Pre-Valentine Wonderful Sale
Lot 57:
Description
Keywords: Christies Auction, female figure, figure painting, Expressive Color, American Art, Fauvism, Abstract Expressionism, American modernism, early 20th century, decorative wall art
Signed on verso "Carles". Auction label from Christies on verso. Known for his use of expressive and uninhibited color.
Bio:
Arthur Carles is featured in numerous major public collections, including the Metropolitan Museum of Art, Whitney Museum of American Art, and Museum of Modern Art in New York; Newark Museum in New Jersey; Baltimore Museum of Art; Phillips Collection, Hirshhorn Museum and Sculpture Garden, and Corcoran Gallery of Art in Washington, D.C.; Pennsylvania Academy of the Fine Arts and Philadelphia Museum of Art in Philadelphia; and the Art Institute of Chicago.
Born in Philadelphia, Pennsylvania, Carles was a painter whose style evolved through phases of Realism, Impressionism, Fauvism, and Abstract Expressionism, making him one of the first American proponents of Abstract Expressionism. He studied at the Pennsylvania Academy of the Fine Arts, where he was influenced by the techniques of William Merritt Chase and the early works of Édouard Manet.
In 1907, Carles traveled to Paris, where he explored Post-Impressionism and Fauvism, drawing inspiration from Henri Matisse. He interacted with notable figures such as Paul Gauguin, Hans Hofmann, Gertrude and Leo Stein, Alfred Maurer, and John Marin. In New York, he contributed to Alfred Stieglitz’s 1910 avant-garde exhibition, Younger American Painters, and participated in the historic 1913 New York Armory Show.
During World War I, Carles served as a civilian ship camouflage artist for the U.S. Shipping Board in Philadelphia. His work became increasingly abstract during the 1920s and 1930s, marking a significant transition in his artistic career.
Measurement: 20 x 16 in. (50.8 x 40.6 cm.), Frame: 30 x 26 in. (76.2 x 66 cm.) Approx
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