Signed lower right, ‘K. Sanzenbach’ for Keith Sanzenbach (American, 1931-1964) and dated 1956. Additionally signed, verso, and with the artist’s Lagunitas, California address.

The influential Bay Area critic, Thomas Albright, in his monumental history, ‘Art in the San Francisco Bay Area, 1945-1980’, commented that Keith Sanzenbach “..made some of the era’s most interesting paintings”. Peter Plagens, in ‘Sunshine Muse, Contemporary Art on the West Coast’, deemed him to be “… the beats… only decent formal artist”. Frida Forsgren, in her outstanding study of the period, ‘Beat Lives, 13 San Francisco-based Artists of the Fifties’, observes that Sanzenbach showed “…a strong artistic personality with a raw creative energy and a distinctly personal style”. She deems him “..one of the most talented artists of the early 1960’s California Beat scene.”

Born in Minneapolis, Minnesota, Keith Sanzenbach studied at Syracuse University, graduating in 1954 with a Bachelors in Fine Arts. He first moved to Berkeley in 1955, then settled in San Francisco a year later to pursue a career as an artist. Sanzenbach showed his works in bars and local galleries and lived on a houseboat in Sausalito with fellow-artists Wallace Berman, Jack Carrigg and Arthur Richer. The beat poet, Allen Ginsberg, remembered living on Gough Street above the artist and his pretty wife, Nikki. Sanzenbach’s earliest works are figurative, but he later developed an abstract, visionary style characterized by the juxtaposition of intense colors. In 1962, to avoid the “influx of wannabe beatniks” flooding North Beach, he removed to the wildness of Big Sur where, two years later, he was to die, unrecognized at the age of 33.

Reference:
Albright, Thomas, Art in the San Francisco Bay Area 1945 – 1980, Berkeley and Los Angeles, University of California Press, 1985, s. 103, 105; Merrill Green, Art as a muscular principle. 10 artists and San Francisco 1950-1065/roots and new directions/ mount Holyoak college 1975, pp. 82-84; Frida Forsgren, San Francisco Beat Art in Norway, Forlaget Press, Oslo, 2008, pp. 156-157; Peter Plagens, Sunshine Muse, Contemporary Art on the West Coast, Praeger, 1974; Frida Forsgren, Beat Lives, 13 San Francisco-based Artists of the Fifties, Portal Books, 2013, page 48-53; et al.

Signed lower right, ‘Rob Leepin’ for Robert Leepin (Danish, 1884-1967) and painted circa 1925.

Robert Leepin first studied under Lauritz Tuxen and Viggo Johansen at Denmark’s Royal Academy of Art (1909-1914). Beginning in 1921, Leepin took study trips abroad including to Moscow (1921), France (1923-26), Italy (1924, 1930), Algiers (1927-28) and Norway (1950). Leepin’s work testifies to the influence of the early years of Danish Modernism and the artist’s experience of working beside the artists of the first generation of the School of Paris. Over the course of a long and successful career, Leepin exhibited widely, including in Paris at the Salon d’Automne (1924), at Malmo (1914) and, regularly, at the Charlottenborg Museum from 1930. Robert Leepin’s work can be found in numerous private and public collections including the permanent collections of the state museums of Denmark.

Reference:
Weilbach, Dansk Kunstnerleksikon, the Castle and Cultural Agency, Copenhagen; et al.

An Iconic Aldo Tura Mid-Century Modern Bar Cart or liquor trolley. Two lacquered goat skin tiered shelves with brass mounts on four caster feet. Circa 1960. Label under lower shelf.

Measures: 33″ Long x 16″ Wide x 30 1/4″ High

This Aldo Tura Mid-20th Century Bar Cart will enhance any modern or contemporary setting. It would also look wonderful in a beach house.

About the Designer:

One of the most enigmatic and polarizing figures to emerge in Italian design, Aldo Tura is an outlier in the world of mid-century furniture. The designer’s glamorous bar carts, coffee tables, cabinets and more resist categorization and draw inspiration from Art Deco, Art Nouveau, Baroque, Surrealist and modernist styles.

Tura moved through distinct phases in his career in terms of aesthetics, influences and finishes, rendering his life’s work exciting and diverse. Despite these phases, he held a singular devotion to one material: lacquered goatskin. Tura established a furniture production house in 1939 in Lombardy, and some of his early work focused on tables, decorative lamps and more. He later expanded to bar furnishings like rolling carts, cabinets and complementary barware accessories like ice buckets and cocktail shakers. The eccentric, gleaming and luxe surface of lacquered goatskin was a constant, along with eggshell, parchment and leather.

By the 1950s, Tura had begun to use hand-painted figural panels on the surface of cabinets, serveware (such as carafes) and other pieces. He even replicated famous works by artists like Monet and Bruegel the Elder and art from the Middle Ages, sometimes playfully embedding the paintings on cabinets shaped like oversize books. Even though he had a favored color palette of rich chocolate browns and deep emeralds, his style remained consistently hard to define.

Tura was unlike most of his Italian contemporaries but held a similar reverence for the nation’s traditional craftsmanship and artisanal techniques. He never followed the growing trend of mass-produced, industrial furniture and stuck to creating small, meticulously handcrafted collections. This principled choice means that today, a Tura piece is a rare and highly coveted collectible. The Tura firm continues to operate in Brianza, promoting Italian craftsmanship and the eclectic materials embraced by their namesake designer.

Vintage, 1975, Leo Castelli New York Gallery exhibition poster; signed, lower right, in felt pen, ‘R. Lichtenstein’ for Roy Lichtenstein (American, 1923-1997).

