Monumental 1967 Paul Havas Original Oil – "Artist Studio Interior"

Details

Description

Monumental 1967 Paul Havas Original Oil – "Artist Studio Interior"

Elevate your fine art collection with this historically significant early … Read more Monumental 1967 Paul Havas Original Oil – "Artist Studio Interior"

Elevate your fine art collection with this historically significant early masterpiece by Pacific Northwest master Paul Havas (1940–2012). Painted in 1967, this monumental 54-inch interior scene is a definitive bridge between the artist’s early formalist training and the atmospheric realism that would later define his celebrated career.

The work reflects the muscular, thick impasto brushwork and somber, blue-grey palette characteristic of the Bay Area Figurative movement. Havas masterfully depicts a meditative studio interior, capturing the geometry of the artist’s environment through layers of rich, textured oil paint. The composition showcases his budding obsession with light—not just as a subject, but as a structural force. This is an investment-grade acquisition for the serious collector of Mid-Century Modern or Northwest Modernist art, offering a rare glimpse into the formative years of a regional legend.

About the Artist
Paul Havas was an accomplished American painter and a central figure in the Northwest Figurative Artists’ Alliance. After graduating from Syracuse University, he earned his MFA from the University of Washington in 1965 and was later named a Max Beckmann Fellow at the Brooklyn Museum School of Art.

A lifelong friend and contemporary of William Ivey, Havas spent his career capturing the "diffuse light" of the Skagit Valley and the urban mood of Seattle. His works are held in the permanent collections of the Seattle Art Museum (SAM), the Tacoma Art Museum, and the Museum of Northwest Art (MoNA).

Exceptional Artist Provenance
This work features direct and intimate documentation rarely seen on the secondary market. The reverse of the canvas (verso) bears a hand-painted inscription by the artist himself:
"PAINTED BY PAUL HAVAS 1967 AND PRESENTED BY HIM AS A WEDDING GUIFT TO STEVE LEBAILLY." This confirms the piece was a personal gift from the artist during a pivotal year in his career, cementing its status as a "presentation piece" with verified historical lineage.

Dimensions
Total Height: 54 in
Total Width: 42.25 in
Frame Depth: 1.5 in

Medium: Oil on Canvas

Condition
Fair to Good Vintage Condition – This work maintains a powerful structural presence. The canvas is original and remains taut on its wooden stretchers. Consistent with its nearly 60-year history and the artist's heavy impasto technique, there is age-appropriate craquelure (fine surface cracking) and minor areas of finish loss/flaking in the upper quadrants (as shown in detail photos). It is housed in its original, period-correct metal floater frame. The painting is ready for professional display or would be an excellent candidate for light conservation to secure the impasto.

A rare opportunity to own a monumental early work by a definitive Northwest master. With its exceptional size, technical brilliance, and direct artist provenance, "Artist Studio Interior" stands as a landmark artifact of 1960s Modernism, ready to serve as the sophisticated centerpiece of a grand gallery or high-end estate. See less