25-014 Original Signed Lithograph Saul Steinberg

Steinberg’s creativity and humor is apparent in this original lithograph based on the drawing titled “Nebraska.” Steinberg had a keen eye for the colorful and occasionally seedy side of nightlife. He traveled extensively, keeping a sketchbook by his side at all times. This bar scene was captured in Nebraska, 1955. The original black and white ink drawing is shown below.

In 1967 Associated American Artists produced an edition of 75 18-color lithographs for sale through galleries in New York and Germany. Steinberg created a new drawing adding color and a few modifications. This print is numbered 29/75 in pencil lower left, signed “STEINBERG” in pencil, lower right. This print was acquired from the estate of Warner LeRoy who owned Tavern on the Green and The Russian Tea Room. The frame and 8-ply acid-free mat are new.

Saul Steinberg (Romanian, 1914-1999) remains a hero of mine. He lived near me on Union Square in NYC and spent his later years near me in East Hampton. He had a tremendous influence on my art. He was a frequent contributor to The New Yorker magazine. So was my stepfather Joseph Farris.

From Wikipedia: “In 1946, he was included in the critically acclaimed “Fourteen Americans” show at The Museum of Modern Art, New York, exhibiting along with Arshile Gorky, Isamu Noguchi, and Robert Motherwell, among others. Steinberg went on to have more than 80 one-artist shows in galleries and museums throughout the US, Europe, and South America. He was affiliated with the Betty Parsons (a Southold resident) and Sidney Janis galleries in New York and the Galerie Maeght in Paris. A dozen museums and institutions (including the Parrish Museum in Watermill NY) have in-depth collections of his work, and examples are included in the holdings of more than eighty other public collections.”

From Pace Gallery: “Perhaps most famous for his New Yorker illustrations and cartoons, Saul Steinberg also made paintings, drawings, photographs, collages, and sculptures that chronicled the modern American psyche. His style is characterized by emotive linework, a mélange of high and low cultural references, and an acute eye for the details and absurdities of city life. While his work could be humorous, Steinberg also made surreal tableaux and offered profound meditations on the post-war experience. Early in his career, the artist made advertisements that were published in magazines including Vogue, Harper’s Bazaar, Fortune, and Time. Steinberg’s work has been exhibited in New York, London, Paris, Tokyo, Berlin, Los Angeles, and Copenhagen. His work belongs in the collections of the Art Institute of Chicago, the Centre Pompidou, the Hirshhorn Museum and Sculpture Garden, Moderna Museet, the Museum of Modern Art, and the Whitney Museum of American Art.”