1940s Art

Six O-Clock, c. 1942, oil on canvas, 30 x 20 inches, signed and titled several times verso of frame and stretcher (perhaps by another hand), marked “Rehn” several times on frame (for the Frank K. M. Rehn Galleries in New York City, who represented Craig at the time); Exhibited: 1) 18th Biennial Exhibition of Contemporary American Oil Paintings from March 21 to May 2, 1943 at The Corcoran Gallery of Art in Washington, D.C. #87, original price $450 (per catalog) (exhibition label verso), 2) Craig’s one-man show at the Frank K. M. Rehn Galleries, New York City, from October 26 to November 14, 1942, #10 (original price listed as $350); and 3) Exhibition of thirty paintings sponsored by the Harrisburg Art Association at the State Museum of Pennsylvania in Harrisburg in March, 1944 (concerning this exhibit, Penelope Redd of The Evening News (Harrisburg, Pennsylvania) wrote: “Other paintings that have overtones of superrealism inherent in the subjects include Tom Craig’s California nocturne, ‘Six O’Clock,’ two figures moving through the twilight . . . .” March 6, 1944, p. 13); another label verso from The Museum of Art of Toledo (Ohio): original frame: Provenance includes George Stern Gallery, Los Angeles, CA About the Painting Long before Chris Burden’s iconic installation outside of the Los Angeles County Museum of Art, Urban Light, another artist, Tom Craig, made Southern California streetlights the subject of one of his early 1940s paintings. Consisting of dozens of recycled streetlights from the 1920s and 1930s forming a classical colonnade at the museum’s entrance, Burden’s Urban Light has become a symbol of Los Angeles. For Burden, the streetlights represent what constitutes an advanced society, something “safe after dark and beautiful to behold.” It seems that Craig is playing on the same theme in Six O-Clock. Although we see two hunched figures trudging along the sidewalk at the end of a long day, the real stars of this painting are the streetlights which brighten the twilight and silhouette another iconic symbol of Los Angeles, the palm trees in the distance. Mountains in the background and the distant view of a suburban neighborhood join the streetlights and palm trees as classic subject matter for a California Scene painting, but Craig gives us a twist by depicting the scene not as a sun-drenched natural expanse. Rather, Craig uses thin layers of oil paint, mimicking the watercolor technique for which he is most famous, to show us the twinkling beauty of manmade light and the safety it affords. Although Southern California is a land of natural wonders, the interventions of humanity are already everywhere in Los Angeles and as one critic noted, the resulting painting has an air of “superrealism.” About the Artist Thomas Theodore Craig was a well-known fixture in the Southern California art scene. He was born in Upland California. Craig graduated with a degree in botany from Pomona College and studied painting at Pamona and the Chouinard Art School with Stanton MacDonald-Wright and Barse Miller among others. He became close friends with fellow artist Milford Zornes...

Antique American impressionist desert beach dune oil painting. Oil on board, circa 1940. Unsigned. Displayed in a period giltwood frame. Image, 24"L x 16"H.

Still life with geraniums and abalone shells by Rose Lillian Campbell (American, 1888-1965). Presented in a wood frame. Signed "Rose Campbell" and dated "1944" lower right. Image siz...

Artist: Pablo Picasso Title: Le Grenouille (The Frog), from Buffon's l'Histoire Naturelle Medium: Original etching with sugar-lift aquatint and drypoint on Vidalon paper with Vollard...

This original 1940s American Modernist gouache on archival paper painting, "Artists Sketching (California)," captures a dynamic scene of three artists at work against a majestic mountain backdrop. With expressive brushwork and a rich color palette, the piece embodies Frederick E. Shane’s signature blend of realism and modernist abstraction. Signed, titled, and dated by the artist in the lower margin, this remarkable artwork reflects the era’s Regionalist influence and the artist’s keen eye for capturing creative moments in the natural landscape. The painting is professionally housed in a custom archival frame, ensuring long-term preservation. Frame dimensions: 25.5 x 37.5 x 1.5 inches. Image size: 20.25 x 29.75 inches. Provenance: Estate of the Artist, Frederick Shane About the Artist: Frederick E. Shane (1906-1992) A celebrated Missouri Regionalist painter and printmaker, Frederick E. Shane was known for his compelling genre scenes, landscapes, seascapes, and portraits in a variety of media, including oil, watercolor, gouache, tempera, and lithography. While fundamentally a realist, Shane often incorporated elements of abstraction, expressionism, and surrealism, adding depth and emotion to his compositions. During the summers of 1925-26, Shane studied under Randall Davey at the Broadmoor Academy in Colorado Springs, an institution founded in 1919 by philanthropists Spencer and Julie Penrose. Shane remained closely connected to the Colorado Springs Fine Arts Center, the Academy’s successor, throughout the 1940s and early 1950s, participating in Artists West of the Mississippi exhibitions and forming lasting friendships with key figures like Boardman Robinson and Adolph Dehn...

