Bertha Leonard (American, b. 1928) incredible oil painting on paper titled Commission for Living Section. Layer on layer of pattern, color and interest. An interior scene of a table set for breakfast for two on a wildly patterned tablecloth. The equally wild wallpaper, and rugs (how about that watermelon?) lead you outdoors - the back door swung wide open for a glimpse of the weeping willow tree and gardens beyond. Signed lower right. Dated 1990. From the Gross McLeaf Gallery in Philadelphia. $2200 price tag on back. Artwork in frame measures 17.25" x 14". Painting and faux grained wood frame both in excellent condition. See more on Leonard below.
"Stylized figures, explosive patterning, and Rococo sensibilities...
Born in Atlantic City, New Jersey, Leonard gravitates to subjects including boardwalks, parades, and other seaside scenery. Other works lean into the fantastical: Innocence (1983), an ovoid oil-on-board painting meant to be mounted overhead, takes the perspective of an earthbound viewer looking up to see cherubs darting around a vaulted ceiling that opens up to the heavens.
Leonard’s work was recently included in “Fortitude at 50,” an anniversary exhibition at Gross McCleaf Gallery in Philadelphia, and is in the collection of the Pennsylvania Academy of Fine Arts."
