Set of 4 Original 1960s Monochrome Paintings by Earl Hubbard (Jfk, Lincoln, Churchill, Barbara Marx Hubbard)

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A striking set of four 1968 black-and-white silhouette portraits by listed American artist Earl Wade Hubbard (1924–2003).

Executed in Hubbard's … Read more A striking set of four 1968 black-and-white silhouette portraits by listed American artist Earl Wade Hubbard (1924–2003).

Executed in Hubbard's highly graphic, reductive style, each composition constructs a human face through sharply defined areas of black and white. Viewed together, the four portraits become an exceptionally strong example of late-1960s American graphic modernism.

Each work is mounted on a wood panel and retains Hubbard's distinctive “H” artist mark and 1968 date.

The four related but individually composed faces are particularly effective displayed as a grid, where their bold positive-and-negative forms create an almost architectural wall installation.

1. Barbara Marx Hubbard – The artist's wife, a prominent American futurist and author who served as his lifelong muse and the subject of his original 1967 portrait piece.

2. Abraham Lincoln – Rendered in Hubbard's signature high-contrast block format, capturing the sharp contours of his profile and beard.

3. John F. Kennedy (JFK) – The previously unidentified third portrait, utilizing dramatic shadow and stark white space to bring out his distinct tilted gaze, jawline, and hairstyle.

4. Winston Churchill – Easily recognizable by his iconic stern, heavy-set expression and high-contrast, minimalist framing.

Having the portrait of his wife, Barbara Marx Hubbard, alongside geopolitical legends like Churchill, Lincoln, and JFK anchors the entire set to the pinnacle of his personal life and career. It ties the pieces directly to the creative hub of the late-1960s post-war movement, where the couple worked alongside global visionaries to conceptually map out the "future of humanity.

Hubbard gained notable attention during his 1965 solo exhibition at the Gallery of Modern Art in New York City, which featured a vast collection of his portraiture:
Earl Hubbard debuted a massive, historic collection of monochrome (black and white) portraits at a solo exhibition inside the Gallery of Modern Art at Columbus Circle in New York City. This exhibition birthed his famous "Heroes of Today" (and tomorrow) portrait series.
The figures in this series were specific, carefully chosen cultural and historical icons meant to represent human potential.


An excellent acquisition for a Mid-Century Modern, Brutalist, graphic-modernist or contemporary interior.

Sold as a set of four.

Dimensions:
Approximately 10"W × 10.5"H each

Date: 1968

Artist: Earl Wade Hubbard (1924–2003)

Condition: Good vintage condition with age-appropriate surface wear, scratches and marks visible against the black backgrounds. Please review photographs closely. The backs retain simple period hanging cords. No restoration has been undertaken. See less