(b West Chester, Pennsylvania, 1888; d West Chester, Pennsylvania, 1946) American painter. While Horace Pippin demonstrated a proclivity for drawing from a young age, the entirely self taught artist did not focus on art in earnest until after World War I, when he returned to his hometown of West Chester, Pennsylvania. The initial progression was slow as he began decorating cigar boxes with charcoal, which evolved into burning images on wood panel, and finally to painting. While many of his early works depict war scenes, Pippin soon expanded his scope to include a variety of subjects including interiors, exteriors and biblically inspired works. Throughout his career he completed over 100 paintings, and his artistic accomplishments are even more impressive in light of an injury that he sustained in the war, which permanently hindered his use of his right arm. (Credit: Christie’s, New York, Important American Paintings, Drawings, and Sculpture, December 4, 2008, lot 122)
Horace Pippin 1888 - 1946 Portrait of Major-General Smedley D. Butler, U.S.M.C, Retired signed H. Pippin (lower right) oil on canvas 19 ¼ by 25 ⅛ in. 48.3 by 63.5 cm. Executed in 1937.
Horace Pippin (1888â1946) was an African American self-taught artist known for his unique and powerful paintings, particularly those depicting African American life and history. Here are key points about Horace Pippin:1. **Early Life**: Horace Pippin was born on February 22, 1888, in West Chester, Pennsylvania. He grew up in a working-class family and showed an early interest in drawing.2. **Military Service**: Pippin served in the U.S. Army during World War I. He was injured in combat, and a sniper's bullet severely damaged his right arm. Despite the injury, Pippin continued to draw and paint, using his left hand to support his right.3. **Self-Taught Artist**: Pippin was largely self-taught as an artist. He began drawing as a child and continued to develop his artistic skills throughout his life.4. **Artistic Beginnings**: Pippin started to gain recognition when his work was included in an exhibition organized by the Pennsylvania Academy of the Fine Arts in 1931. This marked the beginning of his career as a professional artist.5. **Themes and Subjects**: Pippin's paintings often depicted scenes of African American life, historical events, biblical stories, and everyday activities. He explored themes of racial identity, social justice, and the impact of war.6. **Symbolism and Personal Iconography**: Pippin developed a distinctive style that incorporated symbolism and personal iconography. His paintings were characterized by bold compositions, strong colors, and narrative elements.7. **Recognition and Exhibitions**: Pippin's work gained increasing recognition, and he had solo exhibitions in major galleries. His painting "The End of the War: Starting Home" won a special prize at the Carnegie International Exhibition in 1937.8. **Interest from Collectors and Museums**: Pippin's work attracted the attention of art collectors and museums. His paintings are now part of the collections of institutions such as the Metropolitan Museum of Art and the Philadelphia Museum of Art.9. **Legacy**: Horace Pippin is considered one of the leading African American artists of the early 20th century. His art reflects a deep engagement with issues of race, war, and humanity.10. **Death**: Horace Pippin passed away on July 6, 1946, in West Chester, Pennsylvania.11. **Posthumous Recognition**: Pippin's legacy has continued to grow posthumously. His contributions to American art, particularly as an African American artist during a challenging period in history, are increasingly acknowledged.12. **Books and Documentaries**: Several books and documentaries have been produced about Horace Pippin, further documenting his life and artistic achievements.Horace Pippin's ability to overcome personal challenges and create powerful and meaningful art has left a lasting impact on the art world. His paintings offer insights into the experiences of African Americans and the broader issues of his time. Measures 30 x 25.
Horace Pippin, attribution American, (1888-1946) Mother Africa 1937 pencil drawing on paper 15 x 11 inches signed, titled, dated inscribed verso, "Property of Berenice Abbott and given by Elizabeth McCausland New School. Pencil drawing by Horace Pippin 1937 title 'Mother Africa' sitter unknown." Catalog note: Abbott was an important photographer active in New York in the 1930s-40s, and her partner was Elizabeth McCausland, an influential art critic.
