Victor Spinski (American, 1940-2013)

A Piece of Cake

Ceramic, Signed and dated: "(19)97"

6 3/4" Diam. x 4" H

Spinski was a leading figure in the avant-garde ceramics movement of the 1960’s and 70’s. Throughout his career, Spinski experimented with many different materials, forms and techniques, becoming most well-known for his tromp l'oeil clay sculptures, which often incorporated humor.  In a 1983 article in the New York Times, art historian Helen A. Harrison described Spinski's works as being "technically sophisticated and fascinating in their imitation of nonceramic objects, such as metal cans filled with garbage. His "fountains," including an overflowing sink full of dirty dishes and a pile of beer cartons that have sprung a leak, are both cleverly conceived and beautifully realized."  Spinski participated in many historic solo and group exhibitions during his lifetime, including "Clayworks: 20 Americans" and "Coffee, Tea and Other Cups" both held in 1971 at the Museum of Contemporary Crafts in New York City. 

James Francis O’Brien (American, 1917-1996)

Bethesda Oriental Restaurant

Oil on canvas, signed, located, inscribed and dated: “1983” on the reverse.

Painting size: 24” x 20”
Frame size: 29” x 25”

** Please Note - This painting came directly from the Estate of Mr. O’Brien. For other examples, type “O’Brien” into the search box.

** For other paintings by artists from Maryland, Virginia, Washington DC or North Carolina, click on the “Regional Artists” button on our Homepage.

Born in Newtonville, Massachusetts, O’Brien exhibited a love of drawing and painting from a very early age. As a high school student, he took all possible elective courses in art and technical drawing. He supplemented this study with evening courses at M.I.T. Following his move to Washington, DC as a young man, he enrolled in the Washington Workshop of the Arts. WWA, like the Art Students League in New York City, was a school in which all the classes were taught by a rotating roster of professional artists.

During WW II, his technical artistic training served his country well when he was put to work as a map maker. In the final year of the war, O’Brien married. On his honeymoon in New York City, he found time to paint the rooftop view from his hotel room window. This initiated a lifelong pursuit of city painting (his family was inclined to call it an obsession).

Starting with the founding of Federal Graphics, a commercial art firm he launched with a partner in 1947, he pursued a commercial career for the majority of his life. However, he always considered painting his “real” work, and his dedication to this vocation was apparent in a myriad of ways. He helped to found the Montgomery County Art Association and held memberships in the Arts Council of Montgomery County and American Art League.

Throughout his life, he exhibited widely, both as an individual and in group shows. The Arts Club of Washington, Corcoran Gallery of Art, Brooklyn Museum of Art, Montgomery College, and the Rehoboth Art League were a few among the many venues at which his works were shown. In addition, he exhibited in several private galleries.

Jaume Muxart I Domènech (Spanish, 1922-2019)

Bullfight

Acrylic on panel, signed

Painting: 13 ¾” x 19 ½”

Muxart was a Catalan painter, part of the Grup Taüll of avant-garde artists. His work shows a strong expressionist character with structured figurative motifs. Muxart was of a generation of artists that developed during the years of the Franco regime. In 1948 he got a grant to study in Paris, where he met Picasso and decided to devote his life to art. A grant in 1952 saw him travel to Rome.

When Muxart returned home, he helped set up the Grup Taüll with six other artists (Marc Aleu, Modest Cuixart, Josep Guinovart, Jordi Mercadé, Jaume Muixart, Antoni Tàpies and Joan Josep Tharrats) in 1955. Yet, as an artist, Muxart was something of a free spirit, a value he passed on to his students at the Fine Arts faculty in Barcelona University, where he taught and would later become dean. Muxart never stopped exhibiting his work, both in Spain and abroad. In fact, his work was displayed all over the world in exhibitions in cities that included Cairo, Stockholm, London, Sao Paulo, Copenhagen, and New York.

