ROBERT BECHTLE Abstract Oil Painting, Signed 1951 Start Price USD 9,500.00 Current Price USD 9,500.00 Time Left - Bid Count 0 Buy It Now Price - Reserve Price - Start Time Thursday, May 15, 2008 End Time Sunday, May 25, 2008 Location Los Angeles, CA See more about 'ROBERT BECHTLE Abstract Oil Painting, Signed 1951' Description Your browser does not support JavaScript. To view this page, enable JavaScript if it is disabled or upgrade your browser. Click Here. Double your traffic. Get Vendio Gallery - Now FREE! ROBERT BECHTLE Abstract Oil Painting, Signed 1951   Description Robert Bechtle, painting entitled "Panorama," oil on board, 18 by 24 inches, 1951, in original wood frame, 24 by 30 inches, both in excellent condition.  Bechtle has signed and dated the painting in the lower right corner.  On the back of the painting is a sticker written by Bechtle with his address, the title of the painting. and a price of $75.   The painting was completed at the start of Bechtle’s career at 19 years of age while he was enrolled in the California College of Arts and Crafts in Oakland, California.  It was likely exhibited at a student show.  According to many interviews Bechtle has given, he began painting when Abstract Expressionism was the dominant form of art in the San Francisco Bay Area.  He claims that he was strongly influenced by Richard Diebenkorn.  This painting definitely reflects that influence.    By 1962, after traveling to Europe and seeing Pop Art, Bechtle decided to concentrate on realistic images and totally rejected abstraction.  In fact, his rejection was such that abstract works have never been included in any of his future exhibitions.  Today he is recognized as one of the preeminent practitioners of hyperrealism where his paintings look like blown up photographs.    I purchased this painting from a San Francisco dealer (whose name I cannot remember) over 20 years ago.  During the time that I have owned it, I tried to contact Bechtle several times for information about the painting.  Most attempts were unsuccessful.  The only communication I received was recently from another dealer I asked to contact him.  She said that he could not remember the painting because it was painted so long ago but he would have completed it in the early 1950s as this was his style then. He did not deny that this was one of his paintings but I got the sense that his rejection of abstract work is still part of his self-image as an artist and the dealer made me feel that he wanted me and the painting to go away.   So I feel that I basically got the brush off.  After rereading several of his interviews, I think his negative feelings about abstraction so dominate his thinking that his reply was about the most positive I should have expected.    Irrespective of Bechtle’s perception of his early abstract work, they do exist and are important to understand his early development as an artist.  They seldom come on the market, partly because those who represent him and show his work honor his views and concentrate exclusively on his realistic works.  Sad to say but eventually after Bechtle has departed, museums, galleries, and collectors will seek out his abstract work to complete their collections and write unbiased histories of his complete work, free from his biases.  As an analogy, his choice to ignore his early work is the equivalent of Picasso deciding to reject his Blue and Pink periods.    Unfortunately for me, the value of this painting has been depressed because of Bechtle’s opinions that have prevented any exhibition of his early work and further prevented collectors being aware of them.  The price I seek is a fraction of what it should be, considering that his realistic paintings sell in the hundreds of thousands.    This painting will be professionally packaged and shipped by either FedEx or UPS.  The cost is included in the price of this piece.   NO RESERVE! Buyer to pay shipping/handling (priority mail preferred). Please allow time for personal check to clear or send money order for quick shipping. Credit cards, Pay Pal, etc. are not accepted. I also do not use the eBay Checkout system. You may e-mail me with your address to let me know where to send the item. I will hopefully be able to e-mail you all the information about shipping costs and where to send payment within 24 hours after the end of the auction. Details Condition Excellent Payment and Shipping info Payment Options Money Order/Cashier's Check, Personal Check   Shipping Seller pays Shipping Charges.UPS Ground, FedEx Ground®No International Shipping Quantity Available 1 Click picture to enlarge Click picture to enlarge Click picture to enlarge Click picture to enlarge More than just a pretty picture. Try Vendio Image Hosting. FREE scheduling, supersized images and templates. Get Vendio Sales Manager. FREE scheduling, supersized images and templates. 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