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.

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"

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.

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

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”

Georges Brasseur (Belgian, 1880-1950)

Morning Light

Oil-on-canvas, signed lower left

Painting Size: 19.75” x 25.5”
Frame Size: 24 ” x 30”

Brasseur was a painter and designer who specialized in religious art as well as genre scenes, portraits and nudes.He was a student at the Saint-Luc School in Schaerbeek where he spent his last year as a scene painter. He adopted a Neo-Gothic style, typical of that school. Brasseur also produced copperplate engravings and stained glass windows. Among others, he worked with the Beyaert firm of Bruges and with the stained glass artist J. Osterrath.

Sources:
Benezit, E. "Dictionnaire des Peintres, Sculpteurs, Dessinateurs et Graveurs"
"Le Dictionnaire des Peintres Belges du XIV Sicle du XIV Siècle à Nos Jours"
Piron, Paul , "De Belgische Beeldende Kunstenaars uit de 19de en 20ste eeuw"

Manuel Robbe (French, 1872-1936)

Nocturne (ou Le Flirt)
[Merrill Chase, no. 63]*

Aquatint with etching in colors, circa 1906, on wove paper, signed in pencil in the image lower left. From the edition of about 100, with minor staining in the margins, not examined out of the frame.

Image Size: 13.5" x 17.5"
Frame Size: 24" x 27.5"

Robbe was a painter of genre scenes, a watercolorist, pastellist, engraver, designer and illustrator. He studied both at the Académie Julian and the École des Beaux Arts in Paris where he was mentored in etching and aquatint methods by Eugene Delâtre. He exhibited in Paris regularly at the Salon des Artistes Français and was awarded a bronze medal in 1900 at the Exposition Universelle in Paris. Leaving that salon in 1905, Robbe became a member of the Salon de la Société Nationale des Beaux-Arts. He chiefly worked in the medium of colored aquatint engravings in which he had become quite accomplished. He was an innovator of the experimental “à la poupée” process of printing many colors from a single plate which gave his prints a startling subtlety, each print having its own uniqueness. Robbe’s favorite themes were of scenes of Paris life, scenes of streets animated by young parisiennes of the Belle Époque and young women and children engaging in the social activities of the day. His prints were designed to be framed and hung on the wall just like oil paintings.

Source:
Benezit, E. "Dictionnaire des Peintres, Sculpteurs, Dessinateurs et Graveurs"

*Manuel Robbe's works are catalogued and described by a series of soft covered books published by Merrill Chase Galleries in 1978, 1979, and 1980. These books serve as the recognized catalogue raisonné for Robbe.

August H.O. Rolle (American 1875-1941)

River Birches

Oil on Canvas, Signed lower right and titled and signed on reverse

Painting: 20" x 24"
Frame: 24" x 28"

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

August Herman Olson Rolle, painter, printmaker and graphic artist, dabbled in many activities before turning his focus to art. Born in Sibley County, MN, in 1875, his first path toward adulthood led him to Red Wing Seminary. Service in the Spanish-American War, eventually lead him to Washington, DC where he became a forestry expert for the Census Bureau.

Once in Washington, Rolle studied at the Corcoran School of Art under Messer, Brooke and Moser beginning in 1905. His specialties were landscapes and seascapes in oil and watercolor, but he also executed dryprints, woodblock prints, monotypes and etchings.

Following the tradition of his day, Rolle was active in many art societies. In addition to helping found the Landscape Club of Washington in 1915, he served as its president for many years. That was just one among a number of affiliations which also included the Sculptors and Gravers Society of Washington, the American Federation of Arts, and the Arts Club of Washington.

Rolle also exhibited at the Corcoran Gallery of Art, the old National Gallery, the Maryland Institute and at the Greater Washington Independent Exhibition of 1935. He had a joint exhibition of prints with fellow artist Benson B. Moore at Venable's Gallery in 1924.

Rolle died in Washington, DC in 1941. Today, his work is represented at the Corcoran Gallery, the Historical Society of Washington, DC, and the Arts Club of Washington. A retrospective of his work was held at the Corcoran's 1982 "Washington on the Potomac" and at the National Museum of American Art's 1984 show "The Capitol Image."

