Brunk Auctions
Live Auction

Modern | April 22, 2025

Tue, Apr 22, 2025 10:00AM EDT
Lot 21

Thomas Downing, Early Abstract Composition

Estimate: $3,000 - $5,000

Bid Increments

Price Bid Increment
$0 $25
$100 $50
$1,000 $100
$2,000 $200
$3,000 $250
$5,000 $500
$10,000 $1,000
$20,000 $2,000
$50,000 $5,000
$100,000 $10,000

(District of Columbia, 1928-1985) 

Untitled, signed lower right "T. Downing Jr", oil, sand on canvas, 19-3/4 x 27 in.; metal frame, 20-3/8 x 27-1/2 x 1-1/2 in.

Provenance: By descent in family of artist

Note: Most noted for being a color field artist, Downing, experimented during his early years as he travelled in Europe in 1950 through 1951. He studied at the Académie de la Grande Chaumière and became a studio assistant to Fernand Léger, a second generation cubist. As with earlier in New York, Downing visited museums and galleries.

Sources: The Johnson Collection, Spartanburg, South Carolina, thejohnsoncollection.org

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By descent in family of artist

original stretcher and tacking edge, some crackle, surface dirt, canvas slightly loose