Mitchell Siporin (American, 1910-1976) Rembrandt and Spinoza, c. 1959-60 watercolor on paper signed Mitchell Siporin (lower right) 40 x 26 inches. Property from the Estate of Shirley Mann, Chicago, Illinois Provenance: Nordness Gallery, New York
Mitchell Siporin (American, 1910-1976) Study for Mural, Region #10 (Chicago) ink on paperboard 15 3/4 x 20 inches. Property from the Estate of Shirley Mann, Chicago, Illinois
Mitchell Siporin (American, 1910-1976) Display, 1951 oil on masonite signed Mitchell Siporin and dated (lower right) 8 1/2 x 12 1/2 inches. Provenance: The Collection of Mr. and Mrs. Stephen A. Stone, purchased in February, 1954 Gifted to The Brockton Art Center Fuller Memorial, Brockton, Massachusetts Sold: Skinner Inc., May 19, 2006, Lot 436 The Philip and Suzanne Schiller Collection of American Social Commentary Art, 1930 - 1970, Highland Park, Illinois Exhibited: Brockton, Massachusetts, Brockton Art Museum-Fuller Memorial, Forty Years with Art: Selections from the Stone Collection, Fall 1982 Waltham, Massachusetts, Rose Art Museum at Brandeis University, Mitchell Siporin: A Retrospective, May 11 - June 30, 1976, no. 53
Mitchell Siporin (American, 1910-1976) Displaced Family, 1939 oil on canvas signed Mitchell Siporin and dated (lower right) 12 x 16 inches. Provenance: F. B. Horowitz Fine Art, Ltd., Hopkins, Minnesota The Philip and Suzanne Schiller Collection of American Social Commentary Art, 1930 - 1970, Highland Park, Illinois
Mitchell Siporin (American, 1910-1876) Painting. Title - Around the Fountain 1947. Casein painting on artist's board. Signed lower right Mitchell Siporin. Retains multiple museum loan labels on the back. Philadelphia Museum of Art, Rose Art Museum Brandeis University, Downtown Gallery and Watter Collection. Painting measures 28 inches high, 21.2 inches wide. The original frame measures 34.7 inches high, 24.2 inches wide. One of the labels notes that it is gouache but inside the frame on the back of the painting it has the title and casein in the artist's hand. In good condition. Biography from Butler Institute of American Art: Mitchell Siporin contributed illustration work to Esquire and The New Masses, the latter a socialist journal. During the 1930s Depression, he was one of the WPA (Works Progress Administration) artists and received a commission along with Edward Millman to do the largest mural commissioned under the Federal Arts Project. During World War II he had one-man shows at the Downtown Gallery in New York, and was part of the group show at the Metropolitan entitled Pintura Contemporanea Norteamericana which also toured Mexico and South America. He received the Florsheim prize from the Art Institute of Chicago and was collected by the Whitney Museum of American Art, the Metropolitan and the Museum of Modern Art. After the war he was awarded a Guggenheim and later the Prix de Rome from the American University. He settled in Massachusetts where he founded the Department of Fine Art at Brandeis University.
Mitchell Siporin (1910-1976) THE FAMILY; WORKERS FAMILY (2) A lithograph, an ink and graphite heightened with white on paper and a linocut of the same image, 1937, the first signed and titled in pencil, the second and third initialed and inscribed with the artist's name by the artist's daughter, Judith Siporin, in pencil, with margins, unframed. (3) Largest image 9 1/8 x 13 inches; 232 x 330 mm. C A New England Collection
Mitchell Siporin (American, 1910-1976) End of an Era, 1946 oil on canvas signed Mitchell Siporin and dated (lower right) 52 x 40 inches. Provenance: The Artist Downtown Gallery, New York, acquired directly from the above Sold: Sotheby Parke Bernet, New York, May 16, 1973, Lot 71 Dr. Robert Atkins, New York Acquired by the present owner, 2003 Exhibited: Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania, Carnegie Institute of Technology, Painting in the United States, October 10 - December 8, 1946, no. 180 Philadelphia, Pennsylvania Academy of the Fine Arts, One Hundred and Forty Second Annual Exhibition of Painting and Sculpture, January 26 - March 2, 1947, no. 107 Chicago, Art Institute of Chicago, 51st Annual Exhibition by Artists of Chicago and Vicinity, June 5 - August 17, 1947, no. 149, pl. 1, illus. New York, Downton Gallery, Mitchell Siporin: I'll Be Home Soon, October - November 1947 (the painting also exhibited at Downtown Gallery in 1954 and 1957) New York, American Federation of Arts, A Collector's Choice: Selections by William H. Lane, September 1957 - September 1958, no. 20 Waltham, Massachusetts, Brandeis University, Rose Art Museum, Mitchell Siporin: A Retrospective, May 11 - June 30, 1976, no. 29, pp. 