"Santa Claus" from Myths, 1981 - Screenprint with Diamond Dust by Andy Warhol

Santa Claus From Myths, 1981; Screenprint in colors with diamond dust on Lenox Museum Board; Signed Andy Warhol and numbered 156/200 in pencil lower right; Published by Ronald Feldman Fine Arts, Inc., New York; Framed with a linen wood liner, gold fillet, gold wood exterior frame, red hand painted wood fillet, and UV conservation clear glass; Sheet 38" x 38", Frame 46" x 45 1/2"; Catalogue Raisonne: Feldman/Schellmann: II.266.

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In 1981, Andy Warhol created a series of works that he called Myths. They were all portraits of iconic figures and included, The Star a portrait of Greta Garbo from the film Mata Hari, Uncle Sam, Mammy, Howdy Doody, Superman, The Witch, Dracula, Mickey Mouse, Santa Claus, and The Shadow, a profile portrait of Andy Warhol in red casting a shadow on a wall beside him. In addition to Warhol's use of bold graphic colors, he added diamond dust to the prints. Diamond dust was Andy's term for the finely crushed glass that was added to the lines and/or the background of his serigraphed prints. The resulting works were spectacular, and the diamond dust was the magical sparkle that seemed to make the works even more mythical!

Close up of the edition number and the Andy Warhol signature.

Santa Claus, Saint Nicholas, Saint Nick, Father Christmas, Kris Kringle, Santy, or simply Santa is a mythical figure who, in many Western cultures, brings gifts to "good" children on Christmas Eve and the early morning hours of Christmas Day. The modern day Santa Claus is derived from a combination of the British figure of Father Christmas, the Dutch figure of Sinterklaas, and Saint Nicholas the historical Greek bishop and gift-giver of Myra.

L. Frank Baum's 1902 children's book The Life and Adventures of Santa Claus, further popularized Santa Claus. Because much of Santa Claus's history was not set in stone at the time, this allowed Baum plenty of room to provide a history and greater character development. Images of Santa Claus were further popularized through the artist Haddon Sundblom's depiction of him for The Coca-Cola Company's Christmas advertising campaign of the 1930's. The popularity of the now idealized image created urban legends that Santa Claus was invented by The Coca-Cola Company, or that Santa wears red and white because they are the colors used to promote the Coca-Cola brand; neither of which is true.

Framed "Santa Claus' by Andy Warhol.

Andy Warhol adored Christmas and created a great many works of art centered around the Holiday, as well as numerous advertising campaigns. This work, "Santa Claus," from 1981 was created by Warhol by first photographing an individual dressed up as Santa and then selecting the best photograph in which to begin work. The image was then cropped, paint colors chosen; and after, silkscreening, Diamond Dust was glued on top of the outlines giving "Santa Claus" a mythical and magical quality. This is a wonderful original work by Andy Warhol using a great Pop Art iconic image, and should be hung on the wall and shown all year long!

#Warhol #AndyWarhol #PopArt #Santa #SantaClaus #StNick #SaintNicholas #SaintNick #FatherChristmas #KrisKringle #Santy #DiamondDust #LFrankBaum #FrankBaum #Christmas #HaddonSundblom #CocaCola #untitledartgallery #Sinterklaas

"Femme de Luxe," 1990 Painted Bronze Scuplture by Erte

 Femme de Luxe, 1990; Bronze painted in green and gold with 3 chain back tassels and earring chain; Incised Erte signature; Numbered 206/500 with the stamp of the publisher Seven Arts Ltd., London and Dyansen Studio foundry stamp; Figure: 18 1/4" x 8 1/2" x 12 3/4".

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Romain de Tirtoff (1892–1990) was a Russian-born French artist and designer, known by the pseudonym Erté; that was derived from the French pronunciation of his initials. He was extremely accomplished in an array of fields including: fashion, jewellery, graphic arts, costume and set design for film, theatre, opera, and interior decor. His costumes, programme designs, and sets were featured in the Ziegfeld Follies of 1923, productions of the Folies Bergère, and George White's Scandals.

Front image of "Femme de Luxe"

Back image of "Femme de Luxe"

In 1915 Erté secured his first substantial contract with Harper's Bazaar magazine which was a significant turning point for the artist. Between 1915–1937 he designed over 200 covers for Harper's Bazaar, and his illustrations would also appear in other publications such as Illustrated London News, Cosmopolitan, Ladies' Home Journal, and Vogue. In 1925, Louis B. Mayer brought him to Hollywood to design sets and costumes for the silent film Paris. He continued working in Hollywood designing for such films as Ben-Hur, The Mystic, Time, The Comedian, and Dance Madness.

Back image of "Femme de Luxe" showing the three movable chain tassel cords.

