Esther Phillips 1950s Watercolor Folk Art Painting of Still Life

Item Details

Esther Phillips (Pittsburgh/New York; 1902-1983)
Untitled, 1950s
Watercolor painting with ink embellishments on paper
Signed “E. Phillips” to the lower right

A watercolor painting on paper by well-listed artist Esther Phillips, created in the 1950s. The work features a still life arrangement comprised of wide and simplistic delineations filled with rich bleeding pigments. The piece is signed ‘E. Phillips’ to the lower right. An informational sheet is included to the verso. The composition is presented beneath matting and unframed.

Esther Phillips left Pittsburgh in the late 1930s to pursue a bohemian lifestyle in Greenwich Village. A member of the Associated Artists of Pittsburgh, she immersed herself into local artistic circles, and among her artist friends were modernists Milton Weiss (American; 1912-1995) and Franz Kline (American; 1910-1962). Phillips’ work was often executed in watercolors at a quick pace, exhibiting the influence of Fauvism, Cubism, and artists such as Stuart Davis, Arthur Dove, and Georgia O’Keeffe. Frequent subjects include abstracted cityscapes, townscapes, and asylum scenes that feature vibrant colors, simple shapes, and overall flatness. Her work has been exhibited posthumously at multiple galleries such as the Carson Street Gallery, the Pittsburgh Center for the Arts, and the Borelli-Edwards Gallery, among others.

Condition

- wear, minor perforations, tears, minor stains and toning throughout the matting; negligible toning throughout the composition.

Dimensions

- measures the matting; sight size 19" W x 14.25" H.

Item #

ITMG073848