Herbert Haseltine Poodles: Nora and Sheila, 1944, cast 1945 Signed and dated on base Bronze with green patina 11 inches high x 17 inches wide x 6 inc...

"Femme Des Aït MGuild" translated to "Woman of the Aït MGuild" is plate number 19 in Jean Besancenot's stunning portraits and depictions of the people ...

John Folinsbee (1892-1972) was born in Buffalo, New York and, after finishing his studies at the Art Students League in 1916, moved to New Hope, Pennsylvania where he joined a renown...

Lionel S. Reiss (1894 - 1988) New York City Skyline View from the East River Watercolor on paper 13 x 19 inches Signed lower left In describing his own style, Lionel Reiss wrote, “By nature, inclination, and training, I have long since recognized the fact that...I belong to the category of those who can only gladly affirm the reality of the world I live in.” Reiss’s subject matter was wide-ranging, including gritty New York scenes, landscapes of bucolic Bucks County, Pennsylvania, and seascapes around Gloucester, Massachusetts. However, it was as a painter of Jewish life—both in Israel and in Europe before World War II—that Reiss excelled. I.B. Singer, the Nobel Prize winner for Literature, noted that Reiss was “essentially an artist of the nineteenth century, and because of this he had the power and the courage to tell visually the story of a people.” Although Reiss was born in Jaroslaw, Poland, his family immigrated to the United States in 1898 when he was four years old. Reiss's family settled on New York City’s Lower East Side and he lived in the city for most of his life. Reiss attended the Art Students League and then worked as a commercial artist for newspapers and publishers. As art director for Metro-Goldwyn-Mayer, he supposedly created the studio’s famous lion logo. After World War I, Reiss became fascinated with Jewish life in the ‘Old World.’ In 1921 he left his advertising work and spent the next ten years traveling in Europe, the Middle East, and North Africa. Like noted Jewish photographers Alter Kacyzne and Roman Vishniac, Reiss depicted Jewish life in Poland prior to World War II. He later wrote, “My trip encompassed three main objectives: to make ethnic studies of Jewish types wherever I traveled; to paint and draw Jewish life, as I saw it and felt it, in all aspects; and to round out my work in Israel.” In Europe, Reiss recorded quotidian scenes in a variety of media and different settings such as Paris, Amsterdam, the Venice ghetto, the Jewish cemetery in Prague, and an array of shops, synagogues, streets, and marketplaces in the Jewish quarters of Warsaw, Lodz, Krakow, Lublin, Vilna, Ternopil, and Kovno. He paid great attention to details of dress, hair, and facial features, and his work became noted for its descriptive quality. A selection of Reiss’s portraits appeared in 1938 in his book My Models Were Jews. In this book, published on the eve of the Holocaust, Reiss argued that there was “no such thing as a ‘Jewish race’.” Instead, he claimed that the Jewish people were a cultural group with a great deal of diversity within and between Jewish communities around the world. Franz Boas...

Drypoint on vélin du Lana Papiers Spéciaux pure rag paper. Unsigned and unnumbered, as issued. Good Condition. Notes: From the folio, Du Cubisme, 1947. Published by Compagnie Françai...

A series of four shots of film stars (left to right) Clark Gable (1901 - 1960), Van Heflin (1910 - 1971), Gary Cooper (1901 - 1961) and James Stewart (1908 - 1997) enjoying a joke at...

Dinner Jazz American Jazz trumpeter and singer Louis Armstrong enjoys a plate of spaghetti in Rome. Paper size 20 x 20" inches / 51 x 51 cm Estate Stamped Collection Edition to...

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Impressive early American modernist interior view still life painting. Oil on canvas. Framed. Image size, 34 by 40 inches.

THOMAS HART BENTON (1889-1975) INSTRUCTION 1940 (Fath 41) Lithograph, signed edition of 250 as published by Associated American Artists. 10 ¼” x 12 ¼”. Full margins, deckle edges....

Watercolor on paper of a Radio City Music Hall Rockette done in the late 1940's or early 1950's. Ruth Adele Mysel grew up in Boston and attended the New Eng...

This late 1940s portrait photograph, captured by society photographer Slim Aarons, features a group of boys competing in a marble championship in Central Park, New York City. This i...

Artist: Pablo Picasso Title: Square Head of a Woman Half Smiling (Plate XII) Portfolio: Carmen Medium: Original etching on Montval wove paper Year: 1949 Edition: 289 Frame Size: 21" ...

Very well executed watercolor on paper by Ruth Adele Mysel of a beautiful showgirl. Signed lower right. Circa 1940 to 1950. Ruth Adele Mysel was raised in Boston and attended the Ne...

