California - Figurative Paintings

A mid-century American Impressionist oil painting depicting two men with an American Flag in the background by Charles Ross Kinghan (American, 1895-1984). Like much of Kinghan's work, this painting is the original that was used for short story illustration. Signed "Kinghan" lower left. Presented in a wood frame. Image, 24"L x 20"H. Frame, 22"H x 26"W. Charles Ross Kinghan was born in Anthony, Kansas on January 18, 1895. A teacher, he moved to Wichita as a teenager and did sign painting for the Western Sign Works. Kinghan later studied at the Chicago Academy of Fine Art in 1916, the American Academy of Art in Chicago, the Audubon School of Art and the Art Institute of Chicago. He was a pupil of Carl Scheffler, J. Wellington Reynolds, and H.A. Oberteuffer. He taught at the Art Institute of Chicago and at the American Academy of Art in Chicago. He was an illustrator for McCalls, Good Housekeeping, Saturday Evening Post, Colliers, and many other magazines including American Artist magazine. He was author and illustrator of Rendering Techniques for Commercial Art and Advertising (1956) and of Ted Kautzky...

Blocking Study pair #1 and #2, portrait of a blonde woman, by Gordon Cook (American, 1927-1985). Circa 1960. Signed on verso "G. Cook (3) #1. unframed. Image size: 24"H x 20"W each. Bay area estate sale find. Gordon Cook was born in 1927 in Chicago, Illinois. He attended Illinois Wesleyan University in Bloomington where he received his B.F.A in 1950. Cook then went on to study fundamentals and life drawing at The American Academy of Art* in Chicago. The same year he studied intaglio* printmaking with Vera Berdich at The School of the Art Institute of Chicago*. He took graduate courses and continued studying intaglio printmaking under artist Mauricio Lasansky at the State University of Iowa. In 1951, Cook moved to San Francisco. Soon after his works received the journeyman's card in International Typographical Union, Local 21. He began exhibiting his prints, drawings, and paintings at the Porpoise Gallery in San Francisco. Four years later, Cook became a charter member of the Bay Printmakers Society and exhibited in their annual exhibitions at the Oakland Art Museum for the next five years. His etchings portrayed mainly San Francisco landscapes such as the Golden Gate Park, Diamond Heights, and Lake Merced as well as flowers, especially roses. He participated in his first weekly drawing group with artist Alvin Light, Manuel Neri, Joan Brown, and William H. Brown. Cook also taught at the San Francisco Art Institute*. His etchings where exhibited in a one-man exhibition at the Fine Arts Museums of San Francisco, in the Achenbach Foundation for Graphic Arts. At this point Cook returned to painting. Moving to Rio Vista...

Charming mid century watercolor painting of late 19th Century Paris street scene circa 1950. Signed lower left "Julius" , attributed to Julius Rosenbaum...

Maura Petersen (American, born 1956) "Model by Window" 2024 Acrylic Paint, Canvas, Stretcher Bars The artist signed the back of the painting. In "Model by Window," Maura Petersen ca...

Evocative figurative painting of a woman seated in a studio by an unknown artist (20th Century). A woman dressed in red is sitting in a chair atop a platform. There are studio lights...

Tranquil figurative landscape of two people sitting on a dock by a lake near Medina, Ohio by Joseph Yeager (American, 20th Century). Unsigned, but was purchased with a collection of ...

Woman & Dog, 2017 Christopher Mudgett In Woman & Dog, 2017, Mudgett delivers a visually, mentally, and emotionally invigorating tour de force that explores the profound and unspoken...

America Martin "Woman on Lawn Blanket" Oil & Acrylic on Canvas 45 x 80 in. 46.75 x 81.75 in Framed Exploring the identity of both her namesake and country, LA-based America Martin ...

Steven H. Rehfeld (American, born 1954) 'The Man of the Mountains' 1993 Oil paint, Canvas, Stretcher bars The artist signed the back of the painting. Steven H. Rehfeld's 'The Man of...

Beautiful portrait of older woman, possibly a Nonna (Grandmother) with Gardenia by Raul (or Raoul) Viviani (Italian, 1883 - 1965), circa 1950. Lovely tex...

