen 40 x 36 inches original wood stripping with metal capping This vertical painting was painted by Lionel Gilbert in 1969. The mid-century modern, abstracted still life is created with a cubist influence where three-dimensional objects are depicted in multiple perspectives. A earth toned palette of yellow and dark brown with gestural brushstrokes is used to created the abstracted imagery. Original provenance label from Alonzo Gallery (now closed) on 26 East Street in New York City. Gilbert became affiliated with the Alonzo gallery in the 1960s through the 80s exhibiting his abstract work. About the work: Lionel Gilbert moved back and forth between abstraction and figuration, at once describing specific objects and presenting flat, unrecognizable forms. The artist, born in 1912, was a prolific painter from the nineteen-thirties until his death. For years, Gilbert worked as a mural artist and an illustrator, creating images that not only represented reality, but documented history. In the sixties, Gilbert’s direction shifted: no longer using the paint to tell stories, Gilbert began to explore what the paint itself—its materiality, color—can reveal, independent of its descriptive capacity. Gilbert's work calls to mind Matisse, Braque, and Leger in their cubist sensibility and handling of space. About the Artist: Gilbert fell in love with art at an early age and began his training at the age of 12 at the Newark School of Fine and Industrial Art in 1924. Upon graduating, Gilbert moved to France to study at L’Academie de la Grande Chaumier for five years. The young artist returned to the US in 1938 and like many artists living during the Great Depression, Gilbert sought employment with the nation’s W.P.A program, creating large murals in many public buildings in the US. During WWII, he was sent to England as an official U.S. Air Force artist to portray various aspects of Air Force life. After the war, Gilbert became a full time artist and instructor. He went on to show his work in various galleries in New York City through the 1980’s and taught at the 92nd Street Y Art Center. Rather than placing focus on the act of painting itself, as many Abstract Expressionists did, Gilbert chose to involve himself with the abstraction of his subject matter. This led him to replace rapid brushstrokes for blocks of color that were oftentimes organized around semi-automatist forms, which is reminiscent of the work that preoccupied Hans Hoffman in the 1950’s. Lionel Gilbert (Born in Newark, NJ) 1924 Began studying at the Newark School of Fine & Industrial Art in their Saturday program for children. 1933 Graduated from the Newark School of Fine & Industrial Art, Newark, NJ. 1933-37 Studied in Paris at L’Academie de La Grande Chaumiere and privately with Salcia Bahnc...