Description:

Frank Herbert Mason
American, 1921-2009
Figure Study
Chalk and Ink on Paper
Approximate size: 8.5" H x 8" W
Approximate size including frame: 14.5" H x 13" W

  • Provenance: Frank Mason, an American artistic icon, has been described as the artist who carried the torch of realism through Abstract Expressionism. He was a true renaissance man in his humanistic concern for the figure and an artist with the same aesthetic concerns as a seventeenth-century painter. In his paintings and drawings he brought to bear his remarkable knowledge of traditional art styles – all that he learned from the Old Masters. Mason's paintings are dynamic, broadly painted, baroque in spirit and form, and art-historical in focus. It is painting and drawing that Rubens, Vermeer, Hals, Velasquez and Rembrandt would have understood. Frank Herbert Mason was born in Cleveland in 1921 and moved with his family at the onset of the Great Depression to New York City, where he became one of the first students to enroll in Mayor LaGuardia's experimental Music and Art High School. Not long afterwards, he found his calling at the age of 16 at the Art Students League of New York in the classroom of Frank Vincent Dumond – whose students included Georgia O'Keefe, Norman Rockwell and John Marin. Mason rapidly evolved as a traditional artist and became the youngest president at the League. A turning point in Mason's career was his introduction to the Director of the Louvre Laboratoire, Jacques Maroger. Maroger's investigations into the lost painting techniques of the 17th and 18th Century Masters would have strong influence on Mason. Together, they sought to uncover one of the real mysteries of art history, the secrets to the Old Master's mediums and techniques, passed down through a strict guild system, which had died long before the 19th Century. In addition to his renowned paintings and drawings, Frank Mason was one of the most acclaimed American teachers of our time. He was an instructor of Fine Arts at the Art Students League in New York City for fifty-seven years. He is the only American painter to receive a commission for a series of paintings in a church in Venice, Italy (The Life of Saint Anthony of Padua, installed in the Church of San Giovanni de Malta) and the first artist since Caravaggio to be awarded the prestigious Cross of Merit, Prima Classe, by the order of the Knights of Malta. Armed with the knowledge of the 16th and 17th Century Maters techniques from his investigations at the Louvre Laboratoire, Frank Mason was a tireless champion of preserving historical works of art and challenged the cleaning techniques employed by institutions around the world. He campaigned against the destruction of national treasures to The Metropolitan Museum of Art, The Vatican and the Frick, eventually joining ArtWatch International to help supervise the conservation of masterpieces worldwide. Frank Mason's portraits, figures, landscapes and religious paintings are collected by important public and private collections worldwide, his work has been commissioned by Prince Giacomo Colonna of Venice, Averell Harriman, King Faisal of Saudi Arabia and Bishop John Cardinal Wright of the Vatican. His work can be found in New York's St. Patrick's Old Cathedral, the National Academy of Art & Design and the Museum of the City of New York.
  • Medium: Chalk and Ink on Paper

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Shipping

La Belle Epoque Auctions does not offer in house shipping. Our Pick-up Address is: 71 8th Avenue, New York, NY 10014
We recommend seeking a shipping quote from one of our bidder recommended shippers prior to bidding.
A sale cannot be voided due to unforeseen shipping costs. Shipping and insurance are the responsibility of the bidder.
Pick-up is between the hours of 11:00am - 4:00pm, Monday-Friday. We are closed on Sundays.


La Belle Epoque Auction House does not offer in house shipping. See below a list of shippers our bidders have used in the past. You may use any shipper of your choice.
We are closed for pick up the Monday directly proceeding the Auction.

Pick up is available Monday - Friday 11am - 5pm. Please email or call with your lot numbers prior to arrival so we can be sure your lots are accessible for pick up. Saturday pick up is available by appointment only.
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Please contact a shipper of your choice to coordinate shipping immediately after payment is processed. Please view a list of recommended shippers and truckers below:
The UPS Store #6052
For all items big and small.
45-12 46th Street
Sunnyside, NY 11104
Contact - Tony Tang
Phone Number - 718-433-9111
[email protected]
www.theupsstorelocal.com/6052\
Call or Email for a Quote

Manhattan Mail Room
For small items.
1562 1st Ave., New York, NY 10028
Phone Number - (212) 249-1756

The Packengers
[email protected]
(929) 339-2223
Monday to Friday
9am to 5pm

Sure Express Worldwide
207-797-3096 or 1-800-335-9996
[email protected]
www.sureexpress.com

Navis Pack & Ship of New York City
30 Broad Street Ste 14152
NEW, YORK, NY 10004
(212) 979-7870
https://www.gonavis.com/

United Shipping
200 E 10th St
New York, NY 10003-7702
[email protected]
212-475-2214

Uber Freight
https://www.uberfreight.com/

Blue Diamond
Cristian: +1 (908) 249-8071
[email protected]
Tri-state Area.

Billy Mac Delivery Service
(California, Chicago, Wasington D.C., New England, New York, New Jersey, Connecticut & Pennsylvania)
Contact - William Mcnamara
[email protected]
Phone Number - 215-285-4840

Richard Santana (Art Handler/Mover/Driver)
Local Tri-State area
[email protected]
917-754-1809

Shupe Shipping
[email protected]
Matt 973-223-0290
Specialize in Fine Art & Glass Moving
From Miami to New Hampshire every other week
New York to California every 6 weeks

Viking Transport & Distribution
Kevin Higgins 205-790-3215
Contiguous U.S

FiveOh Transportation
Tony or Kyle 828-508-7158
[email protected]
Contiguous U.S

Annie Hauls
For furniture local delivery in tri-state area
Call - 609-557-5133
Email - [email protected]
www.anniehauls.com

MVXPRESS
Call - Pablo 347-306-8348
Email - [email protected]

Bolt Logistics & Transport
Email - [email protected]
Call - 678-662-8013

Nelson Fine Antiques Moving
Email - [email protected]
Call - Nelson 914-588-0265

September 13, 2025 11:00 AM EDT
New York, NY, US

La Belle Epoque Auction House

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Bid Increments
From: To: Increments:
$0 $49 $5
$50 $99 $10
$100 $499 $25
$500 $999 $50
$1,000 $1,999 $100
$2,000 $4,999 $250
$5,000 $9,999 $500
$10,000 $19,999 $1,000
$20,000 $49,999 $2,000
$50,000 $99,999 $5,000
$100,000 + $10,000