"See the Last Village of Words" Oil painting 40" x 60" inch by Casey Baugh Medium: oil on linen ABOUT THE ARTIST: Baugh's work can be described as narrative impressionistic realis...

Lebanese American artist Sally K.'s captivating floral portraits are both mesmerizing and empowering. Her pop-realistic paintings are inspired by strong, feminine women, celebrating ...

Large scale and dramatic, ""Langostina, an abstract painting by Harold Black (American, 1913–1993). Signed lower right and on verso. Presented in giltwood frame. Image, 40”H x 22”W. ...

After Boucher "Rinaldo & Armada" 18.25 x 24.5 unframed

This artwork titled "Clown, Medrano Circus, France" c.1960 is an oil painting on canvas by noted American artist Benton Scott, 1907-1983. It is signed at the middle right side by the...

Colorful scene of shoppers at a rural farm stand under cloudy skies, by Polish artist Gongor (Polish, 20th Century). Signed "Gongor" lower right. Displayed in a dark gold finish wood...

"Untitled 5" Figurative Painting 40" x 30" inch by Isaac Pelayo Medium: Oil, oil stick, acrylic, aerosol on wood "Urban Symphony" series The "Urban Symphony" series by Isaac Pelay...

IN HER HEAD IN THE END (2021) by Nafir Spray Paint and Marker Pen on Vintage Persian Rug, 200 x 90 cm. Wall Carpet with visible antique signs of use. Artwork in mint condition. The u...

This artwork "The Old Farm" c.1950 is an oil painting on canvas by noted California artist Clifford Holmes 1876-1963. It is signed at the lower left corne...

In Game, Set, and Match (2023), Iranian artist Soudeh Davoud (b. 1988) reimagines a moment of athletic poise as a meditation on gender, representation, and historical narrative. Pain...

Adolf Constantin Baumgartner Stoiloff (Austrian/Russian, 1850-1924) a fine oil on board "Charging Cossack Warriors on Horseback" ...

Mid Century Modern Portrait of a Man in a Suit in Oil on Masonite Mid Century Modern portrait of an older man by Honora Berg (American, 1897-1985). This portrait is made of layers o...

Charming figurative genre painting of Dutch family in the forest. Signed illegibly lower left. Presented in a period giltwood frame. Image size, 27.25"H ...

Beautiful early 20th century figurative landscape of a woman carrying a basket of wood kindling by a rushing river, high in the Italian hills by Enrique Brocco (Italian, 20th Century...

Expressive portrait, a caricature of a man with bowtie by Michael Pauker (American, b. 1957). Unsigned, but was acquired with a collection of the artist's work. Another version of th...

This artwork "Cathedral" 1970 is an oil painting on cardboard panel by Czech/American artist Andre Boratko, 1912-1990. It is signed at the lower right co...

Certificate of authenticity and artist catalogue are included. Bruno Paoli (1915-2005) Teaching the masters helped create this contemporary master. Bruno was a professor of art in F...

