An ink and wash with watercolor painting of a young Japanese geisha seen in profile in her kimono, her hair perfectly coiffed, 10 3/4" by 7 1/4", 15 3/4" by 12" in simple framing, signed lower left "Strasser/Kyoto" and nearby once again "Roland Strasser Kyoto" at center left. This is a fine work by a well-known Vienna-born artist of Basque descent, ROLAND STRASSER (1895-1974). The artist has been called online "the last of the orientalist romantics"...

A fine, early print, (16 3/4" by 13 1/2" in its simple black framing), is titled in the lower left margin "Pennsylvania Quaker", numbered nearby 32/50 and signed at lower right margin in pencil by the noted American artist, PETER HURD (1904-1984). This lithograph dates to 1936, when the artist was only in his early thirties. Hurd was born in New Mexico and attended military academy there before realizing he wanted to become an artist...

This is an exceptionally early, student work by the ultimately famous and important American-born artist who lived much of his life in Europe. The scene is of a group of fashionably dressed people listening to the guide at left, inside one of Florence's art museums, probably the Uffizi Gallery, the walls hung with pictures, a copyist at his easel, and other tourists gawking at right. The drawing is ink on paper laid on board, and is signed at lower right "Cucuel" and dated there "99"...

Original unique sculpture in clay or terra cotta, 11 1/2" by 6" by 6", mounted on a black 3" high base, signed on the sculpture "E. BARR", not dated but likely circa 1960's. I cannot to date find information on the artist but he/she was certainly a talent who was familiar with modern giants like Henry Moore, Jacques Lipchitz, Alexander Archipenko and others who worked in this manner, simplifying and glorifying the human form...

Heavy pencil on paper drawing, 6" by 15", unframed, signed at lower center and dated there '91, (see another very similar drawing I have listed), by the noted contemporary sculptor, ceramicist, designer and painter PETER SHIRE (1947-). This complex modern drawing is imaginative, three dimensional, and whimsical, and could only have been created by a true artist...

Lithograph on paper, the sheet 19 1/4" by 25 3/4", signed in pencil at lower right and numbered 156/275 at lower left, by important 20th century Spanish artist EMILIO GRAU-SALA (1911-1975). This is an example of the accomplished lithography of this major European artist, the paintings of whom command well into five figures at auctions in Europe and the USA...

**ONE OF TWO WORKS BY THIS ARTIST IN MY SHOP** This is a mixed media work on paper, (watercolor and gouache) 8 1/2" by 12", 16" by 19 1/2" as framed, signed at lower right in pencil by the artist "J Cl Imbert". The landscape scene includes a few trees and a small river rendered in subdued colors. Thee primary medium is watercolor but there are tiny spots of gouache, and possibly charcoal in the tree branches, and scratching technique. No foxing or damage.

A fine aquatint print circa 1930's, the subject one of the famous canals of old Bruges, Belgium, pencil signed at lower right margin by French artist FREDERIC LOUIS LEVE (1877-1968), and numbered in pencil 86 at lower left margin, where there is a blind stamp in the paper. Leve was a painter in oil and watercolor but is most widely known for his skill in aquatint, a form of etching which lends itself to creating prints that look very much like watercolor...

Irving Amen's works are most commonly prints, as he is considered a master print maker in woodblock, etching, lithography and silk screen; this example appears to be etching or etching with aquatint. He also executed oils and acrylics in the course of a long career. This work, titled at lower left in pencil "Tenderness" and numbered there 89/200 examples, is signed in pencil at lower right. The print measures 18 3/8" by 12 1/4" inside the mat (23 1/2" by 17 1/2" as framed)...

Watercolor on paper, 9 1/2" by 13 3/4" (16 1/2" by 20 1/2" as framed), the subject a 19th century shipwreck engulfed by waves on what appears to be an Atlantic ocean beach, some tiny sails visible on the distant horizon. The artist painted in New England and specifically on Nantucket so this could well be coastal New England. The watercolor is signed at lower left by the listed Ohio and Pennsylvania artist RUFUS WAY SMITH (1840-1900)...

This is an example of one of the more desirable and scarce Currier and Ives images, the "Skating Scene--Moonlight" of the year 1868, the image measuring 7 3/4" by 12 7/16", the sheet a somewhat irregularly cut 9 1/4" by 13 7/16"...

Watercolor on paper painting of a windmill, measuring 8 3/4" by 6" (14 1/2" by 11" framed), signed "A. L. Terrell" or similar at lower right, where the artist dated it "07" and added "The Hague". I do not see a listing by this name or similar possibilities, though there was an artist Adriaan Terhell who painted windmills in watercolor...

Japanese contemporary sculpture of a large Beetle, intricately detailed in leather and metal.

Dates Modern Contemporary
Size H 2 3/4" x W 10 1/2" x D 8"

Japanese deco period wood lacquer letter box, red/orange with a diagonal field of black sprinkled with mother of pearl and Tsugaru Nure texnique, bold design, signed as a dedication on back "Masakazu Chiba",

Dates c1930
Size H 1 1/2" x W 12" x D 9 1/4"

Oil on canvas painting of classic red highland cattle in an extensive landscape, signed at lower left "Louis B. Hurt" and titled in pencil on stretcher "on the cliffs as Malaige" (Mallaig) (on the southwestern coast of Scotland near Skye). The work measures 20" by 30" on the stretchers and 28" by 38" in heavy attractive late 20th century framing. On the stretcher is written in chalk "April 4 - 30"...

Richard Luney's paintings and prints of wildlife (generally African) have been popular since the 1970's. Luney, a Vietnam veteran, was already exhibiting by 1974 at Lord & Taylor Gallery in New York, according to a newspaper account of the time. The artist described his style as "contemporary surrealism"...

Sold together as a pair, unframed oil on masonite board paintings of trees in landscapes, the larger piece 30" by 40", the smaller one 24" by 35 1/2", both by the noted Santa Barbara/Ventura area California artist DOUGLAS SHIVELY (1896-1991). Shively was born in Santa Paula among the citrus and avocado groves, and he chose to continue to live in that scenic area his entire life, despite many overseas voyages. After serving in World War I he went into the banking business, ultimately reaching e...

Oil on masonite painting of a small adobe structure in a landscape, 11" by 14" and narrow frame, signed in green at lower left corner "Clapp". The work is impressionistic, and the subject suggestive of New Mexico. I checked with an authority on the works of Canadian/California artist William Henry Clapp (1879-1954) to see if he thought this might be by that artist, which would enhance its value significantly. He did not believe the work to be by that artist, citing style and signature, and sa...