Signed Robert Philip (American, 1895-1981) Pastel on Paper Painting, "Conversation"
Gallery Label on Verso from Jane Kahan Gallery. Signed PhilipProvenance: Acquired from Sotheby's in 1985, by repute Alexander Kahan Fine Art, New York.
Size: Art: 25 1/2 x 19 3/4 in. (62.9 x 47.6 cm.)Frame: 32 x 26 in. (81.3 x 66 cm.)
Recognition came quickly to Philipp, and his early works exhibit an eclectic range of artistic sources: Vermeer, Rembrandt, Renoir, Bonnard, Sargent, and Fantin-Latour. After the death of his father, Philipp turned away from painting for a time and joined his uncle's opera company as a tenor. He eventually returned to painting and settled in Paris, living there in the 1920s. The exact date of Paris's sojourn is not known, but he reportedly lived there for ten years, supporting himself through the sale of his paintings.

Back in New York in the early 1930s, Philipp was gaining a reputation for his portraits and figure studies. His - Olympia - won the Logan Prize at the Art Institute of Chicago in 1936 and was subsequently purchased by J. Paul Getty. During the Depression, he worked for the Public Works of Arts Project.

In 1934, he married artist Shelly (Rochelle) Post, who became his favorite model until her death in 1971. Critic Henry McBride called Philipp "One of the top ten painters in America."

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