Wonderful German genre painting of 17th century tavern scene in style of Franz Hals by Karl Josef Muller (German, 1864-1942) dated 1918. Signed and dated lower left corner "Karl Muller - Hamburg 1918". Condition: Good; professionally restored: Canvas restreched on new stretcher bars; five repairs made to small tears in canvas (see image); cleaned and re-varnished with UV-resistant varnish. Unframed. Image size: 39.5"H x 55"W. We have the original frame which needs some extensive repair to the gesso. Happy to include the frame with the painting as is. Karl Müller was born in Hamburg-Altstadt in 1865. His wealthy Jewish parents Abraham Müller (1832-1896), citizen of the Hanseatic city since 1869, and Henriette "Jette", b. Burchard (born 1832 Neubuckow / Mecklenburg), had a cigar factory at Spielbudenplatz 5 in St.Pauli. When Karl Müller was ten years old, next to factory and warehouse, now at Speersort 11 (Altstadt), there was also a branch in Altona-Ottensen with the address Am Felde 68. The family lived at the time at Pferdemarkt 13 (Old Town). After attending the Jewish Foundation School at the Zeughausmarkt, Karl Müller completed a three-year lithography apprenticeship. From 1886 to 1888, he studied at the Royal Saxon School of Applied Arts in Dresden with the history and decoration painter Donadini, then with Professor Hanke of the Prussian Academy of Arts in Berlin. Karl Müller's painting style was conventional-realistic and did not follow modern trends. In 1891, the oil paintings "Preparation for the Service", "In the guardroom", tattoo", "gymnastics lesson", "covert patrol” and "return from the field service exercise”, whose main motive almost always soldiers formed.In 1893, he painted the" invasion of the 76er " as a horizontal format in black and white, the painting was acquired by the Museum of Hamburg History in 1930. The disposition of Karl Müller could be classified as "kaisertreu" and "national" (Maike Bruhns) at this time - not by chance he acted with his Nicknamed "Soldatenmüller", he successfully participated in exhibitions in Berlin and Hamburg before the turn of the century. Even at this time, the frequent change of residence is striking: 1893 Papendamm 25 (Rotherbaum), 1896 Bundesstraße 9 (Rotherbaum). In 1898 he was in the Hamburg address book as a "genre and portrait painter" with the residential address 1. average 43 (Rotherbaum) out. At the age of 38, Karl married in 1903 in the Hanseatic city of the Jewish Louise Hauer (born 12.2.1872 in Hamburg), called "Lieschen". Before her marriage, she lived with her mother at Grindelberg 78. Her father, Martin Hauer (1836-1897), also born in Hamburg and was a citizen of the city since 1862, owned a factory for soap and perfume. In 1904 and 1911, the two daughters Karla and Lotte were born. 1904, the family lived at this time in the Bogenstraße 20, Karl Müller commissioned a portrait of the emigrated hamburger Henry Jones opening the same lodge in the Hartungstraße 9-11. Already at this time he might have been a member of the Hamburg Artists Association of 1832. Starting from 1908 further change of dwellings on the basis of the telephone books are comprehensible: nearly yearly the family moved and moved thereby from the Grindel quarter over Hoheluft east to Harvestehude and Winterhude. Around 1912 she moved into an apartment in Sierichstraße 156. Here, the landlord Schröder provided the artist with an area of ​​around 45 square meters as a studio on the dry floor. But the building police criticized this use and after some disputes, the painter had to move once again with family and studio. The official telephone directory recorded as an address from 1914 to 1918 Klosterallee 20 (Harvestehude). Friedrich Jansa described Karl Müller's changed motif choice in his artist's glossary in 1912: "In recent years he has been watercolouring a lot in the Hamburg area and now mainly takes his motifs from Hamburg harbor...

ANNA KINCAIDE "A Way To Escape (Diptych)" Oil on Canvas 72 x 36 inches Communicating emotion and narrative with limited assistance from her figure’s facial expressions, Anna Kincaid...

Pierrot the Musician Singing Little Girl Clown Paris Pretty street musician "Pierrot by French artist Santini Poncini (unknown) (French/Italian, B-20th...

Drawing inspiration from cultural icons and global events, Soren Grau's street art-infused Neo-expressionism invites art enthusiasts to be a part of a narrative larger than life. In ...

This artwork titled "Red Forest" c.1960 is an oil painting on canvas by noted California artist Clifford Holmes 1876-1963. It is signed at the lower left co...

