Oil on canvas, framed. Featuring a hand holding a cigarette. Signed and attributed to Philip Guston (American, 1913-1980) on the lower right corner. 39 x 29 cm (15.4 x 11.4 inches). Frame size: 47 x 39 cm (18.5 x 15.3 inches). Philip Guston was an iconic American painter. Throughout his prolific career, he transitioned from Abstract Expressionism into an idiosyncratic lexicon characterized by painterly forms, cartoonish drawing style, and predominantly pink palette. “The painting is not on a surface, but on a plane which is imagined,†he once reflected. “It moves in a mind. It is not there physically at all. It is an illusion, a piece of magic, so that what you see is not what you see.†Born Philip Goldstein on June 27, 1913 in Montreal, Canada to Ukranian-Jewish immigrant parents, he grew up in California, where he attended the Los Angeles Manual Arts High School with Jackson Pollock. Moving to New York, Guston was enrolled in the Works Progress Administration during the 1930s, producing murals inspired both by Mexican muralists and Italian Renaissance paintings. He went on to become an integral part of the city’s art scene in the 1950s, alongside Willem de Kooning and his former classmate Pollock. He would famously abandon the success and dialogue he had with abstraction by the late 1960s, resulting in the loss of his gallery representation and virulent scorn from critics. Guston’s late work, however, has proven to be his most lasting contribution to art history. Featuring recurring imagery such as hooded Klansmen, President Richard Nixon, smoldering cigarettes, studio detritus, and huge eyeballs, these paintings influenced Neo-Expressionism and established Guston firmly in the canon of 20th-century masters. He died on June 7, 1980 in Woodstock, NY. Today, the artist's works can be found in the collections of The Museum of Modern Art in New York, the Art Institute of Chicago, and the Tate Gallery in London, among others. PROVENANCE: Southern Ontario estate

All lots that do not carry established documented provenance nor any past record of auction history record are described in the catalog as attributed .

All authorship of items in this catalog are described according to the following terms:

By [Artist Name] : In our opinion, the work is by the artist.

Attributed to [Artist Name] : In our opinion, the work may be ascribed to the artist on the basis of style, but there may be some question as to actual authorship.

In the manner of [Artist Name] : In our opinion, the work was executed by an unknown hand, but was designed deliberately to emulate the style of the artist.

After [Artist Name] : In our opinion, the work was executed by an unknown hand, but is a deliberate copy of a known work by the artist.

Circle of [Artist Name] : In our opinion, a work of the period of the artist showing his influence, closely associated with the artist but not necessarily his pupil.

Follower of [Artist Name]: In our opinion, a work by a pupil or a follower of the artist (not necessarily a pupil).

American, 19th century : In our opinion, this work was executed by an unknown hand, and can only be identified by origin (i.e., region, period).

Bears signature : In our opinion, the signature on the artwork may be spurious.
Apocryphal : Of doubtful authenticity.