Charles Ragland Bunnell Portrait Paintings
American, 1897-1968
Charles Bunnell developed a love for art at a very young age. As a child in Kansas City, Missouri, he spent much of his time drawing. When he was unable to find paper he drew on walls and in the margins of textbooks for which he was often fined. Around 1915, Bunnell moved with his family to Colorado Springs, Colorado. He served in World War I and later used his GI Training to study at the Broadmoor Art Academy (later renamed the Colorado Springs Fine Arts Center) during 1922 and 1923.
In 1922, he married fellow student, Laura Palmer. He studied with Ernest Lawson in 1927-1928 and, in the winter of 1928-1929, he served as Lawson’s assistant. In the late 1920’s, the Bunnell’s settled just west of Colorado Springs and 1928, they welcomed the first of their three children. Their one-acre homesite, which they referred to as “Old Home Place”, was situated between two sets of railroad tracks at the foot of Pike’s Peak. Charlie converted an old railroad boxcar into his studio, where he later gave lessons.
Beginning in 1931, Bunnell spent a year and a half studying under Boardman Robinson. The two men clashed constantly due to a generation gap and markedly different philosophies. Robinson encouraged his students not to stray from realism and though Bunnell mastered Robinson’s preferred style of American Scene painting, he regularly irritated his professor with his abstract sketches.
Bunnell taught at the Kansas City Art Institute during the summers of 1929, 1930, 1940, and 1941. Between 1934 and 1941, he painted and taught under federal projects which included assisting Frank Mechau on murals for the Colorado Springs Post Office. However, he did not take to mural making and, after criticism from Boardman Robinson about his use of “heavy daubs which have no place in mural work,” he abandoned mural-making altogether.
By the late 1930’s, Bunnell’s work departed from the American Scene/Modernist style he was trained in towards abstraction. This is marked by his “Black and Blue” series, consisting of 83 abstracted ink and watercolors. Affected by the Second World War and the loss of his 10-year old son, Bunnell’s work of the early 1940’s took on a Transcendental and Surrealist tone. The works from this period are moody and readily reflect the political and personal turmoil experienced by the artist.
In the late 1940’s, Bunnell began experimenting with Abstract Expressionism. He alone is credited with introducing Colorado Springs to the new style as it was excluded from the Fine Art Center’s curriculum by Boardman Robinson. Bunnell excelled in Abstract Expressionism and continued to evolve in the style through the 1950’s continuing to his death in 1968. He was recently recognized as a premier American Abstract Expressionist by his inclusion in the book American Abstract Expressionism of the 1950’s: An Illustrated Survey. © David Cook Galleries, LLC
to
1
Overall Width
to
Overall Height
to
1
1
1
1
1
1
1
1
1
1
20
280
81
75
73
1
1
1
Artist: Charles Ragland Bunnell
Charles Ragland Bunnell 1940 Surrealist Oil Painting of Man with Eye Orb
By Charles Ragland Bunnell
Located in Denver, CO
This original vintage painting by American artist Charles Ragland Bunnell presents a captivating example of his surrealist vision during the mid-20th century. Painted in 1940, the co...
Category
1940s Surrealist Charles Ragland Bunnell Portrait Paintings
Materials
Wood, Oil
Related Items
"Entrance and Exit" - Oil on Canvas Symbolic Surrealist Painting 2015
By Vachagan Narazyan
Located in Denver, CO
Vachagan Narazyan’s Entrance and Exit (2015) is an original oil on canvas painting that exemplifies the artist’s poetic and allegorical approach to spatial imagery. The composition c...
Category
2010s Surrealist Charles Ragland Bunnell Portrait Paintings
Materials
Canvas, Oil
$3,500
H 11.81 in W 9.84 in
"Katie, " Oil Painting
Located in Denver, CO
Sara Scribner's (US based) "Katie" is an original, handmade oil painting that depicts a realistic portrait of a blonde feminine figure in profile clutchi...
Category
2010s Surrealist Charles Ragland Bunnell Portrait Paintings
Materials
Oil, Panel
"Era of Elegance", Oleg Turchin, Surrealism, Sophisticated, Elaborate, Hat
By Oleg Turchin
Located in Dallas, TX
"Era of Elegance" by Oleg Turchin is an original oil on canvas that measures 58x30 inches. This surrealistic painting is of a woman with an elaborate hat ...
