Original oil on paper titled "Western Hills Series #56" and signed lower right by Katherine Chang Liu, 1988. Liu an internationally renowned painter and teacher. Born in China, Liu received a full scholarship to UC Berkeley. Her work has been featured in 26 books and over 70 magazine articles. She is listed in "Who’s Who in American Art" and "Who’s Who in American Women." Her work can be found in many private and corporate art collections...

Oil on canvas landscape painting of a New Jersey landscape signed by T. W. Vail. In very good condition, it measures in frame 17.25 inches x 13.25", site size 15.5" x 11.75". Circa 1900

Oil on canvas, 20" by 16" and simple wood frame 1 3/4" wide, signed at lower left in capital letters by the artist, ARTHUR CARL WEIGLE, and dated there "30". This is a charming scene of an earlier California, the iconic subject being the 18th century Mission Santa Barbara. Note the figure curled up on the steps, the leaning palm, and the beautifully painted eucalyptus leaves. The overall light palette reminds one of C. W. Nicholson's works or possibly Dana Bartlett...

Here is a decorative Americana item, if you enjoy the work of one of America's most beloved and famous painters, EDWARD HOPPER, but you can't afford to buy the real thing (priced well into the millions), and yet you want something more than an offset print in a plastic frame. A Hopper painting similar to this is in the collection of the Metropolitan Museum of Art in New York, and it measures 29 1/2" by 43 1/2"...

Oil on canvas, 50" by 31", unframed, signed on the spine of the book at lower center in true trompe l'oeil style and dated there 1901. This is a beautifully painted work by an historical painter of late 19th century California, ALBERT JENKS (1830-1901). It is already quite impressive as it is, but, with a gold frame around it, I can envision this gracing the wall of a law office or museum...

Oil on masonite, 18" by 24", (23" by 29" as framed), the subject a copper kettle on a small wooden stand on a table, with a cup and saucer, small blue milk pitcher and poinsettia in a decorative blue vase filling out the scene. The painting is signed at lower right "L. Johnson". I do not seem to be able to connect this to any listed artist so am offering it as a decorative work. It was found in San Diego, and the poinsettia suggests a California origin...

Oil on canvas landscape oil, unmounted/unstretched, contained loosely in a decorative and complementary modern white metal frame, measuring 5" by 7" (7 1/2" by 10" as framed), signed at lower left "A. Schilling". I would date this to the late 19th century or early years of the 20th. Schilling (1859-1937) exhibited in Chicago at the Art Institute, St. Louis at the world's fair, at the Pennsylvania Academy, and elsewhere...

Oil on canvasboard, 16" by 20" and 1 1/4" dark stained oak frame, signed at lower left with initial "D", and executed en grisaille (grays, whites, black). This is a work by an accomplished artist, showing what appears to be a solemn funeral gathering, with a minister reading from the bible as a black gravedigger looks on at right. The style of dress of the mourners suggests the 19th century as the period depicted...

Oil on canvas still life of a small statuette of a horse and a copper vessel on a small table, 13" by 15" (14" by 16 1/2" as framed), signed at lower right "Virginia Weaver". I do not see a listing for the artist but evidently she was quite talented, as the perspective and flattening of the picture plane shows familiarity with modernist trends of the early 20th century...

A vintage California oil on canvas painting of high mountains and the desert at sunset, probably painted circa 1935 through the early 1940's, 20" by 24" (23" by 27" in likely the original frame), signed at lower right by Los Angeles area artist ESSIE KAILEY (1897-1986). Kailey is not apparently a known artist, and was likely a talented amateur...

A striking modernist work titled "Fantasia" and dated 1952, by Tucson Fine Arts Association member BESS WEST. The work , oil on canvasboard (18" by 14", and 18 1/2" by 22 1/2" in apparently original frame) is signed at lower right "B. WEST" and on reverse appears the title, artist name and date, and an original card from the Seventh Annual Independent Open Show in Tucson in 1953...

Acrylic or oil on canvas painting, 25" by 30 1/2" in simple frame, painted somewhat in the Op Art style, the imagery difficult to summarize: shapes of diamonds, clubs, heart, (think playing cards), superimposed on each other, and in turn superimposed on what appears to be a background of open water and endless mountain ranges. The work is signed at lower left "Marilyn Griffith" and titled on stretcher "21 String Mandala". There does not appear to be a listed artist by this name, which is surp...

A work of Surrealism, 22" by 26", unframed, the imagery a strange landscape in blues, two bare trees at right center, and an odd shaped biomorphically-inspired form (part looks like an index finger complete with nail) at left foreground, completing the strange composition. The painting is signed at lower right by the artist; the first name is Bruce and the last name is difficult to make out, perhaps Hailey, Harley, Hurley or similar. On the reverse he has titled the piece on the stretcher AND...