My Only Working Tool, 1949, oil on panel, signed and dated lower right, 16 x 12 inches, remnant of exhibition label verso, exhibited at the Art News Second Annual National Amateur Competition, National Academy of Design, New York, NY, December, 1950 (see The Best Amateurs, Art News, volume 49, issue 8, December 6 to 20, 1950, p. 65 – 66), presented in a period frame Fausto Sansone...

This painting is part of our exhibition Charles Goeller: A Wistful Loneliness. Oil on canvas, 16 x 12 inches, Signed lower right Exhibited: 1) [Solo E...

Wheeler Williams (American, 1897-1972) Untitled Study, 1931 Pencil on paper 8 3/4 x 11 3/4 in. Each signed: Wheeler Williams, 1931 A native of Chicago, Wheeler Williams is known for his allegorical, narrative work including "Tablets to Pioneers" on the Michigan Avenue bridge in Chicago, and "Settlers of the Seaboard" in Fairmount Park in Philadelphia. He graduated with honors...

Watercolour of a recumbent lion w/ sapphire eyes by the artist, Jean Pages (1903-1976) signed (LR) who illustrated for Vogue magazine in the 1930s-1940...

Lithograph and stencil on vélin Foreign Affairs paper mounted on Foreign Affairs museum board, as issued . Unsigned and unnumbered, as issued. Good Condition. Notes: From the folio, ...

Important and exhibited American impressionist dock scene by Junius Allen (1898 - 1962). Oil on canvas. Framed. Signed. Image size, measuring 25 by 30 inches.

Fiocchetto is an artwork realized by Elica Balla (Rome,1914 - 1993) Hand signed lower right. Hand signed and titled o rear. Good conditions!

Original Bing Crosby Paramount Films vintage personality poster. Archival linen-backed and ready to frame. There is some foxing along the original fold marks; otherwise, this poster ...

Soldiers and civilians having dinner and dancing in a night club in London during World War II, 1st November 1941. Original Publication: Picture Post – PP 917 – The Night Life of London – pub...

SALE ONE WEEK ONLY This painting of four different species of fish that can be found in South Korea is from the mid-20th century Korean artist Kim Kyung. Seafood from both the seas that surround the peninsula and from its rivers are an integral part of the livelihood and cuisine of Koreans. Kim Kyung (in Hanja, 金耕, in Hangul 김경) was born in South Korea, his real name, under the current Revised Romanization was Kim Gyeong-Eun (in Hanja 金萬斗, in Hangul 김경은). His name follows the East Asian convention of family name first, though some Western galleries choose to reorder his name with the Western convention as Kyung Kim. He was born in Hadong, Gyeongnam during the Imperial Japanese occupation, as the eldest son of a poor farm family, and at the age of 18 he entered the art department of Japan University. In 1943, he returned to his hometown to escape being drafted into the Japanese army...

Outstanding pencil on paper Abstract drawing. Marcel Dumont was a Liège artist who painted in oils and gouache, also produced collages and was an illustrator and engraver, doing so in a number of different styles. Early on in his career, he tended to produce paintings displaying a poetic realism but this changed over time until, in 1957, he was employing geometric abstraction and later still, the influence of pop art could be discerned. His geometric style has strong linear structure which occasionally veers to expressionism and the effect of this is an interesting sense of detachment that the viewer of the work can feel and one engages with the subject on a different level than one would normally expect. A critic wrote of him," Sometimes expressionist, sometimes linear, the abstraction forms itself willingly, in Marcel Dumont's world, to leave the rectangular structure to connect to carefully prepared tones. He retains also, in his abundant output, a few poetic pop-art collages together with a number of drawings and engravings illustrating Stefan Zweig...

"Pay Day" American Scene Social Realism WPA Era Mid 20th Century Modern Workers Don Freeman (1908-1978) Pay Day 20 x 30 inches Oil on board, c. 1940s Signed lower right BIO Illustr...

Original oil painting on artist canvas board painting by the California artist, Fern F. Cunningham. Signed lower right. Titled in pencil on stretcher verso. Circa 1940. Condition is very good. Recently professionally cleaned. The painting is housed in its original period frame. Overall framed measurements are 14.5 by 17.5 inches. Provenance: A Sarasota, Florida collector. Fern Cunningham Stone (1889-1975). She was born in Defiance, Ohio on August 4, 1889. A painter, she specialized in impressionist still life works, landscapes, and seascapes of California. Born Fern F. Smith, she married Napoleon Arthur...

Mythologies is an original Rare Book engraved by André Masson (Balagny, Oise, 1896 - Paris, 1987) in 1946. Original Edition. Published by Editions de la Revue Fontaine, Paris. Fo...

Colour screen printing Limited edition of 200 copies, numbered as 78/200 in lower left corner. Signed in pencil by artist in lower right corner. Paper size: 69,7 x 49 cm Very good c...

