Thursday, August 24, 2023

Hazel Ware mid century painting Temple of Juno fantasy


 


This fabulous surrealist dreamscape that seems to depict (as best I can tell) a version of The Temple of Juno at Agrigento, Sicily. The scene is populated by various little figures recreationally, enjoying themselves on an mountain topped with ruins.
The oil painting is signed by Hazel Ware, an artist and designer, who gained fame designing handkerchiefs with whimsical puppies and kittens on them in the 1950s. She can for instance, be seen in the book Handkerchiefs:volume two, a collectors guide, identification and values. By Barbara Guggenheim in Helene Guarnaccia.
I don’t know if this painting was painted while she was studying or after she became a fabulous handkerchief designer, but its modernist feel is most likely from the postwar era. It is painted on some type of board, not canvas.
CONDITION —
The painting really needs to be cleaned!
Most likely from cigarette smoke, the yellowing is most noticeable in the clouds. The linen edging that surrounds the painting, has yellowed and needs to be replaced. The outside frame could stand to be touched up.
Perfect work for an intermediate restorer, as the paint is not lifting or cracking just very dirty.
The painting is priced with condition in mind.

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