Esther Phillips Watercolor Painting on Paper Farm Scene

Item Details

Paper
Signed

Esther Phillips (Pittsburgh/New York; 1902-1983)
Untitled
Watercolor on paper
Signed to lower right
18’ W x 11.5’ H

A watercolor painting on paper board of a farm scene. Rendered with vibrant colors, simplified forms, and thick brushstrokes, this work features an abstracted farm scene in a hilly landscape, populated with a couple barns and trees. The work is signed ‘E. Phillips’ to the lower right; it is presented under glass with off-white matting and housed in a wood frame with a cherry brown finish.

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

- minor scratches throughout frame.

Dimensions

- measurement of frame; visible image measures approximately 18" W x 11.5" H.

Item #

18DCC307-031