A really well executed oil on canvas painting of a hammock of dry land in the Everglades of southern Florida, a summer cumulus cloud at right about to become a thunderhead, 18" by 24" (22" by 28" framed), circa late 1960's or early 1970's, signed at lower right by listed artist EDWARD ARTHUR EVANS (1895-). Evans, it appears (after a focused internet search), was born in 1895 in Muskogee, Oklahoma. He was evidently a man of many talents; an engineer, Army officer in both World Wars (advancing t...

A competently painted, luminous little work on canvas, 12" by 16" (17 1/4" by 21" framed), the subject high mountains in full fall color, likely the Rockies in Colorado, Wyoming, Montana or Idaho (or, possibly, even Canada). The artist signed the painting "C H Wells" at lower right. The painting likely dates to the 1970's or 1980's. While I do not see a listing for an artist by this name, he or she was clearly talented. The eye is drawn deep into this spacious and pleasant scene. Condition ...

A large portrait of a woman of obvious wealth and status, 36" by 35", signed "Wells" at lower right on a prop envelope, and dated there 1930, set into a beautiful, unique, valuable 3 3/4" wide frame by the famous framemaker M. (Maurice) Grieve Co. of New York and London (see photo, reverse of frame). An online search did not turn up a "Wells" artist that would obviously fit with this work's subject matter, handling, and period. However we can see that this artist was quite obviously a skilled ...

A charming, somewhat naïve antique oil on canvas painting, 16" by 23" (18 3/4" by 27" in late 20th century frame), unsigned, featuring a winter's day in the country, mountains in the distance, and two figures in the foreground braving the cold to chat, a glow in the central home at right center indicating that a fire is warming it. At far left in the distance is the rest of the village. The painting was painted by an American hand after 1885 (the metal stretchers with that date in the corners...

An oil on panel laid on Masonite, the subject apples on a surface, one peeled, the work signed at lower left by listed Midwest artist JULIUS G. SEGALL (1860-1925). The 9" by 12" work (14" by 17" in later gold frame) draws from a long tradition of still life painting of fruit in Europe, and later 19th century America (from the Peales through Martin Johnson Heade and on to the Fall River School of Massachusetts). Segall was born in Prussia and spent his early years in Milwaukee. While young he ...

Oil on board painting of a European village scene: an intimate cobblestoned lane winds between Old World houses, as a threatening sky looms above. The work is unframed and measures 26" by 20 1/2". It is signed at lower right and dated there "12" (the year 1912). The artist is ALBERT ABRAMOVITZ (1879-1963). Abramovitz was born in Riga, Latvia. He received art training at the Imperial Art School of Odessa, Russia, then went on to further study at the Academie de la Grande Chaumiere in Paris. By...

An unusually attractive example of the work of artist Anders Gittelson (1921-2003), better known by his brush name "GISSON" or "ANDRE GISSON". This oil on canvas, measuring 24" by 20" (33" by 28 1/2" as ornately framed) features a lovely nude seen from the back, fixing her hair as she prepares to enter the water, the dominating hues various shades of blue, all bathed in the white suffused light commonly seen in the artist's works. The painting reminds in some ways of the work of Renoir. Gisson...

A circa late 1800's or circa 1900 antique painting on gray art board of a lake at sunset, a steep outcropping with ruins at left and a small boat completing the composition, unsigned, by an amateur hand, 13 1/2" by 8 3/4" as framed. The work is in an ornate turn of the century frame with a few missing chips that could be easily painted over in gold. What more is there to say---it is a classic little painting of its era, perfect for a small or narrow wall.

Oil on Masonite panel painting of a thicket of trees in the snow, 16" by 12", 19 1/4" by 15 1/2" framed, signed at lower left by artist S C Swiderski and dated there '86 with copyright symbol. The bare trees are accompanied by a lone pine or spruce which gives a bit of green color to an otherwise silvery white/blue palette. The impressionist work is very attractive and it is in excellent condition. Note how the artist used the wooden end of the brush to create a groove in the wet paint. The ...

An oil painting directly on a chunk of sandstone, by the noted western American artist, writer and philosopher A KELLY PRUITT (1924-2009), featuring a young Native American girl astride a horse. The work is inscribed "To a beautiful spirit Kristen/with love A Kelly Pruitt". The irregularly shaped work measures approximately 12" by 12" and weighs a full 4 1/2 pounds. The artist was born in Arkansas and headed west with his family during the Depression, settling in Presidio in isolated far west...

Oil on fine weave canvas, 9" by 12" plus narrow wood frame, the subject various pitchers and other objects, painted in the typical style of the artist, and signed at lower right by French-American painter ANDRE GISSON (GITTELSON). The cool stillness of the scene takes from the still life works of the great modern master Giorgio Morandi. Gisson was a highly prolific but very talented artist in the impressionist tradition, and his paintings of street scenes, landscapes, people and still life app...

Oil on canvas still life of peaches and compote in the East Coast style of the latter part of the 19th century, 21" by 27", presently unframed, signed at lower left "C H Harmon" and dated what appears to be 1880 (or, 1880 something, difficult to read last digit). This is a skillfully painted still life in the tradition of eastern masters like the Ream's, or members of the so-called Fall River School. The table appears to be Eastlake Victorian, with its marble top. This is a very impressionist...