Horace Pippin (American, 1888-1946) Portrait of Major-General Smedley D. Butler, U.S.M.C. (Retired) Signed 'H. PIPPIN' bottom right, oil on canvas 19 1/4 by 25 1/8 in. (48.3 x 63.5cm) Executed in 1937-1938. Provenance The Artist. A gift from the above. Bernard F. Schlegel Post and Charles F. Moran Post, from the American Legion Post 134, West Chester, Pennsylvania. Acquired directly from the above in 1965. Collection of Philip D. Jamison, Jr., West Chester, Pennsylvania. Property from the Estate of Philip D. Jamison, Jr. Exhibited "Seventh Annual Exhibition," Chester County Art Center, West Chester, Pennsylvania, 1938 (as General Butler), on loan from the Artist. "Horace Pippin Exhibition," Carlen Galleries, Philadelphia, Pennsylvania, 1940. "Paintings by Horace Pippin," Bignou Gallery, New York, New York, 1940 (as Portrait of Major-General Smedley D. Butler). "Exhibition of Paintings by Horace Pippin," Arts Club of Chicago, Chicago, Illinois, 1941 (as Portrait of Major-General Smedley D. Butler, U.S.M.C., 1937). "Four Delaware Valley Primitives," Delaware Art Museum, Wilmington, Delaware, 1974, no. 52. "Horace Pippin Exhibition," Phillips Collection, Washington, D.C., February 25-March 27, 1977; also Terry Dintenfass Gallery, New York, New York, April 5-April 30, 1977; and Brandywine Museum of Art, Chadds Ford, Pennsylvania, June 4-September 7, 1977, no. 5 (traveling exhibition). "I Tell My Heart: The Art of Horace Pippin," Pennsylvania Academy of the Fine Arts, Philadelphia, Pennsylvania, January 21-April 17, 1994; also The Art Institute of Chicago, April 30-July 10, 1994; also Cincinnati Art Museum, July 28-October 9, 1994; also The Baltimore Museum of Art, October 26, 1994-January 1, 1995; and the Metropolitan Museum of Art, New York, February 1-April 30, 1995, no. 22 (traveling exhibition). Literature George H. Straley, "General Butler Pleased with Portrait, Especially Way Artist Painted Nose" in Daily Local News, 1938. William J. Johnston, "West Chester Post 162" in Pippin Clippings Scrapbook, Robert Carlen Papers, Archives of American Art, 1940. Selden Rodman, Horace Pippin: A Negro Painter in America, The Quadrangle Press, New York, 1947, p. 13, no. 20 (listed, not illustrated). Romare Bearden, et al., Horace Pippin, an exhibition catalogue, The Phillips Collection, Washington D.C., 1977, p. 13, no. 5 (illustrated as Major-General Smedley D. Butler, U.S.M.C, Retired). Sarah J. Wilson, Horace Pippin: A Chester County Artist, Chester County Historical Society, West Chester, 1988, Vol. 8. Judith E. Stein, I Tell My Heart: The Art of Horace Pippin, an exhibition catalogue, Pennsylvania Academy of the Fine Arts, Philadelphia, 1993, no. 88, pp. 96, 102, 104, 167, 179, 187 and 196, no. 22 (illustrated p. 102). Romare Bearden and Harry Henderson, A History of African American Artists from 1792 to the Present, Pantheon Books, New York, 1993, p. 363 (illustrated). Audrey Lewis, Horace Pippin: The Way I See It, Scala Arts Publishers, Inc., New York, 2015, pl. 20 (illustrated). Celeste Marie Bernier, Suffering and Sunset: World War I in the Art and Life of Horace Pippin, Temple University Press, Philadelphia, 2015, p. 125 (illustrated). Anne Monahan, Isabelle Duvernois and Silvia A. Centeno, "'Working My Thought More Perfectly': Horace Pippin's 'The Lady of the Lake'" in The Metropolitan Museum Journal, vol. 52, 2017, pp. 104, 107, n2. Katherine Jentleson, Gatecrashers: The Rise of the Self-Taught Artist in America, University of California Press, Oakland, 2020, p. 83 (illustrated). Anne Monahan, Horace Pippin: American Modern, Yale University Press, New Haven, 2020, pp. 6, 37, 50-51, 67, 118, 120-21, 157, 164-65, 174 and 197, no. 57 (illustrated). Note Horace Pippin, a titan of 20th-century painting and one of Philadelphia’s favorite sons, executed his portrait of West Chester, Pennsylvania native Major-General Smedley Darlington Butler in 1937. Over a 34-year career in the United States Marine Corps, Butler served with distinction in far-reaching military actions, including the Spanish-American War, the Boxer Rebellion in China, and in France during World War I. Nicknamed the “Fighting Quaker,” he retired