1980s ‘Rocky Mts’ Gesso & Oil on Raw Canvas Painting by Hal Frater

Hal Frater passed away on February 3, 2008, just a month from celebrating his 99th birthday.

Hal Frater had a long and prolific career. He became a sought after commercial artist for over fifty years and was an early member of the well-know Society of Illustrators in New York City. All the while he would return to his studio and paint for himself rather than his clients. Yet he always retained his illustration roots in wanting to tell a story on canvas with his keen eye of observation on the human condition.

Often he would join fellow artists in informal sessions and paint from a model – no formal art school training but a mutually beneficial learning experience. His contemporaries that influenced him were Jack Levine, Raphael Soyer, John Sloan, Thomas Hart Benton, Reginald Marsh and Phillip Reisman.

Hal Frater’s creative work was primarily influenced by the 1920s. The notable innovations established in the early years of the 20th century were matured further in the 1920s and 1930s. This period established the careers of many radical and inspiring practitioners in the pictorial arts. However it was a period of reflection following the horrors of the First World War, and significant shifts in politics took place across the world. The philosophy of Marxism was widespread among artist communities and groups. Established in 1919, the Bauhaus became a vital place for the development of ideas surrounding the unification of art, craft and design – an idea which became known as the Gesamtkunstwerk.

The painting comes with a certificate of authenticity and a letter of appraisal.

Represented by American Art Gallery Carmel California