Walter Feldman (1925 – 2017). "King’s Pawn", 1949. Oil on Canvas. SLR. Dimensions: 36" x 24". Exhibited in the 1956 Providence Art Club & Artists Gallery. The King’s Pawn is a “spikey” painting not for the faint of heart collector but a prime example of the early modernist art period as battle torn artists return from WWII angry, disturbed and challenging political authorities. Does Feldman feel like he was the King’s pawn in the political intrigue of WWII? Is he not angry at returning home with a war injury that would plague him for life only to face a topsy-turvey art world transitioning from realism to a myriad of modernist ideas? This challenging painting confronts the viewer on many fronts and as such appealed to mentor Josepf Albers to recommend to the Artist Gallery in NYC, exhibiting emerging Post WWII painters such as Feldman. Feldman exhibited this work at the Artists Gallery, Lexington Ave, NYC in 1953 for his first one-man exhibition in his art career and then again at the 1956 Providence Art Club exhibition. Arriving in Providence in 1953 and settling into the Assistant Professor of Art position at Brown University, Feldman became a member of the Providence Art Club. In 1956 he had a one-person show at the club, exhibiting twenty-eight paintings including this challenging painting – The King’s Pawn. The young artist was transitioning from a strict realistic style to an expressive painting technique with vibrant colors. Contemporary painters at Rhode Island School of Design were suitably impressed with his artistic advancement following Feldman’s Yale art school graduation in 1951. The president of RISD, John Frazier and the art critic, Brad Swan, from the Providence Journal are two sources of local insight into the paintings of Feldman at the time. Feldman’s Yale undergraduate years lay the foundation for developing his technical skills. An additional benefit was being thrown into the dynamic art world where many American artists abandoned realism seeking a more meaningful and provocative painting language to reconcile the societal changes post war.

Good

36 x 24 in