(New York/Florida,1904-1982) Three Riders, signed lower left "AE Keenan", oil on canvas, 26 x 48 in.; gilt wood frame, light grime, small impression upper right; frame with abrasions. Notes: Ann Eckert Keenan's paintings range from pure abstraction to figurative expressionism, with a bold approach. Born in New York City in 1904, Mrs. Keenan attended the Art Students League, the Pratt Institute, and the Grand Central Art School, all in New York City. Later she studied with Eliot O'Hara and Xavier Gonzales. O'Hara did a documentary film entitled Painting with Lacquer of which Mrs. Keenan was the focal point. Ann Keenan traveled extensively in Europe and had her own atelier in Paris. From the mid-thirties until 1951, she free-lanced in New York City and became quite well known as an illustrator for children's books. In 1951 she married Joe Keenan and moved to Miami. There she became involved with the southern Florida art community and was active until her death in 1982. Mrs. Keenan exhibited extensively in South Florida, especially at the Fort Lauderdale Museum of the Arts where she received several coveted awards. Also included in her exhibition credentials are the Daytona Art Center and the Miami Museum of Modern Art, which is now part of the Lowe Art Museum. It is interesting to note that she twice won the Beaux-Arts prizes from the Joe and Emily Lower Art Gallery, the namesake of the Lowe Art Museum. One of her biggest honors in exhibiting was her inclusion in The American Academy of Arts and Letters in New York City. Many of Mrs. Keenan?s works are reminiscent of Georges Braque and Pablo Picasso, and considering that she spent much time in Europe and especially in Paris, it would seem highly likely she was influenced by these artists and may have known them. Her last works then were an extension of Cubism, Fauvism and Expressionism, loosely called Figurative Expressionism. Though many of her last works were simple in composition, a close look will reveal masterfully applied paint mixed with a variety of paper, sand and netting to give her overall effect. These last works were a progression of all her years of study and training. Biography Courtesy of Knoke Fine Art, Marietta, Georgia. Provenance: Estate of the Artist; Knoke Galleries, Marietta, Georgia; Sold to Benefit the Marietta Cobb Museum of Art, Marietta, Georgia light grime, small impression upper right; frame with abrasions