Skip to main content
Items Similar to “Mobile (The Inventor), 1953” Paul Cadmus Magical Realism Serigraph Signed
Benton Murdoch Spruance - 'Set Pieces: Vanity of Trust' — Mid-Century American Modernism
'Set Pieces: Vanity of Trust' — Mid-Century American Modernism
Ron Adams - Robert Blackburn, Contemporary Figurative Lithograph by Ron Adams
Robert Blackburn, Contemporary Figurative Lithograph by Ron Adams
John Steuart Curry - The Missed Leap - Large American Regionalist Circus lithograph
The Missed Leap - Large American Regionalist Circus lithograph
Ernie Barnes - Destination Unknown 1979 Signed Limited Edition Lithograph
Destination Unknown 1979 Signed Limited Edition Lithograph
Frank Godwin - Allegory of Defense Industry (figurative male illustration)
Allegory of Defense Industry (figurative male illustration)
Ernie Barnes - Destination Unknown, Ernie Barnes
Destination Unknown, Ernie Barnes
Want more images or videos?
Request additional images or videos from the seller
1 of 12

Paul Cadmus
“Mobile (The Inventor), 1953” Paul Cadmus Magical Realism Serigraph Signed

1953

$3,500
£2,622.34
€3,056.68
CA$4,926.31
A$5,014.48
CHF 2,854.34
MX$60,528.45
NOK 33,283.12
SEK 33,684.42
DKK 22,850.38

About the Item

“Mobile (The Inventor), 1953” by Paul Cadmus (American, 1904-1999). A figure painter known from the 1930s on for his baldly satirical commentaries on human appetites and desires, Cadmus was throughout a master draftsman. Although he undertook still-life subjects only rarely and, as he once stated, as “practice works like scales,” he achieved parity between figure and still life in “Mobile”. Here, a beautifully proportioned young man holds a mobile composed of beach detritus (wood, feathers, shells, and bones) in a delicate state of balance - a reference to the weightlessness of spent forms, and a meditation on mortality. This work is a serigraph (screenprint) on brown paper and is hand signed and numbered (36/75) in the lower left. It is housed in its beautiful, original mid-century frame behind glass. It retains a label from Midtown Galleries in NYC on the reverse. Other examples from this same edition of 75 can be found in important museum collections, including the Metropolitan Museum of Art, Smithsonian American Art Museum, Morgan Library, and Brooklyn Museum. Size: 18.5 inches tall by 21 inches wide (sheet by sight) 25.75 inches tall by 28 inches wide by 1 inch deep (frame) Provenance: Midtown Galleries, NY; Private collection, NY About the artist: Paul Cadmus is best known for his erotic depictions of nude male figures, charged with satire, social criticism, and a strongly idealized sexuality. Cadmus first gained recognition for his 1934 painting “The Fleet's In”, where the controversy of a group of sailors he pictured carousing among prostitutes and homosexuals inspired a public outcry. His work is informed by themes of Surrealism, compositions of the Renaissance, the Neoclassical works of Jean-Auguste-Dominique Ingres, and the sharp, figurative verisimilitude of Magical Realism; however, Cadmus's greatest influence was from fellow painter Jared French, with whom he studied and traveled extensively. French instilled within Cadmus the traditions of the Old Masters (such as an egg tempera technique that became an integral part of his process) and, furthermore, a drive to transcend these methods and define his own artistic legacy. Condition: Excellent overall condition. Not examined out of original frame, which has typical wear associated with age and handling. It is ready to be displayed and enjoyed!
  • Creator:
    Paul Cadmus (1904-1999, American)
  • Creation Year:
    1953
  • Dimensions:
    Height: 25.75 in (65.41 cm)Width: 28 in (71.12 cm)Depth: 1 in (2.54 cm)
  • Medium:
    Paper
  • Movement & Style:
    American Realist
  • Period:
    1950-1959
  • Condition:
    Excellent overall condition. Not examined out of original frame, which has typical wear associated with age and handling. It is ready to be displayed and enjoyed!
  • Gallery Location:
    Yardley, PA
  • Reference Number:
    1stDibs: LU2911217360252

More From This Seller

View All
"Dilworth Street" 1940 by Allan Rohan Crite Watercolor Boston African American

Allan Rohan Crite"Dilworth Street" 1940 by Allan Rohan Crite Watercolor Boston African American, 1940

"Dilworth Street" 1940 by Allan Rohan Crite Watercolor Boston African American

By Allan Rohan Crite

Located in Yardley, PA

About this work: A superb example from Crite’s celebrated Neighborhood Series, this work is both a vibrant portrait of everyday life and an irreplaceable record of a vanished Boston ...