Evelyn Hoffer Floyd (American, 1919 - 2003)

Magpie on a Branch

Oil on Porcelain, signed lower right

Frame: 13 ½” x 11 ½”

Floyd, a notable porcelain artist in Alexandria, learned to paint on porcelain in the early 1970’s and taught her craft in workshops for the Fairfax County Adult Education program.

She was a Pennsylvania native who attended a business college before moving to Washington in 1941 to work as a secretary in the Pentagon.

Floyd settled in Alexandria in 1963

Carved Wood Bank in the form of a Victorian Mailbox. Carved from a solid piece of mahogany(?) with a slot at the top and a hinged door opening to a cavity (no key)

Height:14"

Boris Riab (French, 1898-1975)

Setter with Woodcock

Watercolor on Paper, signed

Sight size:17.75" x 12.75
Unframed, Mat size: 23" x 18"

Biography:
Boris Riab (Born November 1, 1898 Boris Riabouchinsky, in Moscow, Russia. Riab died in 1975 in Saint Vincent du LorouÃr.)
Due to his families finances, Riab studied at many different art schools in Moscow.
In 1917, Riab's family fled Russia after the Bolshevik Party gained power. Pursuing hunting and sport, he traveled through out the world before he settled in France in 1927. It was then he changed his last name from Riabouchinsky to Riab.
Riab mostly painted watercolors of hunting dog portraits and wild fowl. He also printed limited edition engravings of studies of setters, spaniels, retrievers, ducks, pheasants, pointers, partridges, snipes, and woodcocks.

Antique Indian Brass Tea Caddy with brass and stone mounts

5" x 5" x 5"

Late 19th or early 20th C.

Augustus John: Fifty-Two Drawings

Signed, limited edition, with an introduction by Lord David Cecil. Published by George Rainbird, London (1957). Hardcover folio, 16.5 x 11.75 inches. Limited to 150 copies of which this is Number 107 with slipcase. Signed by Augustus John and Lord David Cecil and inscribed to the art collector Emily Chadbourne and signed a second time by Augustus John. The book was designed and produced by George Rainbird and Ruari McLean.The lithograph self-portrait was drawn by the artist in July, 1955 and directly printed from the plate at the Curwen Press which also printed the text. The plates were printed in photo-litho offset by Van Leer of Amsterdam. The text is printed on Abbey Mills Suede Text Antique laid. Bound by Zaehnsdorf of London in half vellum over brown paper with gilt title on spine. Lithographic plate to the top board. Very good condition; a handsome copy of an important work.

James Francis O’Brien (American, 1917-1996)

Bethesda

Oil on canvas, signed lower left and titled on the reverse.

Painting size: 20” x 24” Frame size: 25.5” x 29”

** Please Note - This painting came directly from the Estate of Mr. O’Brien. For other examples, type “O’Brien” into the search box.

** For other paintings by artists from Maryland, Virginia, Washington DC or North Carolina, click on the “Regional Artists” button on our Homepage.

Born in Newtonville, Massachusetts, O’Brien exhibited a love of drawing and painting from a very early age. As a high school student, he took all possible elective courses in art and technical drawing. He supplemented this study with evening courses at M.I.T. Following his move to Washington, DC as a young man, he enrolled in the Washington Workshop of the Arts. WWA, like the Art Students League in New York City, was a school in which all the classes were taught by a rotating roster of professional artists.

During WW II, his technical artistic training served his country well when he was put to work as a map maker. In the final year of the war, O’Brien married. On his honeymoon in New York City, he found time to paint the rooftop view from his hotel room window. This initiated a lifelong pursuit of city painting (his family was inclined to call it an obsession).

Starting with the founding of Federal Graphics, a commercial art firm he launched with a partner in 1947, he pursued a commercial career for the majority of his life. However, he always considered painting his “real” work, and his dedication to this vocation was apparent in a myriad of ways. He helped to found the Montgomery County Art Association and held memberships in the Arts Council of Montgomery County and American Art League.

