When spring comes.
Oil on board.
Signed lower left.
Inquire contact to the gallery.
About Hovsep Pushman
Hovsep Pushman (American, 1877-1966)
Hovsep Pushman was a rare artist whose work was appreciated by both critics and collectors, and who enjoyed recognition and good fortune. In a one-man show at New York’s Grand Central Art Galleries in 1932, all 16 of Pushman’s paintings were sold before the end of the opening day.
Pushman, later a naturalized American citizen, was born in Armenia in 1877. At the age of 11, he held a scholarship at the Constantinople Academy of Art. By 17, he had gone to the United States and started teaching art in Chicago. He immersed himself in oriental art and perhaps philosophy, studying the culture of China. He then studied in Paris under Lefebvre, Robert-Fleury, and Dechenaud. He exhibited his work at the Salon des Artistes Francais in Paris, winning a bronze medal in 1914 and a silver medal in 1921. He also received the California Art Club’s Ackerman Prize in 1918.
Pushman’s artistic identity began to take shape after he opened his own studio in 1921. Robert-Fleury, upon seeing one of Pushman’s early studio still lifes, advised the artist, “That painting is you.” Thereafter, Pushman’s career was devoted to one subject: oriental mysticism, and one form: the still life. His paintings typically featured oriental idols, pottery, and glassware, all glowing duskily as if illuminated by candlelight. They were symbolic, spiritual paintings, and were sometimes accompanied by readings that helped explain their allegorical significance. Most importantly, they were exquisitely beautiful, executed with technical precision. “Austere Solitude” exemplifies the stunning beauty, mysterious mood, and impeccable technique that made Pushman’s work so highly respected.
Pushman died in 1966 in New York City.