Category

1940s American Realist Figurative Drawings and Watercolors

Materials

Watercolor, Board, Graphite

“Untitled (Women Walking), c. 1945” Double-Sided NYC Street Manhattan Cityscape

Reginald Marsh“Untitled (Women Walking), c. 1945” Double-Sided NYC Street Manhattan Cityscape, Circa 1945

“Untitled (Women Walking), c. 1945” Double-Sided NYC Street Manhattan Cityscape

By Reginald Marsh

Located in Yardley, PA

A fantastic example of Marsh’s renowned depictions of ladies walking in downtown Manhattan. This richly worked ink and wash composition captures a sidewalk populated by stylish women...

Category

Mid-20th Century Ashcan School Figurative Drawings and Watercolors

Materials

Paper, Ink, Watercolor

You May Also Like

Mobile (The Inventor)

Paul CadmusMobile (The Inventor), 1953

Mobile (The Inventor)

By Paul Cadmus

Located in New York, NY

Mobile (The Inventor) 1953 Signed and numbered Serigraph 15.813 x 21.125 inches (40.2 x 53.7 cm) Contact gallery for price. This work is offered by C...

Category

1950s Contemporary Prints and Multiples

Materials

Screen

'I'll Be What I Choose' — Mid-century American Surrealism

Benton Murdoch Spruance'I'll Be What I Choose' — Mid-century American Surrealism, 1949

'I'll Be What I Choose' — Mid-century American Surrealism

By Benton Murdoch Spruance

Located in Myrtle Beach, SC

'I'll Be What I Choose: Vanity of Ambition', color lithograph, 1949, edition 40, Fine and Looney 281. Signed, titled, and numbered '23/40' in pencil. Initialed in the stone, lower ri...

Category

1940s American Modern Figurative Prints

Materials

Lithograph

Untitled (Youth with Kite)

Paul CadmusUntitled (Youth with Kite), 1941

Untitled (Youth with Kite)

By Paul Cadmus

Located in New York, NY

Untitled (Youth With Kite) 1941 Signed, titled, and numbered, recto Etching (Edition of 75) 10.375 x 5.375 inches (26.4 x 13.7 cm) Contact gallery for price. This work is offere...

Category

1940s Contemporary Prints and Multiples

Materials

Etching

The Collector, Saturday Evening Post Cover

Stevan DohanosThe Collector, Saturday Evening Post Cover, 1951

The Collector, Saturday Evening Post Cover

By Stevan Dohanos

Located in Fort Washington, PA

Original cover illustration for The Saturday Evening Post, August 11, 1951. The Post described, “Make the acquaintance of Kit Dunham, a Westport, Connecticut, lepidopterist. This is...

Category

1950s Figurative Paintings

Materials

Acrylic, Board

Robert Blackburn, Contemporary Figurative Lithograph by Ron Adams

Ron AdamsRobert Blackburn, Contemporary Figurative Lithograph by Ron Adams, 2002

Robert Blackburn, Contemporary Figurative Lithograph by Ron Adams

Located in Long Island City, NY

This lithograph by artist Ron Adams depicts the renowned printer Robert Blackburn in his workshop in NYC. Blackburn was involved with every major player of the Harlem Renaissance alo...

Category

Early 2000s American Modern Portrait Prints

Materials

Lithograph

Destination Unknown 1979 Signed Limited Edition Lithograph

Ernie BarnesDestination Unknown 1979 Signed Limited Edition Lithograph, 1979

Destination Unknown 1979 Signed Limited Edition Lithograph

By Ernie Barnes

Located in Rochester Hills, MI

Artist: Ernie Barnes Title: Destination Unknown Year: 1979 Print - Lithograph Size: 25" x 19 ½" inches Edition: Pencil signed and numbered 24/300 Unframed ‘Destination Unknow...

Category

1970s American Realist Landscape Prints

Materials

Lithograph