in 1931 as the most decorated marine in U.S. history, earning 16 military medals—5 of them for valor—and the Medal of Honor twice. Following his retirement, Butler emerged as an outspoken critic of American interventionism. His 1935 speech (and subsequent book), War is a Racket, offered a sharp rebuke: “In the World War a mere handful garnered the profits of the conflict. At least 21,000 new millionaires and billionaires were made in the United States during the World War...How many of these war millionaires shouldered a rifle?...The general public shoulders the bill...For a great many years, as a soldier, I had a suspicion that war was a racket; not until I retired to civil life did I fully realize it. Now that I see the international war clouds gathering, as they are today, I must face it and speak out.” Pippin’s portrait offers a visual analogue to the General’s comments. Against a blue sky, Butler is flanked by a ribbon-like cloud formation—“international war clouds,” arguably. Outfitted in full regalia, his military achievements–and record of meritorious service–are on full display. Butler’s mouth, slightly agape, alludes to his outspokenness. Bright colors, flattened forms, and an uncomplicated perspective are characteristic of Pippin’s self-taught, non-academic style. Alongside religious subjects, recollections of his own WWI service, and sympathetic renderings of the African-American experience, his body of work–and the present painting in particular–pays tribute to heroes both historical and contemporary, national and local.
Important Painting Oil on Board by Horace Pippin, American (1888-1946), Signed Lower Left. Horace Pippin was a self taught American black artist. And some of his best known works addresses the US history of slavery and racial segregation. This painting comes from an Estate of a Pennsylvania Collector who purchased it directly from Horace Pippin. Condition: Generally Good Condition. Dimensions: Sight- 20" x 16", Frame- 24" x 20". Provenance: From a Pennsylvania Estate. Please note the absence of a condition report does not imply that there are no condition issues with this lot. Please contact us for a detailed condition report.
Artist: Horace Pippin, American (1888 - 1946) Title: Summer Flowers with Two Chairs Year: 1994 Medium: Poster on board Size: 27.75 x 30.75 in. (70.49 x 78.11 cm)
Horace Pippin (1888-1946) Flowers oil on canvas8 1/4 x 10inPainted in 1946. Provenance: The artist.Estate of the above.Carlen Galleries, Philadelphia, Pennsylvania, 1946.Mr. and Mrs. David Flood, Philadelphia, Pennsylvania, acquired from the above, 1946.By descent to the present owner.LiteratureS. Rodman, Horace Pippin: A Negro Painter in America, New York, 1947, p. 88, no. 120.J.E. Stein, I Tell My Heart: The Art of Horace Pippin, Philadelphia, Pennsylvania, 1993, p. 203.
Attrb. Horace Pippin (American, 1888-1946). Oil on canvas of Lenape Park, PA. Signed lower right "H. Pippin". With letter from Stephen Bruni, former director of the Delaware Art Museum, stating that he feels confident that the painting can be attributed to the hand of Horace Pippin. 16 in x 12 in.
DESCRIPTION: Horace Pippin (American, 1888-1946). Mother Africa. 1937. Pencil on off-white wove paper. Signed, dated, titled, and inscribed, "New York," lower right. Inscribed "Property of Berenice Abbott and given by Elizabeth McCausland New School. Pencil drawing by Horace Pippin 1937 Title 'Mother Africa' sitter unknown," verso. Horace Pippin was born in Pennsylvania and became a Self-Taught artist after his combat experience in World War I. His paintings are in collections at the Hishorn, Philadelphia Museum of Art, and the Phillips Collection, San Francisco Museum of Art, and the Pennsylvania Academy of the Fine Arts. Berenice Abbott (1898-1991) was a photographer best known for her black and white images of urban design of the 1930's. Elizabeth McCausland was a New York art critic with whom Abbott lived from 1935 until McCausland's death in 1965. Pippin and Abbott were both members of the Social Realism movement. MEASUREMENTS: 15" x 11". CONDITION: Minor tear on right side, creased on lower left corner, and slightly stained.