Vintage American school signed original oil painting. Oil on board, circa 1950. Signed. Displayed in a period frame. Image, 24"L x 18"H.

In 1940, Charles de Gaulle's iconic "Appel du 18 Juin 1940" poster emerged as a symbol of unwavering resolve and hope during one of the darkest chapters in French history. This post...

Vintage 1942 Coca-Cola "Our America" Poster: Producing Motion Pictures. Original poster: Our America. 1. Producing Motion Pictures. Archival linen backed in excellent conditio...

Medium: lithograph (after the drawing). Printed in France in 1943 for the rare art revue "Hommage" and published in a limited edition of 1000 on Montgolfier Annonay laid paper. Size:...

This original poster was created during the second World War by an anonymous artist. It was created for the residents of Hartford, Connecticut. In the image we see that the workers ...

Alexander Sharpe Ross - or Alex Ross. This mid-century masterpiece is a perfect artistic statement with every formal element in perfect harmo...

André Masson, French (1896 -1987) - Désespoir pour les Poèmes d'Emily Brontë, Year: circa 1945, Medium: Lithograph on thin wove paper, signed and numbered in pencil, Edition: 12/3...

Picasso Quatre Poissons Polychromes (Four Polychrome Fishes), 1947 is a wondrous mixture of color and charm. In the center of the dish are three fish, e...

Charming 1940s modernist mountain landscape painting featuring a white farmhouse, outbuildings, and trees set in a verdant meadow near Gunnison, on the western slope of Colorado. Maj...

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 ...

Marc Mouclier (1866-1947) Le Drapeau à la fenêtre, 1942 (The Flag in the window) signed and dated lower right oil on cardboard panel 41 x 32,8 cm framed 62 x 54 cm This magnificent...

Artist: Pablo Picasso Title: Square Head of a Man (Plate XXXI) Portfolio: Carmen Medium: Etching on Montval wove paper Year: 1949 Edition: 32/289 Frame Size: 21" x 18" Sheet Size: 13...

To see our other original vintage warbird aeroplane posters, photographs and paintings, scroll down to "More from this Seller" and below it click on "See all from this Seller". 1944...

Figurative Cubist Surrealist Abstraction Mid 20th Century American Modern Large O. Louis Guglielmi (1906 - 1956) OBSESSIVE THEME 44 x 33 inches Oil on canvas Signed and dated '48 lo...

King George 6th and Mother Queen is a photograph realized in the 1940s. Good conditions. The artwork is realized in a well-balanced composition.

Seymour Franks Duo, 1947 Signed and dated lower right Oil on canvas 44 x 37 inches Seymour Franks, 1916-1981, originated from New York City, where he was born in 1916. At just 16 y...

A young boy from the Gorbals area of Glasgow playing leap-frog over gravestones. Children play in the graveyard because they have no gardens or playgrounds. Original Publication: Pic...

The 1940 original poster by Derouet Lesacq for Loterie Nationale is a remarkable example of wartime propaganda, designed to encourage public participation in national efforts while m...

Very nicely painted American school abstract landscape painting. Framed in a period modernist wood molding. Oil on board. Image size, 24H by 29L.

Still life with cucumbers and Borjomi Middle of the 1940s, oil on cardboard, 51x66 cm Harijs Veldre (Bullis till 1947) (1927.8.III – 1999.6.V) Harijs Veldre learned in Riga school ...

Post Impressionist oil on canvas still life painting by the New York artist, Frances Joan Kruszewski. Initialed bottom right and dated 1942. In very good original condition; no restorations. Original gesso over wood gold leaf frame in fine condition. Overall 21.25 by 17.25 inches. Provenance: Port Jervis, New York estate. A painter of post-impressionist landscapes and still lifes, Kruszewski was born on August 30, 1921 in New York City and died in Locust Valley, New York on July 18, 1971. Education: Studied under Edgar Whitney, AWS; Marion B. Brown, AWS; Paul Puzinas, Anthony Toney...

Eve Nethercott, American (1925 - 2015) - George Wagner (P5.53), Year: 1947, Medium: Ink on Paper, Size: 5.5 x 4.5 in. (13.97 x 11.43 cm), Description: Eve Nethercott's portra...

Portrait is an original pen drawing realized by Umberto Maria Casotti in 1947. Good condition on a yellowed cardboard. Hand-signed and dated by the artist on the lower right corner...

Original small-format Bantam Pocket Hat. Artist: Gino Boccasile. Italian Size: 9" x 13". Behind the silhouette of the man wearing his Bantam hat is another stick figures foldi...

Watercolor on paper of a chorus or show girl by Ruth Adele Mysel. Mysel grew up in Boston and attended the New England School of Art. She was both a artist and sculptor as well as ...

Nativity is a superb black and white etching on cream-colored and laid paper, realized by Raymond Cazanove, as it is reported on the lower left margin. A touching scene of the nati...