7-8; 14; 30, illus. Literature: C.H. Bonte, "Modernism in Art is Strongly Stressed in 142nd Annual Exhibition at Academy," The Philadelphia Inquirer, January 26, 1947, p. 58 Ivan Le Lorraine Albright, "Chicago Art Exhibition Shakes Provincialism," Chicago Herald-American, June 4, 1947 C.J. Bulliet, "Army Artist Wins in Chicago Show," Chicago Daily News, June 14, 1947 Judith Hansen O'Toole, Mitchell Siporin, The Early Years: 1930-1950, New York, 1990, p. 8 Andrew Hemingway, Artists on the Left: American Artists and the Communist Movement: 1926-1956, pp. 233; 235 Elizabeth Maynard, "˜Monster' Masculinity: The Veteran-Artist and Figural Representation in Postwar Chicago, 1946-1959, 2014, PhD dissertation, McGill University, pp. 161-162; 228 Maggie Taft, Robert Cozzolino, Judith R. Kirshner, and Erin Hogan, Art in Chicago: A History from the Fire to Now, Chicago, 2018, fig. 4.1, pp. 138-39 Lot note: A politically active artist committed to social justice, Mitchell Siporin's 1946 End of an Era celebrates the end of Fascism in Italy and commemorates his experiences as an artist-war correspondent during World War II, where he was assigned to North Africa and Italy from 1942-1945. Born to a union organizer father and artist mother, Siporin's parents instilled in him a lifelong commitment to human rights. Before the war, he studied at Chicago's School of the Art Institute from 1928 to 1932 and worked with the politically active Jewish American artist Todros Geller. Siporin also contributed drawing and cartoons throughout the "˜30s to left-leaning publications such as the New Masses. From 1937 to 1942 he painted public murals for the Works Progress Administration (WPA), including a mural for Lane Tech College Prep High School in Chicago and for the St. Louis central post office, which was the largest single government commission of the WPA. In these works, Siporin understood and recognized the influence of the Mexican muralists Jose Clemente Orozco, Diego Rivera, and David Alfaro Siqueiros, who fused a mural style inspired by frescos of the Italian Renaissance with contemporary subjects and issues to express strong political views. Exhibited in 1947 at the Art Institute of Chicago's 51st Annual Exhibition by Artists of Chicago and Vicinity, End of an Era won the exhibition's most prestigious prize, the Logan Medal. It was also well received in the 1947 Downtown Gallery's exhibition, Mitchell Siporin: I'll Be Home Soon. A reviewer succinctly described the work, which also applied to others by the artist during this period: "In oil or casein, Siporin's rigidly controlled art, influenced by such Renaissance artists as Benozzo Gozzoli, is geared to tell us a story, most often the story of war and its aftermath in Italy. As he feels that the people, the wars, and the history of Italy are all of a piece, so he fuses quattrocentro composition, with modern distortion and almost surrealistic juxtaposition of imagery. Built up from countless glowing glazes, his pictures are elaborate, fascinating mosaics from which no section can be removed" ("Siporin," ARTnews, October 1947, p. 27). End of an Era is less real than surreal, with subdued color and minimal surface handling.Fragments of scenes combine to recreate the turmoil of war, including funerals, congregants venerating the Virgin Mary, groupings of military figures, and the hanging figures of dictator Benito Mussolini and his mistress Clara Petacci, who were executed by Italian partisans in 1945. The word "Avanti" can be seen painted in the upper right of the canvas and may allude to Avanti!, an Italian newspaper that was the official voice of the Italian Socialist party. The frieze-like presentation harks back to Siporin's socio-historical murals of the 1930s, while the expressionistic style explores the war's physical and psychological after math. During his time as a correspondent, Siporin witnessed the chaos and devastation caused by the war, and this trauma continued to echo in his work after his return to the United States. End of an Era "...was a public statement of mourning for what he had seen in Europe. It attempted to conjure an image of hope through closure, laying to rest a period that resulted in unprecedented destruction" (Robert Cozzolino, "Raw Nerves, 1948-1937," Art in Chicago: A History from the Fire Until Now, Chicago, 2018, p. 138). Although it garnered criticism from some, the painting struck a chord with exhibition jurors who held similar political views as the artist. It is panoramic in scope and open-ended in interpretation. It shows the past and holds the artist's hope of a society that chooses to build a brighter, better future.