Throughout his life, he exhibited widely, both as an individual and in group shows. The Arts Club of Washington, Corcoran Gallery of Art, Brooklyn Museum of Art, Montgomery College, and the Rehoboth Art League were a few among the many venues at which his works were shown. In addition, he exhibited in several private galleries.

During the course of his painting, O’Brien noticed that the paints on his palette sometimes mixed into designs as interesting as those more deliberately created. From this observation arose the text, Design By Accident, first published in 1968. The book became widely used by art teachers following very favorably reviews by newspapers and magazines. It was even reviewed by Scientific American from a technological-aesthetic.

A draftsman, illustrator, writer and most importantly painter, O’Brien was fortunate to have his work recognised and appreciated during his life. He won awards from The Montgomery County Art Association, Rehoboth Art League and American Art League. Even art critics praised his work with the most succinct calling his paintings, “familiar scenes, fresher and lighter than life”. (Florence Berryman of The Washington Star)

O’Brien believed that the “creative urge” was something all children have. However, as adults, that impulse falls victim to ever growing demands and responsibilities. He maintained that artists are able to keep alive the childlike ability to see beauty and mystery in commonplace things.

Thanks to his sense of wonder, he left us deeply in his debt. His paintings remind us that every day that Washington, DC is full of inspiring sights that fall outside of the traditional “glamour” views depicted by most artists.

Justin Faivre (American)

Decline of the Windjammers

Watercolor on paper, signed and dated: “1934” and titled in pencil on the reverse.

Sheet size: 12.5” x 18.5”
Mat size: 19.5” x 25.5”
Unframed

Justin Faivre was born in Matthews, Indiana. At the age of 5, however, he moved to Portland, Oregon . As a teenager he studied at the Portland Art Gallery and took private art lessons with Howard Ellis.

In 1923 Faivre left Portland for Los Angeles, but only a few years later moved to San Francisco. In 1934 he had his first exhibition at the Oakland Art Gallery (later to become the Oakland Museum)and continued to exhibit throughout the area. He was a member of the Hayward Art Association, Alameda Art Association, and the Society for Western Artists.

Faivre was influenced by the Society of Six and his early works included landscapes, still lifes, portraits and marine subjects in both oil and watercolor. However, his later work can be characterized as more abstract and nonrepresentational.

Faivre died at his Oakland, California home at the age of 88. Sadly, he died penniless and many of his paintings were stolen shortly before his death.

Source:

Falk. Who Was Who in American Art.
Hughes. Artists in California.
Crocker Art Museum Store.

Edward Henry Berge (American, 1908-1998)

A Painted Plaster Relief Plaque of Three Iguanas

Signed,lower middle

Size: 23” x 23.5” x 4.5” deep

Born and raised near Clifton Park in Northeast Baltimore, Mr. Berge was the son of the acclaimed Baltimore sculptor Edward Berge, who was best known for his studies of children. A graduate of Baltimore Polytechnic Institute, Mr. Berge studied at the Maryland Institute, College of Art for a year and then studied sculpture for 3 1/2 years at the Rinehart School of Sculpture in Baltimore under J. Maxwell Miller. Mr. Berge opened his first studio in 1929 on West Lanvale Street, where he worked for 25 years until he moved to Merrymount Road in Roland Park. "In his long career, Henry Berge created six sculptures for public spaces in Baltimore. That's a record rarely equaled in the city's history, and a notable contribution to the community." from the Baltimore Sun, December 3, 1998

Benson Bond Moore (American,1882-1974)

Autumn in the Blue Ridge Mountains (near Emmittsburg, PA[sic]) 1955

Oil on board, signed lower left and dated “1955”. Titled on the reverse

Painting Size: 15.5” x 19.5”
Frame Size: 23.5” x 27.5”

** For other painting by artists from Maryland, Virginia or Washington DC, click on the "Regional Artists" button on our homepage

Benson Bond Moore, painter, etcher and teacher was born in Washington, DC. He studied at the Corcoran School of Art with Messer and Brooke , and also with Weyl . He continued his studies in drawing at the Linthicum Institute under Ballenger and learned painting conservation from his father.