Roy Lichtenstein first studied under Reginald Marsh at the Art Students League of New York, and the following year under Hoyt L. Sherman at the College of the Arts at Ohio State University in Columbus. He served in the army from 1943 to 1946, after which he resumed his studies and was hired as an instructor. He obtained an MFA in 1949. In 1951, the Carlebach Gallery, New York, organized a solo exhibition of his semi-abstract paintings of the Old West. Shortly thereafter, the artist moved to Cleveland, where he continued painting while working as an engineering draftsman to support his growing family.

From 1957 to 1960 Lichtenstein obtained a teaching position at the State University of New York, Oswego. By then he had begun to include loosely drawn cartoon characters in his increasingly abstract canvases. From 1960 to 1963 he lived in New Jersey while teaching at Douglass Residential College, a division of Rutgers University in New Brunswick, New Jersey. He met artists such as Jim Dine, Allan Kaprow, Claes Oldenburg, Lucas Samaras, George Segal, and Robert Whitman, all of whom were experimenting with different kinds of art based on everyday life. In 1961 he began to make paintings consisting exclusively of comic-strip figures, and introduced his Benday-dot grounds, lettering, and balloons; he also started cropping images from advertisements. From 1964 into the next decade, he successively depicted stylized landscapes, consumer-product packaging, adaptations of paintings by famous artists, geometric elements from Art Deco design (in the Modern series), parodies of the Abstract Expressionists’ style (in the Brushstrokes series), and explosions. They all underlined the contradictions of representing three dimensions on a flat surface.

In the early 1970s he explored this formal question further with his abstract Mirrors and Entablatures series. From 1974 through the 1980s, he probed another long-standing issue: the concept of artistic style. All his series of works played with the characteristics of well-known 20th-century art movements. Lichtenstein continued to question the role of style in consumer culture in his 1990s series Interiors, which included images of his own works as decorative elements. In his attempt to fully grasp and expose how the forms, materials, and methods of production have shaped the images of Western society, the artist also explored other mediums such as polychromatic ceramic, aluminum, brass, and serigraphs.

Beginning in 1962, the Leo Castelli Gallery, New York, held regular exhibitions of the artist’s work. Lichtenstein participated in the Venice Biennale in 1966, and was honored with solo exhibitions in 1967 and 1968 at the Pasadena Art Museum and the Solomon R. Guggenheim Museum, New York, respectively. The artist was the subject of a major retrospective at the Guggenheim in 1994, three years before his death on September 30, 1997.

(with thanks to the Guggenheim Museum)

Step into the charm of the 19th century with this French Wood Patinated Shop Counter. Its glass-fronted design offers a delightful view of the showcased items, while sliding doors at the back ensure easy access to interior shelves. Adorned with a distinctive green patina, this versatile vintage piece can serve as a display case, work surface, dry bar, sideboard, or countertop. The counter exudes elegance and adapts seamlessly to various settings, reflecting the craftsmanship and style of a bygone era. Immerse yourself in the allure of this antique, where form and function harmonize to create a timeless and adaptable centerpiece. For additional images or more details, we encourage you to reach out to our team of design specialists

Finished with multiple layers of light blue, gray, and contrasting brown paint imprint this piece with a unique personality. A shelf behind two conveniently sliding doors adds functionality to this bar decorated with Empire-style edges. Add a playful accent to any space with the colorful and convenient piece of furnitur

This 1900s French chest of drawers exudes a sense of historical charm and elegance. Crafted from bleached oak, the chest features a soft, natural finish that enhances the wood’s timeless beauty. Intricately carved detailing adorns each drawer, complemented by ornate brass handles that offer a lovely contrast to the muted tones of the wood. The chest’s sturdy construction and ample storage space, with smoothly sliding drawers, make it as practical as it is stylish. It’s an heirloom-quality piece that provides a refined storage solution, perfect for a bedroom or living area where its artistry can be appreciated daily. The classic design marries old-world craftsmanship with the practical needs of modern living.

Hand-crafted during the 19th century in France, this antique oak buffet gives unique character while also showing an antique personality. Crafted with an elegant blend of light wood and resplendent gold accents, it exudes sophistication while promising enduring functionality. This buffet displays two doors and two cabinets for ample storage space. With its ornate details and carved wood, you can see the true craftsmanship that went into creating this piece. The oak wood, treated delicately through a meticulous bleaching process, breathes new life into the grain, enhancing its natural beauty. For additional images or more details, we encourage you to reach out to our team of design specialists

Capture the essence of early 20th-century French craftsmanship with this Antique French Wooden Mannequin. Crafted with precision, this unique piece showcases the silhouette of a woman and stands on a turned stand with a weathered tripod base. The mannequin and its base both boast a charming black patina, reflecting the passage of time and adding character to the overall aesthetic. This vintage treasure not only serves as a testament to the artistry of the era but also stands as a distinctive décor item, blending history and style seamlessly. Embrace the allure of the past with this weathered yet elegant wooden mannequin from early 20th-century France. If you want additional images or more details, we encourage you to reach out to our team of design specialists.

This stylish vintage table, crafted in 20th-century Scandinavia, exudes a sense of fluidity. Its slightly curved legs are enhanced by mesmerizing wood grain naturally ornamented with captivating patterns. Supported by an ‘X’ shaped base, the practical extendable table top features rounded corners, enhancing its smooth and inviting aesthetic. This minimalist table beautifully embodies impeccable Nordic design, merging aesthetics with perfect functionality.