MITCHELL SIPORIN The Steel Puddlers. Casein on paper, 1949. 485x608 mm; 19x24 inches. Signed and dated in casein, lower right recto. Exhibited "Mitchell Siporin: A Retrospective," Rose Art Museum Waltham, Massachusetts, 1976, number 49; "Mitchell Siporin: The Early Years 1930-1950," Babcock Galleries, New York, 1990, number 24; "Mitchell Siporin: Paintings and Unique Works on Paper 1930-1949," Susan Teller Gallery, 2004, number 19. Ex-collection the estate of the artist; Susan Teller Gallery, New York, with the label on the frame back; sold Doyle, New York, June 29, 2016, lot 102; private collection, New York.
MITCHELL SIPORIN (1910-1976) Dream of the Good Life. Casein on illustration board, 1941. 673x953 mm; 26 1/2x37 1/2 inches. Signed, Mitchell Siporin, and dated, 41, lower right. Inscribed as titled on verso. Exhibited: Museum of Modern Art, New York, Americans 1942: Eighteen Artists from Nine States, 1942; Institute of Contemporary Art, Boston, Milestones of American Painting in Our Century, 1949; Rose Art Museum, Waltham, MA, Mitchell Siporin: A Retrospective, 1976; Susan Teller Gallery, Mitchell Siporan: Paintings and Unique Works on Paper, 1930 to 1949, Oct. 2-30, 2004, no. 7 Literature: Miller, Dorothy, Americans 1942: Eighteen Artists from Nine States,Museum of Modern Art, ilus., 116. 1942; Goodrich, Lloyd, Milestones of American Painting in Our Century,Institute of Contemporary Art, Boston, illus., p.83, plate 25., 1949; Belz, Carl, Mitchell Siporin: A Retrospective, Rose Art Museum, Waltham, MA, illus., plate 24, 1976. Siporin completed a four panel fresco for the Lane Tech College Prep High School Auditorium, Chicago, Illinois in 1938. That same year he completed a three panel mural for the Decantur, Illinois Post Office. Along side Edward Millman, Siporin completed murals for the Main Post Office, Saint Louis, Missouri, 1942. This was the largest mural project awarded for a post office.
MITCHELL SIPORIN Woodstock Idyll, Yasuo and Sara Kuniyoshi. Color pastels and gouache on cream wove paper, 1957. 655x900 mm; 25 3/4x35 1/4 inches. Signed in gouache, lower right recto. Exhibited "A Series of Imaginary Interviews," The Downtown Gallery, New York, September 17-October 5, 1957, number 2. Ex-collection the estate of E.G. Halpert, with the label on the frame back; The Downtown Gallery, New York, with the label on the frame back; private collection, New Jersey.
Watercolor and pencil on paper, 1957, signed 'Mitchell Siporin' lower right, with label from The Downtown Gallery, NY.22 x 30 1/2 in. (sheet), 31 3/4 x 39 in. (frame).