Sources:
Consentino, Andrew and Glassie, Henry. "The Capital Image, Painters in Washington, 1800-1915"
Falk, Peter, ed. "Who Was Who in American Art 1564-1975"
McMahan, Virgil. "The Artists of Washington, D.C. 1796-1996"

Carved Wooden Top Hat

(Early 20th C., some scratches

12.25” x 10” x 6.75” tall

Joseph Pennell (American 1857-1926)

The Inauguration Steps, 1912

Lithograph on ivory laid paper

17 x 22 (image); 19 x 24.5 (sheet); 17.75" x 22.25" (sight); 24" x 30" (frame)

Wuerth 265

Washington D.C. series. Edition of 25. Signed on stone and in pencil and inscribed: " #2 The Inauguration Portico"

This is from a series of six lithographs made for the Century Magazine entitled "The Capitol at Washington” and described as the "East Front of the Capitol" Another example is in the collection of the Art Institute of Chicago.

Joseph Pennell was widely recognized for his illustrations and etchings, a process he began in the late 1870s.  The son of Philadelphia Quaker parents, he studied at the Pennsylvania Academy of Fine Art in Philadelphia where his instructor, James Claghorn recognized and encouraged Pennell's etching talent.

From 1884 to 1917, Pennell lived primarily in Europe.  There he made scenery prints in many parts of the Continent, working in a variety of graphic media.  He also returned to America long enough to travel in the American West, and in 1912 and 1915, did scenes of San Francisco, Yosemite and the Grand Canyon, which along with twenty-three lithographs he did of the Panama Canal were purchased by the Italian government and are in the Uffizi Gallery.

Pennell completed over 1800 etchings and lithographs.   His style was strongly influenced by James Whistler, and his technique was influenced by drawings of Charles Reinhardt.  He also wrote and illustrated nearly a hundred books including a biography of Whistler.

Sources:
Falk, Peter, ed. Who Was Who in American Art 1564-1975
Hughes, Edan Milton. Artists in California 1786-1940

Set of Four Hammered and Silvered Bronze Arts and Crafts Candlesticks, Early 20th Century, Unmarked. 13" high.

August H. O. Rolle (American 1875-1941)

Rock Creek Park

Oil-on-canvas, signed lower left.

Painting: 16” x 20”
Frame: 23” x 26 ½”

August Herman Olson Rolle, painter, printmaker and graphic artist, dabbled in many activities before turning his focus to art. Born in Sibley County, MN, in 1875, his first path toward adulthood led him to Red Wing Seminary. Service in the Spanish-American War, eventually lead him to Washington, DC where he became a forestry expert for the Census Bureau.
Once in Washington, Rolle studied at the Corcoran School of Art under Messer, Brooke and Moser beginning in 1905. His specialties were landscapes and seascapes in oil and watercolor, but he also executed dryprints, woodblock prints, monotypes and etchings.
Following the tradition of his day, Rolle was active in many art societies. In addition to helping found the Landscape Club of Washington in 1915, he served as its president for many years. That was just one among a number of affiliations which also included the Sculptors and Gravers Society of Washington, the American Federation of Arts, and the Arts Club of Washington.
Rolle also exhibited at the Corcoran Gallery of Art, the old National Gallery, the Maryland Institute and at the Greater Washington Independent Exhibition of 1935. He had a joint exhibition of prints with fellow artist Benson B. Moore at Venable's Gallery in 1924.
Rolle died in Washington, DC in 1941. Today, his work is represented at the Corcoran Gallery, the Historical Society of Washington, DC, and the Arts Club of Washington. A retrospective of his work was held at the Corcoran's 1982 "Washington on the Potomac" and at the National Museum of American Art's 1984 show "The Capitol Image."

Sources:
Consentino, Andrew and Glassie, Henry. "The Capital Image, Painters in Washington, 1800-1915"
Falk, Peter, ed. "Who Was Who in American Art 1564-1975"
McMahan, Virgil. "The Artists of Washington, D.C. 1796-1996"

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