Biography from the niece of the artist from during his lifetime. Paintings acquired from the artist.s estate. Max Turner 1925 - 2019 Max Lamar Turner Painter, Sculptor, Teacher and Author. Max Turner was born in Omaha, Nebraska on July 28, 1925. His father was Lance Howard Turner and his mother Mary Irene Turner. In 1927, his family moved to Bingham Canyon, Utah where Max's father extracted copper from a creek that he had diverted to pass through his garage. The town was located in a narrow canyon on the eastern face of the Oquirrh Mountains. In 1938, when Max was 13, his family moved to Midvale, Utah. After completing high school, Max went to work laying rail until he was inducted into the U.S. Navy to serve during W.W. II. There he took an aptitude test and was initially assigned to the medical corp., later transferring to the dental unit. Max was stationed at Port Hueneme, Ventura County, California through the end of the war. When he was discharged in 1946, he remained in Southern California, living in the Los Angeles area. He met a man named Larry Torres and they formed a partnership to do silk screen work primarily for the Colby Poster Printing Company. This lasted about 10 years until the Colby building caught fire and burned down. In 1958, Max began working for Slade Novelty company that made doll parts using a product called plastisol. A year later, Max began producing plastic parts through his own business. One day, a couple of kids brought in a shrunken skull they had made and asked Max if he could reproduce it. Max said he could and he looked around for a business to work with for this task. He ultimately decided he could create his own machine shop to make molds. As a result, Max purchased a lathe, drill press, grinder and other tools to create his own machine shop and went into business making molds. He built a clientele and in 1973, he moved his machine shop to Glendale, California. Painter, Sculptor, Teacher and Author: Max recalls the day when his interest in art took a new direction. He happened to be in a paint store to purchase some supplies when he saw a card posted on a wall that read, "Come paint with Connie Marlo". Max had been interested in art since his youth and he was frequently impressed with paintings displayed by local artists at various community events. Consequently, he decided to go to Connie's Saturday morning art class at a studio on North La Brea Avenue (between Sunset and Hollywood) in Los Angeles. But, as fate would have it, he immediately took a detour from this class when he found a piece of paper on the floor of the studio referencing another art class dealing with compositions, patterns, rhythms and color harmony. The instructor's name was Hal Reed, a former art student of the Russian/American Master, Nicolai Fechin. Hal owned the building (previously the Will Foster Studio) and had founded the Art League of Los Angeles. When Max found Hal, he asked Hal if he could join his class. Hal said "No, the class was full" but he said Max could monitor the class in the back of the classroom. Max took him up on the offer and began observing the weekly class. During the class, Hal told his students that they should practice what they were learning by going to "live model" classes. Max began attending these classes where he learned how to draw figures. After a few months, Hal and Max became good friends. Hal was so impressed with Max's work that he offered Max the opportunity to teach at another location that Hal was opening in the San Fernando Valley. Max accepted the offer and began teaching his own art class. For Max, it was a quick jump from learning to teaching. Max then found that several of his students had to commute to his art class from the west end of the "Valley". To better serve this group of students, Max decided to relocate to another studio in Calabasas. Max continued teaching, and at this time he was producing very impressive portraits, both oil paintings and charcoal drawings from live models (Max never worked from photos). Max demonstrated real talent, and the style of his drawings and paintings were being compared to those of Nicolai Fechin. And, like Fechin, Max also had an interest in sculpting. One day, Max decided to design and cast a bronze owl sculpture to put in his Calabasas Fine Art Gallery. Later, someone approached Max when he was at the foundry and asked him about his success selling the owl sculpture. The individual who asked this question was convinced that there was a broader market for these sculptures and he ordered a dozen of the owl sculptures from Max. This encouraged Max to do more castings. Some of the new castings were antique sculptures he found and reproduced. As this new business grew, he decided to establish his own foundry, employing up to 15 workers. The business continued for