Albert Pels Original Oil Painting on Unstretched Canvas "John, a Student"

Item Details

An original oil painting on unstretched canvas titled John, a Student by well-listed American genre painter and muralist Albert Pels (Cincinnati/New York; 1910 – 1998), created in 1947. The work depicts a young painter working in a three-dimensional alcove. The painter’s stretched canvas and palette break the space of the alcove. To the lower right corner, the work is signed by the artist in black paint. To the verso is a graphite inscription that reads, ‘John ’47 / a student’. Presented as a loose canvas without a frame.

Pels began his formal artistic training in his hometown at the Cincinnati Art Academy in 1931. Upon graduating, Pels further pursued his artistic career and moved to New York, refining his technique while continuing his education at the Art Students League, working under the likes of historically renowned artists Thomas Hart Benton, Kenneth Hayes Miller, and Alexander Brook. Pels went on to study at Beaux Arts and the American School, and in doing so established his distinctive, signature painting style and content for which he became recognized.

Sold to benefit a scholarship fund for the Art Academy of Cincinnati.

Condition

- fair; numerous pin-sized spots of paint loss, focused along the right edge of the piece; tears, creases, folds, and pin-sized holes in edges of canvas from previous stretching.

Dimensions

Item #

16CIN650-016