Oil on canvasboard painting of a young girl, in the style of Margaret Keane and the "Big Eyed School" of the period, 24" by 18", unframed. The work is signed, charmingly, at lower right "Grandpa Friedman" and is dated there "64". The board is curved---a bit concave, or convex, as you might put it---but otherwise the painting is in good condition. A nice addition to your mid century Retro collection.

Oil on masonite, circa late 1940's or early 1950's, 16 1/2" by 23 1/2" (22" by 31 1/2" as framed), signed at lower left by Pittsburgh artist PERRY DAVIS. This is a beautifully painted work by an obviously talented artist, although I have not to date found a listing on him. There's a label on the reverse of the Associated Artists of Pittsburgh, 37th Annual Exhibition with the title, and artist's address. The painting has a strong WPA feeling to it. A little research will determine the date of...

This is an eye-catching work in an electric-orange color palette, signed at lower right by important California painter EDWARD REEP (1918-2013). Painted in what appears to be a mixture of perhaps thinned oil and gouache, the work itself measures 22 1/2" by 13 1/2". It was found in a narrow modern green plastic frame that contrasts dramatically with the bright orange of the work itself. Signed boldly at lower right, this painting is on board. The family happened to have seen this online and ...

Oil on canvasboard, 22" by 28", signed in white at upper left "A. Strauss" and dated "53". This is a rather interesting modern work that is rather hard to describe; it is, MODERN. The signature has a European look to it. I acquired this in the San Francisco area years ago. Condition is generally good, with a little soiling at top from a spilled substance I believe to be coffee, probably easily removed; a few minor scrapes and dents in the pink at top center and the mustard and red colored ar...

Oil on canvas, 24" by 30" (31" by 37" as framed) signed lower right by California listed plein air artist MARIUS SMITH (sometimes spelled "Schmidt"). Smith painted landscapes and missions but most often executed superbly painted still lifes of flowers. The artist was born in Denmark and was in Laguna Beach in the budding art colony by 1924. His works sell regularly at auction. Condition: The painting has an old repaired 3 1/2" tear, most visible from the reverse side, and more obviously, se...

TWO unframed paintings for the serious collector of Native Americana by listed and auctioned California and Southwest cowboy artist M.A. GOMEZ (1910-1972), each measuring 24" by 18". The artist's works have been estimated as high as $7,000 each at live auctions in New Mexico, Wyoming and Colorado. Gomez was a talented painter with impressive listings in Samuels, Ed Ainsworth's "The Cowboy in Art" and elsewhere. He painted cowboys, Indians, stage coaches and other traditional scenes of the ol...

This is a powerful study of a man, in pencil, chalk, and gouache, signed at lower right by artist ROBERT SPRINGFELS (1911-1984). The drawing is on paper laid on Masonite. Measurements are 28 5/8" by 22 3/4" and a 1 1/4" wood frame with considerable character and patina. There is a printed out note on the reverse which states that the artist exhibited at the Butler Art Institute of American Art in Youngstown, Ohio in 1965. Springfels was the original set designer for Cecil B. DeMille Motion ...

A pretty circa 1950 still life on Masonite board, 18" by 24" (26 1/2" by 32 1/2" framed), the subject given on the reverse as "Red Camellia Bouquet", signed at lower right and again on the reverse by German-born artist JOHN WILLIAM ORTH (1889-1976). Orth was born in Bavaria and studied art in Europe before fleeing for the United States in 1923 for political reasons. For a time he was in Texas and later painted in California, and he is today most associated with those states. Orth painted a wi...

An interesting painting of a brick church dramatically positioned in a rural landscape with distant mountains, the year 1898 appearing on the lintel over the door, signed at lower right corner "K. Shuck". Online research shows there was a Kenneth M. Shuck associated with the Springfield Museum of Art, having served as its second director, between 1951 and 1976. A 1954 photo online shows him standing in front of a Thomas Hart Benton painting. This may be by that individual. The painting, on can...

Oil on board painting of a harbor with small boats, 11 3/4" by 14", (15 1/2" by 17 1/2" in stained oak frame), said by a handwritten note on the reverse to be Morro Bay in central California. The note reads "View of Morro Bay/by Mary Harrington on trip of California coast with friends Mr. & Mrs. Dan Castro 1961". The painting might be signed by the artist at lower right; difficult to see among the browned varnish. There is a listing for an artist by this name but I cannot determine if the...

Oil on canvas painting of a child, 15" by 12" plus present framing several inches wide on a side, signed at lower left and dated there 1927 or possibly 1929. This is a work by the noted American woman impressionist, MARY FAIRCHILD LOW (1858-1946). Her skill in Impressionism was refined by her time at the Giverny art colony in France and on Cape Ann, Massachusetts. Note the impressionistically rendered clothing contrasted with the finished face. Low was born in New Haven, Connecticut to "Blue...