Born on May 21, 1471 in the Imperial City of Nuremberg (Germany), he was a master painter, writer, innovator, art theorist and printmaker. He is generally regarded as the greatest German Renaissance artist. He elevated engraving to a fine art and pioneered the etching process. These engravings, woodcuts and etchings are quite rare and eminently collectable museum pieces, perfect for the collector who enjoys art and history. Today his work is found in museums and collected internationally.
One of the most prolific engravers of his day, Goltzius belongs among the Dutch Mannerists. He was the leading light at the end of the sixteenth century in the academic movement in Haarlem, which was devoted to the study of the nude and artistic theory. In 1590-91 he was in Italy. Around 1600 he took up painting, drawing his subjects from classical mythology, but he is remembered today largely fro his engravings and drawings.
Sir Francis Seymour Haden is most recognized for his beautiful pastoral etchings and engravings of the English countryside. He worked quickly en plein air (out of doors), like future impressionist painters, to capture the continually changing effects of light on the environment. A master of light and shadow he also used the drypoint technique to achieve that impressive sense of depth seen in his etchings. Elevating prints to a collectable form, Haden influenced future generations of printmakers and artists worldwide.
“Les Maitres de l’Affiche” (The Masters of the Poster) is one of the most prestigious and influential art publications in history. In 1886 Jules Cheret paired up with a Parisian printing company and began printing smaller versions of many of the advertisement posters that graced Europe and America alike. Offered as a subscription series to collectors and released monthly for 60 months subscribers received a package by mail containing four loose lithograph posters, the first of which was always by Cheret. On 16 special occasions, the monthly edition also contained a fifth bonus plate, a specially created art lithograph. Both rare and highly desirable Atlas Galleries is proud to present our copious collection of prints from “Les Maitres de l’Affiche”.
Mortimer Menpes is considered one of the most important etchers of the latter half of the 19th century. Born in Australia, he moved to England at 20, studied art in London and became a protégé of famed painter James McNeill Whistler. Like Whistler, he was swept up in the European wave of enthusiasm for the art of Japan. Unusual for this time, Menpes traveled throughout much of the world, carrying his copper plates with him. These travels resulted in some of the most delicate, beautifully wrought and spontaneous etchings of his time. Atlas Galleries is pleased to offer our clients Chicago's largest and most cohesive collection of works by this Victorian master.
Joan Miro is considered one of the most important and beloved painters and printmakers of the 20th century. Born in Barcelona, the son of a jewelry maker, he moved to Paris in 1920, where, under the influences of surrealist poets and writers, his mature style evolved. His work is drawn from realm of memory and fantasy. His dreamlike visions often have a whimsical quality, containing images of playfully distorted animal forms, twisted organic shapes and odd geometric constructions. Though Miro worked in all print media, he is famous for pioneering the carborundum-aquatint print process in the 60's and 70's, creating large brightly colored embossed prints in limited editions. These are now among the artist's most valuable works. Atlas Galleries is pleased to offer a wide collection of aquatint etchings and one-of-a-kind works by this 20th century master.
Alphonse Mucha is considered to be one of the fathers of the Art Nouveau movement. In fact Nouveau was often referred to at the time as "Le Style Mucha". Born in Czechoslovakia, he immigrated to Paris in the 1880's. It was there that he met the legendary actress Sarah Bernhardt for whom he designed theater posters and jewelry. Her fame, combined with his extraordinary ability made him, by the turn of the century, one of the most popular artists in Europe. Almost all his designs are centered on romanticized female figures highlighted by great flourishes. Atlas Galleries is pleased to offer only the finest lithographs and vintage posters by Mucha. These beautifully preserved antique works on paper are a wonderful way to bring the treasures of the 19th century into your life in the 21st.
Pablo Picasso is certainly the most famous artist of the 20th century and is considered by many to be its most important. In a career spanning more than 75 years, he created works in virtually all media from painting and sculpture to ceramics and set design. He was the first major artist to make linoleum block prints and these are now among his most valuable works. Considered a prodigy in his native Spain, the artist moved to Paris as a young adult quickly becoming the leading figure of the "School of Paris". He is known as the co-creator of Cubism along with George Braque. The artist's painting "Les Demoiselles d'Avignon" is considered the watershed picture of Modern Art, and the painting "Guernica" is considered to be one of the most important anti-war statements of the 20th Century. Atlas Galleries is proud to offer its clients one of the largest and highest quality collections of Picasso in Chicago.
Rembrandt van Rijn was born on July 15, 1606 in Leiden, Netherlands. A Dutch painter, draftsman and printmaker of the 17th century, he is considered a giant in the history of art. He was the greatest exponent of the Dutch school. A master of light and shadow (chiaroscuro) his etchings became works of art that paved the way for following artist in history. These rare museum quality etchings are heirlooms that can be passed on from one generation to the next.
Pierre-Auguste Renoir, (1841-1919), was one of the most important figures in the art movement of Impressionism. His ground-breaking use of color and application of paint defined a stylistic vein of impressionism that influenced countless important artists who followed him. His famous portraits and depictions of the French bourgeois are universally recognized for their masterful visual harmony and vivacity.
The pictures of NORMAN ROCKWELL (1894-1978) were recognized and loved by almost everybody in America. The cover of The Saturday Evening Post was his showcase for over forty years, giving him an audience larger than that of any other artist in history. Over the years he depicted there a unique collection of Americana, a series of vignettes of remarkable warmth and humor. In addition, he painted a great number of pictures for story illustrations, advertising campaigns, posters, calendars, and books.
An American born in Lowell, Massachusetts, Whistler exhibited artistic talents at an early age. As a young child his family moved to St. Petersburg, Russia where he learned to develop his talent as an artist. He studied in Paris and settled in England, enjoying his life as an ex-patriot. Whistler's intuitive draftsmanship with the etching needle was very much in the tradition of Rembrandt. This historical continuity provided Whistler with a respect, which he would not achieve as a painter until his last years. The detail and emotion of Whistler's etchings take on a life of their own. Collector's can select from a diverse body of work and subject matter from landscapes to portraits and, of course, the etchings along the Thames River for which Whistler is most famous.
painter of landscape and figure subjects in Pennsylvania and Maine, Andrew Wyeth became one of the best-known American painters of the 20th century. His style is both realistic and abstract, and he works primarily in tempera and watercolor, often using the drybrush technique.