Erté continued working throughout his entire life; designing revues, ballets, and operas. He had a major rejuvenation in his career during the 1960s with the Art Deco revival. Later he branched out into the realm of fine art with the production of limited edition prints, bronzes, and wearable art. His is found in the collections of several well-known museums, including the Victoria and Albert Museum, the Metropolitan Museum of Art, and the Los Angeles County Museum of Art (LACMA); as well, a sizable collection of work by Erté can be found at Museum 1999 in Tokyo.

Image of incised Erte signature.

Quote from Erte regarding sculpture, from Erte Sclupture, 1986:

"For me, sculpting is a natural impulse; in my creative technique I conceive designs in three dimensions.... It is impossible for a fashion designer to produce a model of each design, so he must be content with a drawing. Any designer is thus restricted to two dimensions, and a fashion designer is also confined to the physical proportions of the human being, a beautiful but rather predictable form. Sculpting - working in three dimensions - has relieved me of these restrictions and has allowed me to exercise all of my creative impulses, including the use of color and the modeling of fantastic forms. The greatest thrill of any fashion designer is to see his drawing come to life - to rise from the flat page and be worked into costumes that transform the wearer into an object of beauty and desire. Only when a design is realized can its success be properly judged. I am filled with a sense of excitement whenever I see and touch a bronze from my Sculpture Collection, through which I have been able to see my drawings, thoughts, ideas, and dreams come to life as never before."

Image of the edition number, publisher, and foundry stamps.

This is an absolutely spectacular limited edition bronze by Erte. "Femme de Lux' stands over 18 inches tall and is beautifully painted in green with gold highlights. There are three movable tassel cords in the back of her dress and her earring is also a movable chain. This is a great example of high end Art Deco style and would make a great addition to any art collection!

#Erte  #RomaindeTirtoff #FemmedeLux #Femme #ArtDeco #bronze #bronzesculpture #HarpersBazaar #untitledartgallery

"Comet," 1980-82; Soft-ground Etching, Sugar-lift Etching, and Aquatint Collage by Helen Frankenthaler

Comet, 1980-82; Soft-ground etching, sugar-lift etching, and aquatint in colors, on chocolate brown Moriki paper collaged to white HMP handmade Zaaen linen paper; Signed Frankenthaler and dated 1980-82 in pencil lower right and numbered 6/8 in pencil lower left; Published by Donn H. Steward, Halesite, NY (with their blindstamp); Catalogue Raisonne: Harrison 90; Size - Image: 16 x 19 1/2", Sheet: 25 x 29 3/4"; Unframed.

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"Comet has all the luminous qualities of a mystifying and beautiful celstial body." - "Frankenthaler: A Catalogue Raisonne, Prints 1961-1994" by Pegram Harrison

Helen Frankenthaler (1928-2011) was an American abstract expressionist painter who exhibited artwork for over six decades starting from the early 1950's until her passing in 2011. She was included in the 1964 Post-Painterly Abstraction exhibition curated by the famed art critic Clement Greenberg; and the body of work presented in the show would latter be known as Color Field Painting. Frankenthaler's work has been the subject of several retrospective exhibitions, including the important 1989 retrospective held at the Museum of Modern Art in New York City. In 2011 she was awarded the National Medal of Arts.

Image of the entire sheet of "Comet."

Helen Frankenthaler is, without a question, one of the greatest artists of the twentieth century and is one of the very few female artists that would be included in such a list. She was married to the abstract expressionist artist Robert Motherwell, and had an intimate relationship with the famous art critic Clement Greenberg; so her connections within the art community run very deep. Frankenthaler was initially involved in the abstract expressionist movement but was looking for a path forward. Then, after a trip in October to Nova Scotia, had a breakthrough with a painting entitled "Mountains and Sea," 1952. The painting was abstract, and rather than painting the landscape seen on her trip, the work portrayed the experience itself. The composition was painted using a "soak stain" technique, whereby unprimed canvas duct is painted using oil paint that had been heavily thinned with turpentine. The effects of the technique reinforced the abstract nature of the landscape painting; and when the artists Kenneth Noland and Morris Louis saw it in her studio, their own painting styles and working methods were forever changed.

Close up of the Frankenthaler signature and date.

During the 1960's, ULAE published original prints by Sam Francis, Helen Frankenthaler, Jasper Johns, Barnett Newman, Robert Rauschenberg, Larry Rivers, Cy Twombly, and many other major modern artists working at the time. In 1966 ULAE established an etching studio and on the printers hired was Donn Steward. Steward had studied etching at the University of Iowa and had trained as a lithography printer at Tamarind. He worked with Frankenthaler and printed the four aquatints made at ULAE.

The next paragraph is from "Frankenthaler: A Catalogue Raisonne, Prints 1961-1994" by Pegram Harrison:

"Frankenthaler and Donn Steward began work in 1980 on "Comet," their last and most challenging collaboration before his death in 1985, and it took them two years to complete the project. Using only soft-ground and sugar-lift etching as well as aquatint, "Comet" is one of the most painterly and interwoven of Frankenthaler's intaglio prints."

