Midcentury American Studio Craft Richard Artschwager Walnut tall bookcase

Richard Artschwager was an eclectic artist whose unique style resisted categorization. His work has been described variously as minimalism and Pop art. At the core of his approach was the transformation of the mundane into the conceptual, and sometimes even the otherworldly. 

Artschwager was born in Washington, DC, in 1923 and moved with his family to New Mexico in 1935. His parents were passionate about art and design and he started painting at a young age. He later studied mathematics and science at Cornell University. His studies were interrupted by World War II, but he completed his bachelor’s degree in 1948.

Artschwager spent a period taking odd jobs to support his growing family. Still, he found time to study art, including under French painter Amédée Ozenfant at his New York City studio. He exhibited his first series of paintings and watercolors at the Art Directions Gallery in New York in 1959.

The 1960s were a prolific time for Artschwager. He experimented with his style and participated in many exhibitions. The 1962 piece Handle, a wall-hung polished wood frame, is considered a breakthrough work. He had his first solo exhibition at the Leo Castelli Gallery in New York in 1965.

In the 1970s, Artschwager moved into site-specific installations and produced paintings and drawings in a more architectural style. His success and acclaim grew over the next three decades. 

He died in 2013 at the age of 89. His abstract prints and sculptures remain highly regarded. Many Neo-Geo artists in New York and Young British Artists in the United Kingdom have cited Artschwager as a major influence.

A few months after his death, the Hammer Museum in Los Angeles held a career retrospective that displayed over 150 of Artschwager’s works.

On 1stDibs, find Richard Artschwager’s prints, mixed media, sculptures and more.