Active in professional societies, he was a member and officer of the Landscape Club of Washington. He was also a longtime member of the Society of Washington Artists. He exhibited with both groups from as early as 1915 and continued through the 1930's. His work was also shown at the Corcoran Gallery of Art.

As an artist, he became well known and honored for his local scenes, many of which are in major public collections. His works are held by the National Museum of American Art; Historical Society of Washington, DC; Library of Congress; The White House; Bibliothèque National de Paris; Cosmos Club; National Museum of American History and the Los Angeles Museum of Art. Over his life, he was honored with numerous awards for his work.

Sources: Consentino, Andrew and Glassie, Henry, The Capital Image, Painters in Washington, 1800-1915
McMahan, Virgil, The Artists of Washington, D.C. 1796-1996

Charles A. Watson (American, 1857-1923)

Moonlight on the Chesapeake

Oil on canvas, signed lower right

Painting size: 12” x 10”

Frame size: 15.5” x 13.5”

** For other paintings by artists from Maryland, Virginia, Washington DC or North Carolina, click on the “Regional Artists” button on our Homepage.

Watson was born in Baltimore, MD. He studied with A. Castaigne, E.S. Whiteman and D. Woodward. A founding member of the Baltimore Charcoal Club, he was also a member of the Baltimore Watercolor Club. Watson exhibited at the Pennsylvania Academy of the Fine Arts Annual Exhibition in 1906. He is noted for his Tonalist marine paintings where the softly dawnlit skies blend with the pale ocean waters, often with a bare outline of a sailboat.

Source:
Falk, Peter, ed. Who Was Who in American Art 1564-1975

From the Estate of Antoinette Hughes, Catonsville, MD

Edgar Nye (American, 1879-1943)

Hillside Landscape

Watercolor on paper, signed lower right

Painting size: 11.5” x 17” Unframed

Nye lived, worked and taught in Washington, DC for 58 years. While he may have been born in Richmond, VA, his love for the city earned him the distinction of a "native" son.

Nye was educated in public schools before entering the Corcoran School of Art at age 13. He studied there for eight years before setting off on the requisite European travels. He traveled among England, France and Washington, DC for thirteen years. Along the way, he acquired a wife and a brief education at Oxford.

Once settled in Washington, DC, Nye began to produce the vast body of work by which he is remembered today. Most commonly, Nye painted landscapes and street scenes. A natural outcome of his prolific creativity was participation in numerous exhibitions.

His works were both included in group exhibitions and given total focus in one-man shows. The Washington Watercolor Society, Society of Washington Artists, Society of Independent Artists, Landscape Club of Washington and the Corcoran Gallery of Art were hosts to many of the exhibitions in which he participated. The Society of Washington Artists presented him with many awards during his career. On the year anniversary of his death, the Corcoran Gallery of Art presented a memorial exhibition of his work in recognition of the prominent place he held in the Washington art community.

Today, his work is held domestically in the permanent collections of the National Museum of American Art, Phillips Collection, Georgetown University and the Corcoran Gallery of Art. Overseas, his work is represented in the Plymouth Gallery, England.

Sources:
The Artists of Washington, D.C. 1796-1996; McMahan, Virgil E.
Who Was Who in American Art; Falk, Peter Hastings.
The Capital Image: Painters in Washington, 1800-1915; Cosentino, Andrew J. and Henry H. Glassie.

** For other paintings by artists from Maryland, Virginia, Washington DC or North Carolina, click on the “Regional Artists” button on our Homepage.

View of Laguna Beach

Charles Ross Kinghan (American, 1895-1984)

Watercolor on paper, signed.

A painter and illustrator, Kinghan trained at the American Academy of Art and the Art Institute of Chicago. In addition to his studio work, Kinghan began a career as an art teacher. In 1937, he first offered private instruction. While that continued throughout his life, he also worked for a time at the American Art Academy which was followed by a position at the Huguenot School of Art. After leaving art academia, Kinghan worked for over ten years for various advertising agencies as a “sketch man”.