Category
2010s Surrealist Charles Ragland Bunnell Portrait Paintings
Materials
Canvas, Oil
$18,000
H 58 in W 30 in D 1 in
"India" (The Birth of the Universe), Oleg Turchin, Surrealism, Figurative, 58x30
By Oleg Turchin
Located in Dallas, TX
"India" (The Birth of the Universe) by Oleg Turchin is a Figurative Surrealism original oil on canvas painting measuring 58x30 in. This surrealist painting has a beautiful woman from...
Category
2010s Surrealist Charles Ragland Bunnell Portrait Paintings
Materials
Canvas, Oil
$18,000
H 58 in W 30 in D 1 in
Coral Angel. Oil on wood, 70X70 cm
By Vadim Kovalev
Located in Riga, LV
Coral Angel. Oil on wood, 70X70 cm
The artist Vadim Kovalev was born in 1968 in the capital of Latvia, Riga, where he is also presently living and creating his works.
When Vadim wa...
Category
2010s Surrealist Charles Ragland Bunnell Portrait Paintings
Materials
Oil, Wood
$3,964 Sale Price
20% Off
H 27.56 in W 27.56 in D 1.19 in
"Fuchsia de Mirabilibus" (2023) by Sybiline, Oil Painting, Fairy Flower
Located in Denver, CO
Sybiline's (CAN based) "Fuchsia de Mirabilibus" is an original, handmade oil painting that depicts a green fairy in a suspended flower.
About the Artist:
Sybiline is a Canadian art...
Category
2010s Surrealist Charles Ragland Bunnell Portrait Paintings
Materials
Oil, Panel
Getting on a Horse 1, Florance Italy
Located in Hudson, NY
These 4 oil on canvas paintings are in a set of 4 for $8000.00.
“Friends of Friends” explores a playful world where dreams and reality meld together to create surreal moments. Whe...
Category
2010s Surrealist Charles Ragland Bunnell Portrait Paintings
Materials
Canvas, Oil
"Moderato, " Oil Painting
Located in Denver, CO
Sybiline's (CAN based) "Moderato" is an original, handmade oil and alkyd painting that depicts a portrait of a woman juxtaposed with white and blue patterning.
About the Artist:
Sy...
Category
2010s Surrealist Charles Ragland Bunnell Portrait Paintings
Materials
Oil, Panel, Alkyd
"Transcendent, " Oil Painting
By Alexandra Manukyan
Located in Denver, CO
Alexandra Manukyan's "Transcendent" is an original, handmade oil painting that depicts a female figure holding her arms in a dancing pose as glittering gold covers her body.
About ...
Category
2010s Surrealist Charles Ragland Bunnell Portrait Paintings
Materials
Linen, Oil
"Entertainment" - Oil on Canvas Surrealist Circus Scene by Vachagan Narazyan
By Vachagan Narazyan
Located in Denver, CO
Vachagan Narazyan’s Entertainment (2023) is an original oil on canvas painting that evokes the theatrical and surreal worlds that define his mature style. Rendered in soft yet moody tones, the composition features two enigmatic figures—a puppet-like performer and a costumed character—posed atop a vibrantly rimmed circus drum...
Category
2010s Surrealist Charles Ragland Bunnell Portrait Paintings
Materials
Canvas, Oil
$3,500
H 11.81 in W 9.84 in
Girl Standing by Horse
Located in Hudson, NY
“Friends of Friends” explores a playful world where dreams and reality meld together to create surreal moments. When engaging with Piussi's work, we enter an arena where we are imme...
Category
2010s Surrealist Charles Ragland Bunnell Portrait Paintings
Materials
Canvas, Oil
"Within the Hollow" (2024) by Morgan Cameron, Original Oil Painting
By Morgan Cameron
Located in Denver, CO
Morgan Cameron’s (US based) “Within the Hollow” (2024) is an oil painting on panel that depicts a surreal portrait of a woman with white hair and antlers letting the snow from a pine...
Category
2010s Surrealist Charles Ragland Bunnell Portrait Paintings
Materials
Oil, Panel
Charles Ragland Bunnell portrait paintings for sale on 1stDibs.
Find a wide variety of authentic Charles Ragland Bunnell portrait paintings available for sale on 1stDibs. You can also browse by medium to find art by Charles Ragland Bunnell in oil paint, paint, wood and more. Much of the original work by this artist or collective was created during the 1940s and is mostly associated with the Surrealist style. Not every interior allows for large Charles Ragland Bunnell portrait paintings, so small editions measuring 24 inches across are available. Charles Ragland Bunnell portrait paintings prices can differ depending upon medium, time period and other attributes. On 1stDibs, the price for these items starts at $5,600 and tops out at $5,600, while the average work can sell for $5,600.