Harold Frank (American born in England, 1921-1995). "Our Stained Glass Nude" painting/mixed media on paper. Signed at lower right. A remarkable composition depicting an Abstract-Expressionist rendering of a female nude, comprised of geometric forms appearing almost as cut pieces of stained glass, all delineated with Frank's signature expressive loose brushstrokes, lyrical contouring lines, and vibrant color palette. According to scholar Sandie Stern, "Like his idol de Kooning, Frank chose the human figure, as his principal subject. Variations on women became a lifelong, consistent, ubiquitous theme." (Stern, "H. Frank", p. 16) A wonderful composition set in a custom matte and frame under glass. Size of painting: 12.5" W x 16" H (31.8 cm x 40.6 cm) Size of frame: 20.75" W x 25" H (52.7 cm x 63.5 cm)

Harold Frank immigrated with his family to the US through Ellis Island. Growing up in the tenements of the Lower East Side in New York City during the era of the Great Depression and World War II, Frank found Abstract Expressionism to be the ideal means to explore the angst of his world. He once stated, "I can live with the abstract. Life is a mystery."

Frank studied at the Art Students League in New York, the National Academy of Design, the Pratt Institute, the Chouinard Art Institute, and UCLA where he was a colleague of Richard Diebenkorn (American, 1922-1993), an artist who is oftentimes associated with Abstract Expressionism as well as a pioneer of the Bay Area Figurative Movement. In addition to Diebenkorn, Frank's influences include DeKooning, Picasso, Matisse, and Rouault. While he also created landscapes, non-objective abstract compositions, and still-life paintings, figures and head studies were the predominant theme of his oeuvre.

For more about Harold Frank, see Sandie Stern's monograph "Harold Frank Abstract Expressionist 1921-1995" (2001).

Provenance: private Santa Fe, New Mexico, USA collection, acquired via descent, purchased June 25, 1973

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#174798

Signed at lower right. Painting is mounted in a custom matte and frame under glass and is slightly loose. It has not been examined outside the frame but appears to be in excellent condition overall. Collection label on verso and a few minor scuffs to the frame that do not impact the artwork, otherwise excellent and fit with a suspension wire.