While busily employed in various capacities during his life, Kinghan also found time to participate in many exhibitions. His work was shown at the Art Institute of Chicago, Allied Artists of America, American Watercolor Society, National Academy of Design and many others.

In addition to winning two gold medals from the Allied Artists of America, in 1956 and 1964, Kinghan was a member of the association. He also held memberships in The National Academy, Academy Artists Association, American Watercolor Society and Hudson Valley Art Association. He served both the American Watercolor Society and Hudson Valley Art Association as vice president in 1969 and 1968, respectively.

He was a resident of Laguna Beach, CA at the time of his death.

Kinghan is listed in Who Was Who in American Art by Falk.

Sight size: 14.5” x 20.5”
Frame size: 22.25” x 28.5”

Clark Marshall (American, 1862-1944)

Summer Landscape

Oil on canvas, signed lower right

Painting size: 14.5” x 22.5”
Frame size: 19” x 27”

A native of Talbot County on Maryland's Eastern Shore, Marshall became a highly regarded landscapist, painting mainly in the impressionist manner. Solo exhibitions of his work were held at the Peabody Institute and at The Baltimore Museum of Art. A student at the Corcoran School of Art in Washington, he later exhibited at the Corcoran Gallery of Art. Around 1918, Marshall turned to the ministry with charges in Cecil and Caroline Counties as well as in Delaware. Throughout the latter part of his life, he continued to paint, favoring evening and moonlight views of his native Eastern Shore.

Source:
The exhibition catalog: “Maryland Artists from the Collection,1890-1970” The Baltimore Museum of Art, 2002

** For other artwork by artists from Maryland, Virginia or Washington DC, click on the "Regional Artists" button on our homepage

Ray Austin Crooke (Australian, b. 1922)

Men Resting and Family on Beach, a pair of paintings

Oils on masonite, signed.

Painting size: 6” x 9”
Frame size: 9.5” x 12.5”

Crooke began painting at the age of 17 when his war service in the Australian Air Force took him to Borneo and the islands north of Australia. After the war, he remained in the area for a number of years before seeking additional artistic training at Swinburne Technical College under Roger James and Allan Jordan. He began exhibiting in 1969 and his portrayal of island life gained him great popularity.

Although he lived for a time in Melbourne, the draw of the north proved too strong. He returned to North Qld and traveled extensively among the northern islands. In 1966, Crooke was appointed an official artist in Vietnam for the following three years.

His work has been shown in Australian galleries from Melbourne to Sidney, Brisbane, Perth and Adelaide. He has also had his work exhibited in the U.K. at the Tate Gallery and Leicester Galleries. The highest honor Crooke’s work has garnered is the Archibald Prize for his portrait of the writer George Johnston.

The National Collection, Canberra; all State Galleries and many regional galleries have his work represented in their permanent collections. He is also held in many private collections worldwide.

Crooke is listed in The Encyclopedia of Australian Art by McCulloch and Artists and Galleries of Australia and New Zealand by Germaine.

Richard Alan Schmid (American, b.1934)

Nude

Conte crayon on paper, signed and dated: “1969” and titled, signed: “Richard Schmid, Gaylordsville, Conn” and stamped copyright “Richard Schmid 1969” on reverse of original backing paper.

Sight Size: 4.75” x 9.5”
Sheet Size: 7.5” x 14.75”
Frame Size: 13.5" x 18"

Schmid received his artistic training from William H. Mosby at the American Academy of Art in Chicago. He has participated in many group exhibitions under the auspices of such notable institutions as the Allied Artists of American, NY; Art Institute of Chicago, Chicago; Pennsylvania Academy of Fine Arts, Philadelphia; American Watercolor Society, NY and others. In 2005, he was awarded a Gold Medal from the Portrait Society of America.