Product Description
Charles W. Hess “Abstraction” Resin-oil on plexiglas, sheet aluminum 1948
CHARLES W. HESS (1921-1998) USA
Abstraction 1948
Resin-oil on plexiglas, sheet aluminum
Signed: CH (in a circle)
Exhibited: Solo Exhibition, Modernism, San Francisco, CA, 1981; Charles Hess and Leta English Hess: Joint Retrospective, University Art Gallery, University of California, Riverside, October 1 – November 10, 1985; Charles Hess: Neoplastic Works, Modernism, Art of the 20th Century, San Francisco, CA; June 6 – 29, 1991.
Painting illustrated: “On Transparency and Reflection,”
The Structurist No. 27/28, 1987/1988.
Painting H: 12” x W: 12” x D: 1”
Framed H: 22” x W: 22” x D: 1 1/2”
Price: $58,000
Born in 1921 in Long Beach, California, Charles Hess studied painting at UCLA, University of Chicago and University of California, Berkeley. In 1962 he joined the faculty of San Francisco State University where he taught until 1983. Hess’s paintings have been shown in numerous solo and group exhibitions including shows at the Pasadena Art Museum, the Corcoran Gallery of Art and the Art Institute of Chicago where his work is also in the permanent collection.
Working in the neo-plasticist style for over thirty years, Hess’s work explored the three-dimensional relationship between the basic elements of painting: color, form, and space. Abstraction is one of the few works to survive from this period; most pieces from this period were lost due to the 1991 fire in the Oakland, CA hills.
***Charles and Leta English Hess papers, 1895-1987 can be found at the Smithsonian Archives of American Art.
Included are ten letters from Stanton Macdonald-Wright to Hess (1954-1965) relating to his views of the relationship between patrons and artists, the 1956 Paris art scene, contemporary art criticism, the art market, and his break with the Duveen Graham Gallery.
Charles W. Hess “Abstraction” Resin-oil on plexiglas, sheet aluminum 1948
CHRISTIAN NEUREUTHER (1869-1921) Germany
WÄCHTERSBACHER STEINGUTFABRIK Germany
Cake tray c. 1906
Blue, gold and green glazed earthenware, silvered copper openwork mount
Marks: KAW CN mark, 911
For a related cake tray and information on Wächtersbach and Neureuther see: Wächtersbacher Steingut, Heinz and Lilo Frensch (Königstein im Taunus, Germany: Verlag Karl Robert Langewiesche, 1978), pp. 38-78, 137.
W: 17 ½” x D: 13 ½”
Price: $1,350
G.T. Marsh was established in 1876 in San Francisco, CA as one of the first purveyors of Japanese art and antiques. In the early 30’s Marsh, with the help of his Italian bench jeweler settled on a unique style that will always be indicative of the firm. Instead of using gold or platinum, the jeweler, who was interested in gun-smithing, created a line of jewels using sandblasted steel finished with gun bluing. This resulted in a rich dark mat black finish. Chased or milegrained white gold or platinum offset pearls, jade or diamonds set against the black ground of the steel. Movement also played a part in the design. Hinged pearls or gemstones added yet another distinct element to the work or exceptionally strong contrasting graphics. The use of diamonds on a grander scale with the dramatic outline of a classic paisley form, places this brooch mid-century and at a time when Marsh’s Jewelry boutique was particularly flourishing in the Bay area.