Propelling the Engine
Helicline Fine Art’s upcoming exhibition looks at art of the pre- and post-wpa era, depicting scenes of work, industry and more
Roy Goldberg and Keith Sherman have been collectors of modernist art for 30 years and, in 2008, established Helicline Fine Art to offer art and their expertise to the public.they explain the name of their gallery:“at Newyork’s 1939 World’s Fair the omnipresent image was the iconic Trylon and Perisphere.these were in fact monumental sculptures and entertainment venues the size of huge buildings, which represented the future and the hope of a better tomorrow. Just as the Helicline ramp connected these two symbols, our mission at Helicline Fine Art is to connect people with art.” The gallery’s exhibition Modernism: Urban, Industrial, Abstract will be held November 1 through February 9, 2020 and can be viewed online or by appointment at the midtown Manhattan gallery.
Goldberg notes,“the works in this new exhibition, mostly American, offer a look at the pre- and post-wpa era in our country by both well-known artists and several who created works below the radar and are still being discovered. The nobility of women and men working, people at leisure, everyday scenes of the city, industry and more: these propel the engine of Modernism: Urban, Industrial, Abstract.”
Among the works is Thomas Attardi’s
Rag Pickers.attardi was born in Italy in 1900 and, after coming to America, studied at the Art Students League and the National Academy of Design. He painted the gritty aspects of life in the ’30s and, in a 1972 newspaper article he said he was inspired for one painting by buildings being torn down for the 1939 World’s Fair.
Jo Cain (1904-2003) was chair of the art department at the University of Rhode Island. In 1940, his work was included in the exhibition The Artist as Reporter at the Museum of Modern Art in Newyork. While living in Newyork, Cain was a member of a contemporary art collective known as “The Group,” which included Milton Avery, George Biddle, Robert Gwathmey, Marsden Hartley, John Marin and others. Seamstresses is an example of his colorful paintings influenced by the vibrancy of his native New Orleans. Abstract by Walter Quirt (1902-1968) resembles work by his friend Stuart Davis (1892-1964). Quirt moved through a number of artistic styles in his career including social realism, surrealism and abstraction.“the great artist,” wrote Quirt, “is one who faithfully follows his impulses, who vigorously and courageously peels off layer after layer of restrictions, prohibitions, and inhibitions.this takes courage, for it automatically means suffering.”