many years, up until the late 1990's when Max got tired of the foundry business and sold it. Max, who was now in his 70's, decided to move on to his next venture as an artist, dedicating himself to doing the actual sculpting of original art. He loved the creativity of sculpting and he had his sculptures cast at local foundries, ironically the same ones that used to be his competition. Max was now fully engaged in his new artistic direction and, over time, he produced a large body of work. He created very impressive sculptures, including about 100 full-size sculptures. He sold some of these to high-end clientele, the Foundry at SLS Las Vegas, and to Hollywood studios. Even though Max now seemed to be totally in his element, he somehow also found time to continue to teach painting classes at the California Art Institute in Westlake Village in Los Angeles. At the institute, he specialized in figure work. Max continued to draw, paint and teach, but he says he stopped sculpting when he turned 90. Max produced four books showcasing his drawings and paintings. The first is "Faces, The Drawings of Max Turner", copyright 2000, that showcases nearly 100 of his portrait drawings. Within the "Acknowledgements" section, he lists Hal Reed and Joseph Nordmann, two former students of Nicolai Fechin. In 2006, Max produced his second book titled "Figures and Faces", reflecting not only portraits but also figure drawings and paintings. It is a wonderful book of Max's work, but it is currently difficult to find. The third book is titled "Faces 2, The Paintings and Drawings of Max Turner", copyright 2009, which includes 75 portrait paintings and drawings. In the "Preface" of this book, Max describes growing up in a small and isolated mining town during the Great Depression. He states that as a kid, he had little exposure of any culture or view of what the rest of the world was like. His neighbor was the trash collector and Max would sometimes go through his truck looking for anything of value. Among other things, he found magazines like Cosmopolitan, Good Housekeeping and Red Book, with covers that frequently showed drawings or paintings of faces. Max states that these images were the very first source of inspiration for him. He says that he began looking more carefully at people's faces and if they had character, he would draw them. By drawing them, Max says that he was making them part of his world, his world of "Faces". In 2018, Max published his newest book showcasing his drawings and paintings. It is titled "Max Turner's Figure Sketches". This softbound book includes 76 pages and over 120 drawings and paintings. In the Introduction, Max explains "I have found that when approaching the figure, one should begin with the gesture. After having captured the essence or feeling of the pose, one can then proceed to build on it." The figure sketches in this wonderful book reflect a Master's work that consistently captures the "gesture"-showing the emotion, movement and expression. Two more books are on the horizon for Max, both dealing with his passion for sculpting. His first, "The Sculpture of Max Turner" is a compilation of his commercial and noncommercial pieces throughout his career. The second, "Terra Cotta Sculpture by Max Turner" is a complete collection of figures done at the California Art Institute. These much anticipated books should be out later in 2018. Max now considers himself primarily a sculptor. But others in the art world are more than impressed with his drawings and paintings as well. His portraits are often described as having a Fechin-esque appearance, referring to the style of Nicolai Fechin. When Max observed those first art classes given by Hal Reed, it should be noted that Hal had previously been a student of the Russian/American Master Nicolai Fechin in the early to mid-1950's. In fact, Hal was a student in the last art class that Fechin taught before he unexpectedly died in 1955. Hal was so strongly influenced by Fechin that he later produced two 30-minute art instruction videos as part his Art Video Productions wherein he specifically described Fechin techniques that he learned in Fechin's class. The Fechin style and techniques were in play when Max later met Hal. Over the years, many of Max's art students, art collectors, gallery owners, as well as the Director of the Monterey Museum of Art have commented on the Fechin-esque qualities of Max's wonderful charcoal drawings and paintings. So, while Max may consider himself primarily a sculptor, his drawings and paintings are also impressive and very much sought after. When Nicolai Fechin died in 1955, three of the nine students in his last art class became life-long friends. Max subsequently became friends with not only Hal Reed, but also with prior Fechin students Joseph Nordmann and Albert Londraville...