Close up of the edition number.

This is an extremely important and rare work by Helen Frankenthaler. Over a period of two years, Frankenthaler and Donn Steward were able to create an amazing work of art that captures the experience of looking into the heavens and seeing a beautiful painterly night sky. The printed image is collaged onto a mottled and textured handmade paper, that further enhances the beauty of the work. The edition size is only eight and so represents a very rare opportunity for the collector.

#Frankenthaler #HelenFrankenthaler #printcollecting #noland #colorfield #artcollecting #etching #aquatint #sugarliftetching #softgroundetching #DonnSteward #Comet #ULAE

"Pompeii Forte," 1976-82 Drypoint, Etching, Sugar-lift Etching, Soft-ground Etching, and Aquatint by Helen Frankenthaler

Pompeii Forte, 1976-82; Drypoint, etching, sugar-lift etching, soft-ground etching, and aquatint in colors, on white CM Fabriano Classico paper; Signed Frankenthaler and dated '76-82' in pencil lower right and numbered 3/5 in pencil lower left; Published by Donn H. Steward, Halesite, NY (with their blindstamp); Catalogue Raisonne: Harrison 88; Size - Image: 12 1/4 x 22 1/2", Sheet 22 x 30 1/2"; Unframed.

To purchase this work or to visit the Art Gallery, CLICK HERE 

Helen Frankenthaler (1928-2011) was an American abstract expressionist painter who exhibited artwork for over six decades starting from the early 1950's until her passing in 2011. She was included in the 1964 Post-Painterly Abstraction exhibition curated by the famed art critic Clement Greenberg; and the body of work presented in the show would latter be known as Color Field Painting. Frankenthaler's work has been the subject of several retrospective exhibitions, including the important 1989 retrospective held at the Museum of Modern Art in New York City. In 2011 she was awarded the National Medal of Arts.

The entire sheet of "Pompeii Forte"

Helen Frankenthaler is, without a question, one of the greatest artists of the twentieth century and is one of the very few female artists that would be included in such a list. She was married to the abstract expressionist artist Robert Motherwell, and had an intimate relationship with the famous art critic Clement Greenberg; so her connections within the art community run very deep. Frankenthaler was initially involved in the abstract expressionist movement but was looking for a path forward. Then, after a trip in October to Nova Scotia, had a breakthrough with a painting entitled "Mountains and Sea," 1952. The painting was abstract, and rather than painting the landscape seen on her trip, the work portrayed the experience itself. The composition was painted using a "soak stain" technique, whereby unprimed canvas duct is painted using oil paint that had been heavily thinned with turpentine. The effects of the technique reinforced the abstract nature of the landscape painting; and when the artists Kenneth Noland and Morris Louis saw it in her studio, their own painting styles and working methods were forever changed.

Close up of the Frankenthaler signature and the date.

During the 1960's, ULAE published original prints by Sam Francis, Helen Frankenthaler, Jasper Johns, Barnett Newman, Robert Rauschenberg, Larry Rivers, Cy Twombly, and many other major modern artists working at the time. In 1966 ULAE established an etching studio and on the printers hired was Donn Steward. Steward had studied etching at the University of Iowa and had trained as a lithography printer at Tamarind. He worked with Frankenthaler and printed the four aquatints made at ULAE.

The next two paragraphs are from "Frankenthaler: A Catalogue Raisonne, Prints 1961-1994" by Pegram Harrison:

"It was rare for Frankenthaler to work with an independent printer-publisher. However, because she and intaglio printer Donn Steward had collaborated together so successfully at ULAE, she continued the relationship after he left the studio in 1975 to establish his own workshop in Halesite, New York, on Long Island's North Shore. Before his death in 1985, they completed two projects, "Pompeii" and "Comet."

"Pompeii Forte" is a horizontal version of the 1976 "Pompeii." As the title implies, the orange (called "pompeii tint" on Steward's documentation sheet) as well as the red color are printed darker and thus with more strength than in the original version. When Frankenthaler reviewed the impressions in 1982, she allowed them to be released under the new title." 

Close up of the edition number.

This is an extremely rare work by Helen Frankenthaler in an edition of only five. The use of the word "Pompeii" in the title recalls the ancient Roman Italian city that was destroyed and buried under about 20 feet of volcanic ash and pumice, during the eruption of Mount Vesuvius in AD 79. The addition of the word "Forte" to the title demonstrates that there is an excellence in this work; a striking difference between an earlier vertical print entitled "Pompeii" created in 1976. For the horizontal version of "Pompeii Forte" the orange and the reds were printed darker and the work reads as a powerful and striking landscape.