HORACE PIPPIN (AMERICAN, 1888-1946) Oil on canvas. Village by the sea. Signed lower right. Marjak Studios, New York label on the stretcher, from his Landscape Series. 20 x 26."
Horace Pippin (1888-1946) Fishing in the Brandywine: Early Fall signed 'H. Pippin' (lower right) oil on canvas 25 x 35 in. (63.5 x 88.9 cm.) Painted in 1932.
ATTRIBUTED TO HORACE PIPPIN (American, 1888-1946) PRIMITIVE STILL LIFE. Oil on canvas scene shows a gray double handled vase having a large colorful bouquet of flowers. Alongside is a Staffordshire ceramic figure of a seated cat. They both sit on a table draped in a red cloth, all against a black background. Housed in what appears to be its original gesso decorated gilt antique frame. There is a label on back which indicates that it was bought from Robert Carlen PA. Robert Carlen was agent for Horace Pippin. SIZE: 17" x 14". CONDITION: Craquelure, very good. 9-93036 (5,000-10,000)
PROPERTY FROM THE ESTATE OF MARJORIE S. LOGGIA VICTORY GARDEN measurements 9 3/4 by 12 in. alternate measurements (24.8 by 30.5 cm) signed H. Pippin, l.r. oil on canvas Painted in 1943. PROVENANCE The Downtown Gallery, New York Philip Loeb Mr. and Mrs. J.S. Sloan, New York By descent to the present owner (their daughter) EXHIBITED American Primitive Painting Exhibition in Europe, n.d. Amherst, Massachusetts, Mead Museum; Saint Paul, Minnesota, Hamline Museum; West Palm Beach, Florida, Norton Gallery and School of Art; Decatur, Georgia, Agnes Scott College; New Orleans, Louisiana, Arts and Crafts Club, Seven American Painters (Organized by the Museum of Modern Art, New York), 1944 Washington, D.C., The Phillips Collection; New York, Terry Dintenfass Gallery; Chadds Ford, Pennsylvania, Brandywine River Museum, Horace Pippin, February-September 1977, no. 35, illustrated in color Philadelphia, Pennsylvania, Pennsylvania Academy of the Fine Arts; Chicago, Illinois, Art Institute of Chicago; Cincinnati, Ohio, Cincinnati Art Museum; Baltimore, Maryland, Baltimore Museum of Art; New York, The Metropolitan Museum of Art, I Tell My Heart: The Art of Horace Pippin, January 1994-April 1995, no. 75, pp. 120, 121, 200, illustrated in color pl. 117 NOTE Judith E. Stein writes in I Tell My Heart: The Art of Horace Pippin, "Even wartime disruption figures prominently as a staging element for several of the still lifes and 'Victorian' interiors. Victory Vase of 1942 and Victory Garden of 1943 acknowledge World War II two years before Pippin deplored its violence in the Edenic settling of the Holy Mountain series. Both Victory Vase and Victory Garden were products of the community victory gardens that sprang up across the country to meet wartime shortages and calls to rally the domestic front."
Horace Pippin, American (1888 - 1946) "fishing through ice" Oil on wood board. Signed lower right, "H. Pippin" 12 in. x 14 in PROVENANCE: Exhibitions: "I Tell My Heart: The Art of Horace Pippin", The Pennsylvania Academy of the Fine Arts 1/21 - 4/17/94; the Art Institute of Chicago 4/28 - 7/10/94; The Cincinnati Art Museum 7/28 - 10/9/94; The Baltimore Museum of Art 10/26 -12/31/94. Labels: The above, the Down Town Gallery Peale House Galleries, Robert Carlen Gallery
JULIUS BLOCH (American 1888-1966) HORACE PIPPIN signed, inscribed and dated " 1946 " , charcoal 10 1/4 x 8 3/8 in and a quantity of other drawings (approx 16) (all unframed)