Mitchell Siporin American 1910-1976 North Africa, 1943 Signed Mitchell Siporin, dated 1943 and inscribed as titled (lr) Ink on paper 18 1/4 x 12 1/2 inches Unframed Provenance: Susan Teller Gallery, New York C The Patricia and Donald Oresman Collection
Mitchell Siporin American, 1910-1976 Conversation, Max Weber and Rousseau, circa 1957 Watercolor on paper 21 x 29 inches Unframed Provenance: [Sale] Wright, Chicago, The American Scene: Art of the 1930s and 1940s, May 15, 2001, lot no. 420 C The Patricia and Donald Oresman Collection
Mitchell Siporin (American 1910-1976)- ''Souvenir of 1941''- lithograph in color, 1941, signed, titled and numbered 9/40 in pencil, tape residue and some staining in margin, triangle shaped holes, one in upper right and one in lower left in image, possibly registration holes. 17 x 11 1/2''
Mitchell Siporin (American, 1910-1976) Thanksgiving, from the Haymarket series Ink on paper 21 x 14-3/4 inches (53.3 x 37.5 cm) (sight) Signed lower right: Siporin PROVENANCE: Collection of Edith Gregor Halpert, New York; Butterfields & Butterfields, San Francisco, California, March 5, 1974, lot 100; Private collection, Northern California; Bonhams & Butterfields, Los Angeles, California, July 19, 2009, lot 2168; Acquired by the present owner from the above. HID04901242017
Mitchell Siporin American, 1910-1976 Voyager with Indian, 1942 Signed Mitchell Siporin, inscribed Detail of St. Louis Frescoes and dated 1942 (ll) Tempera on Masonite 14 7/8 x 17 7/8 inches Provenance: Babcock Galleries, New York C A New England Collection
Mitchell Siporin Am. Workmen in Foundry, 19030's Signed "Siporin" l.r. Charcoal 11 1/2 x 18 1/4 in. 29.2 x 46.4 cm Property of a Connecticut collector Provenance: Spanierman Gallery, New York To the current owner
Mitchell Siporin American, 1910-1976 (i) Civil War: Study for a Mural, 1940 Tempera on paper 4 1/4 x 14 inches (ii) Reconstruction: Study for a Mural, 1940 Tempera on paper 4 1/4 x 14 inches Provenance: Babcock Galleries, New York C A New England Collection
Mitchell Siporin American, 1910-1976 Studies for a Mural: Two The first inscribed Mitchell Siporin (J.S.) (lr), ink and graphite on paper, sight 7 1/2 x 21 1/8 inches; the second tempera on paper, sight 6 x 19 3/4 inches Provenance: Babcock Galleries, New York C A New England Collection
Mitchell Siporin American, 1910-1976 (i) George Rogers Clark and Daniel Boone: Study for a Mural, 1940 Tempera on Masonite 4 1/2 x 14 inches (ii) Discovery and Colonization: Study for a Mural, 1940 Tempera on Masonite 4 1/2 x 14 inches Provenance: Babcock Galleries, New York Susan Teller Gallery, New York C A New England Collection
Mitchell Siporin American, 1910-1976 Fiesta in Pantelleria, 1943 Inscribed as titled, dated July 18, 1943 and signed M. Siporin (lr) Gouache on paper Sight 12 7/8 x 18 1/2 inches Provenance: Estate of the artist [Susan Teller Gallery, New York] Exhibited: New York, Babcock Galleries, Mitchell Siporin: The Early Years, 1930-1950, Mar. 10 - Apr. 3, 1990 New York, Susan Teller Gallery, Mitchell Siporin: Paintings and Unique Works on Paper, 1930-1949, Oct. 2 - 30, 2004 C A New England Collection
Mitchell Siporin American, 1910-1976 Dream of the Good Life, 1941 Signed Mitchell Siporin and dated '41 (lr) Casein on illustration board Sight 25 x 35 1/4 inches Provenance: Estate of the artist [Susan Teller Gallery, New York] C A New England Collection
Mitchell Siporin American, 1910-1976 The Steel Puddlers, 1949 Signed Mitchell Siporin and dated '49 (lr); inscribed as titled on an old label affixed to the backing Casein on paper Sight 17 1/2 x 22 5/8 inches Provenance: Estate of the artist [Susan Teller Gallery, New York] Exhibited: New York, Babock Galleries, Mitchell Siporin, The Early Years, 1930-50, 1990 New York, Susan Teller Gallery, Mitchell Siporin, Oct. 2004 C A New England Collection
Mitchell Siporin (American 1910-1976)- ''Souvenir of 1941''- lithograph in colors, 1941, signed, titled and numbered 10/40 in pencil, tape marks at 4 corners recto and some verso. 16 7/8 x 11 3/4''
Mitchell Siporin (American 1910-1976)- ''British Tank Bivouac''- pen and ink and wash on paper, 1943, signed and annotated 'British Eighth Army Tank/ Bivouac at Constantine'/ Siporin 1943- lower right, minor soiling otherwise good condition. 11 1/2 x 16 1/2'' Provenance: Downtown Gallery, New York
Mitchell Siporin (American, 1910-1976) "Mother and Child," c. 1940, oil on canvas applied to a three-panel screen, each panel: 17"w x 68"h, signed lower right
SIPORIN, Mitchell, (American, 1910-1976): "Family Portrait", Lithograph, sight size 20 3/4" x 15 1/2", pencil signed lower right, titled lower left and dedicated to Peter Pollack, famed photographer and art historian and collector, silver gilt frame with wear, 30 1/2" x 25". Starting Bid USD $ 150