This artwork "Flowers in a Vase and Violin" 1989 is an oil painting on canvas by noted Swiss artist Dan Rubinstein, born 1940. It is signed at the lower right corner by the artist. T...

This artwork titled "Street Market" c. 1935 is an oil painting on canvas by noted Italian artist Giovani Guarlotti, 1869-1954. It is signed at the lower ...

Los Angeles street artist Gary John exploded onto the international art scene first during Art Basel Miami in 2013. John’s playfully bold work quickly gained attention and he was nam...

Figurative landscape of Wood Fairies kissing in a forest by Carl F. Ruhnau (German, c.1876-1940). Signed “C. Ruhnau” in the bottom right corner. Signed and ...

Magic Carpet Ride, Contemporary Cubist Figurative Landscape A striking contemporary cubist oil on canvas figurative landscape painting by San Francisco artist Michael William Eggle...

Andre Renoux: 1939-2002. Listed French artist with auction results over $5000, but sells for much more in galleries. This is a truly wonderful mid century and unique slice of Florida...

1930's Figurative landscape oil painting of a woman walking down a path through a country farm by S.E George (American, 20th Century). Possibly a Wichita, Kansas artist...

Emergence of Woman The Cosmic Dance A Visionary Figurative in Acrylic Flowing and stylized figurative work by Visionary artist Kimberlee Kuwica (American, b. 1967). From GAIA: "As t...

Capturing fragments of dreams, memories, and emotions in her surrealist paintings, Taiwanese-American artist Amy Tai blends cultures within her soft and sensua...

Large-scale abstract of multicolor brains by Bay Area artist Michael Pauker (American, b.1957). Unsigned, but was acquired with a collection of his work. Unframed. Image size: 60"H x...

Title: "Orange Umbrella" Medium: Oil on Canvas Size: 40 x 30 inches "Orange Umbrella" is a dynamic and contemporary 40 x 30-inch oil painting depicting two figures walking in an urb...

A tongue in cheek swipe at the futility of it all. A well heeled gent (Wolf) in a Tux bays at the moon at his good fortune, by G. Lester (American, 20th Ce...

Signed indistinctly, lower right, and painted circa 1935. A strongly animated, vertically stacked figurative painting filled with compressed energy and an atmosphere of psychologic...

This bold and dynamic figurative abstract acrylic painting on handmade paper by Marc Foster Grant (American, b. 1947) certainly makes a splash! A figure dressed in a fabulous swimwear ensemble jumps into the pool and onto a globe, causing a huge splash of water to burst forth towards the viewer. The fun, colorful, and fancifully detailed swimming outfit complete with vintage style bathing suit...

Rizaldy Celi Jr. (American, Filipino-Vietnamese, born 1983) "Untitled" 2025 Oil paint on canvas, stretcher bars The artist signed the bottom right of the painting. "Untitled" showca...

America Martin "Woman in Yellow with Stripes" Pastel & ink on Japanese Paper 43" x 31" Image 50.25" x 37.75" Overall, Framed Exploring the identity of both her namesake and country...

Given Vincent Van Gogh’s mental state when he painted his September 1889 self-portrait, possibly his last, it would be risky business by another artist to produce his own self-portra...

Fantastic South American painting in the Naive or Folk style. Very fun and busy oil on canvas measuring 14 inches wide by 9 3/4 high. Frame measures 16 1/4 high by 12 1/4 wide.

Rizaldy Celi Jr. (American, Filipino-Vietnamese, born 1983) "Covet" 2023 Oil paint, Varnish, Wood The artist signed the back of the painting. "Covet" by Rizaldy Celi Jr. is a striking exploration of expressionist-disrupted realism, depicted on a 48" x 36" wood board. This provocative piece challenges traditional norms of beauty and desire by juxtaposing a nude woman donning an Oni mask...

Abstract oil on wood panel depicting the beginnings of the ascendancy of the Earth by Julie R. Fudge (American, 20th Century). Signed "Julie Fudge" on verso. Unframed. Image, 42"H x ...

Framed size 41.5 x 52 inches. This painting was exhibited at the Salon Indépendants in 1964, label on verso, Louis-André Margantin was a student at the École Nationale des Arts Déc...

Artist: Pierre Sichel (French, 1899-1976) Title: La Tour Eiffel, Vue De Paris Year: 1934 Medium: Oil on board Board size: 7.75 x 9.35 inches Sig...

"Samba Copacabana" Abstract Expressionism A vibrant abstract painting in pastel peach, contrasting black and white, and shimmering metallic gol...

Mid century nude figure study of a woman in a blue chair by California artist Genevieve Rogers (American, 1904-1984). Unsigned, but acquired with a collection of her work. Presented ...

Charming portrait of Russian Boyarina by Bell Dibble Taft (American, 1855-1937), 1921. Signed and dated lower left corner and gallery label for Oakland Gallery Exhibit (Oakand Museum...

John Randall Nelson’s paintings are layered with his own personal language consisting of patterns, symbols, and archetypes that may not make any literal sense but play on subconsciou...

Vibrant abstract composition by Aromas, California, Monterey Bay Area abstract expressionist artist Frank Thomas Romero (American, b-1985). Signed ...