French School

20th Century French Modernist Oil Two Figures on Beach with Sea & Jetty

Boy's Messy Room by Helen Greenfield (British 20th century) gouache painting on thin board, unframed board: 28 x 24 inches condition: overall very good provenance: all the paintings ...

Cubist Portrait French, mid 20th century signed oil on board, unframed Board: 16 x 13 inches Provenance: private collection, Paris, France Condition: very good condition Description...

Flamenco, Surrealist Impressionist Oil Painting, Signed By British artist, Kate Orr, late 20th Century Signed by the artist on the lower right hand corner Signed by the artist verso ...

Colourful Model, Surrealist Impressionist Oil Painting, Signed By British artist, Kate Orr, late 20th Century Inscribed into the paint by the artist on the lower right hand corner Si...

A whimsical depiction of a woman stepping out in NYC with her little dog. This piece captures the essence of fashion in New York. Done in a very modern and impressionistic style, the...

A lively, impressionistic depiction of a couple embracing a Kiss in the snowy streets of New York City. We are whisked away in this romantic scene with the emotion and dynamic compos...

Childhood, a reoccurring theme in Darlene Cole’s work, is represented by prepubescent girls and boys, engaged in some type of action. Without adult supervision, these activities confer on Cole’s children an adult-like aura, empowering them. The artist cites Neil Postman’s 1982 book about the decline in innocence in American culture The Disappearance of Childhood as a text that informs her work. In it, Postman argues that communications technology, such as the invention of the television and later, the Internet, contributed to children losing their innocence, thus transforming them into young adults. A source of inspiration for Cole are the works of the Pre-Raphaelite Brotherhood, a group of English painters, poets and critics, founded in 1848. They studied nature attentively, employed vivid colours and depicted unconventional-looking women. Just like in Pre-Raphaelite works, the girls in Cole’s paintings embody enigma, distance, and beauty. The past, in general, is a great source of inspiration for the artist. Cole’s cottage, or ‘artist’s retreat’ as she calls it, was built at the beginning of the 20th century. Since she kept all the original furniture and linens intact, the cottage, on the side of a lake, seems to belong to the past. Nature, another omnipresent theme in Cole’s work, is in many works represented by flowers, such as pink David Austin roses...

Childhood, a reoccurring theme in Darlene Cole’s work, is represented by prepubescent girls and boys, engaged in some type of action. Without adult supervision, these activities confer on Cole’s children an adult-like aura, empowering them. The artist cites Neil Postman’s 1982 book about the decline in innocence in American culture The Disappearance of Childhood as a text that informs her work. In it, Postman argues that communications technology, such as the invention of the television and later, the Internet, contributed to children losing their innocence, thus transforming them into young adults. A source of inspiration for Cole are the works of the Pre-Raphaelite Brotherhood, a group of English painters, poets and critics, founded in 1848. They studied nature attentively, employed vivid colours and depicted unconventional-looking women. Just like in Pre-Raphaelite works, the girls in Cole’s paintings embody enigma, distance, and beauty. The past, in general, is a great source of inspiration for the artist. Cole’s cottage, or ‘artist’s retreat’ as she calls it, was built at the beginning of the 20th century. Since she kept all the original furniture and linens intact, the cottage, on the side of a lake, seems to belong to the past. Nature, another omnipresent theme in Cole’s work, is in many works represented by flowers, such as pink David Austin roses...