#Frankenthaler #HelenFrankenthaler #printcollecting #noland #colorfield #artcollecting #etching #drypoint #aquatint #sugarliftetching #softgroundetching #DonnSteward #Pompeii #PompeiiForte #Vesuvius #MountVesuvius #ULAE

Chouette (Wood Owl) Vase by Pablo PIcasso, 1969

Chouette (Wood Owl) Vase, 1969; Partially glazed white earthenware vase painted in colors; Numbered 127/500; Inscribed 'EDITION PICASSO' and 'R147 MADOURA', with the 'MADOURA PLEIN FEU' and the 'EDITION PICASSO' pottery stamps on the underside; Size - Wood Owl Vase: 11 1/2" x 5 1/2" x 8 1/2"; Catalogue Raisonne: A.R. 605.

To purchase this work or to visit the Art Gallery, CLICK HERE

During the late 1940s, Pablo Picasso spent the summers on the Cote d'Azur in the South of France. There the artist visited Vallauris for the annual pottery exhibition in 1946. He was impressed by the quality of the Madoura works and was introduced to the owners, Suzanne and Georges Ramié. The Ramiés welcomed the famous artist into their workshop and gave him access to all the tools and resources the he needed in order to work in the medium of ceramics. In exchange, the Ramié family would produce and sell his limited edition ceramic works and this relationship spanned 25 years. It was also at the Madoura factory in 1953 that Picasso met Jacqueline Roque, who would become his second wife in 1961.

Side view of the Chouette (Wood Owl) Vase by Pablo Picasso

Back view of the Chouette (Wood Owl) Vase by Pablo Picasso

The Market for Picasso ceramics has been steadily rising as outlined by a recent article:
"Over the past 10 years, the market for Picasso ceramics has steadily grown, with seasoned collectors and new buyers alike vying for Picasso's editioned and unique ceramics at auction. This market is stable, with a steady high sell-through rate around 89% (87% in 2004, 89% in 2005, 87% in 2011, and 90% in 2012), and prices that are still lower than the rest of Picasso's work. The broad range of estimates and sales prices help make this market attractive to many collectors, but also explain the high average sales prices, which are skewed by a few exceptional pieces. In the previous two years, more than 60 exceptional ceramic works sold for over US$100,000: 34 in 2011 and 29 in 2012 (vs. six in 2004 and 2005)." - The Story Behind Picasso Ceramics, by Fanny Lakoubay and Conner Williams, 2013

Top view of the Chouette (Wood Owl) Vase by Pablo Picasso

Inscribed 'EDITION PICASSO' and 'R147 MADOURA', with the 'MADOURA PLEIN FEU' and the 'EDITION PICASSO' pottery stamps on the underside

Inscribed 'EDITION PICASSO' and 'R147 MADOURA', with the 'MADOURA PLEIN FEU' and the 'EDITION PICASSO' pottery stamps on the underside

The famed artist Georges Bloch stated of Picasso’s ceramic works:
 "…in approach, material and technique is as novel as it is interesting. Pottery, gleaming white discs with relief designs, monochrome or brightly coloured ovals, dishes and even jugs and vases here serve as bearers of compositions whose themes express the joyous, life-loving side of Picasso’s work. They are printed from blocks and stamps fashioned by the master over a period of more than twenty years in the Madoura pottery workshop in Vallauris.”

From Charles Mathes's site valuethoughts.com:
"In 1946 Picasso was staying near Antibes in the South of France and decorating the walls of what would become the Musée Picasso. A small owl with an injured claw that had been found in a corner ended up living with him and his lover, Francois Gilot. According to Gilot in her book “Life With Picasso” the owl was an ill-tempered creature who smelled awful and ate only mice. The owl would snort at Picasso and bite his fingers; Picasso would reply with a string of obscenities just to show the bird who was the most ill-tempered. Clearly bad manners were the way to Picasso’s heart for not only did he do a number of paintings, drawings and prints of owls, he created numerous ceramics."

Picasso would use the owl in paintings, prints, drawings, sculptures, and ceramics for the rest of his life. After Picasso's death, drawings were found that illustrate that the form used for the owl ceramics had been made during the time in 1946 when the wood owl first appeared in Picasso's atelier. This is a wonderful owl vase ceramic created in 1969, and the painting of the vessel is beautifully rendered in natural browns, black, and cream colors. The brushstrokes are consistent with free form feathers making up the wings, head, and feet. This is a spectacular piece of original Picasso artwork and a great addition for any art collection!

#Picasso #PabloPicasso #ceramic #Picassoceramic #Madoura #MadouraPottery #Vallauris #SuzanneRamie #GeorgesRamie #Ramie #JacquelineRoque #untitledartgallery #cubism #diaulos #diaulosplayer #faun #GeorgesBloch #Chouette #Owl #WoodOwl #FrancoisGilot