Okay, I am obsessed with vintage art prints. There is so much great art and illustration that is languishing, forgotten, in old books or museum basements. Of course, some vintage art has been rediscovered, and everybody wants to snap it up, like A. Boogert and Hilma af Klint pieces. (More on them below.)
I think there is a certain personality of human who gravitates to vintage art in general - maybe people who want something a little different than the same art trends you see everywhere, or maybe you just have a nostalgia for what life might have been like back "then".
I love vintage art finds for both of these reasons, and more - I'll touch on some of those below as I talk about each vintage art poster or collection.
These first two collections of vintage art are some of my favorite art ever, and I am so excited to be able to offer them in my shop. They are completely different from each other, yet both are visually breathtaking and lend themselves perfectly to framing and hanging on up anywhere in your home or work place.
Maybe you've seen these color studies floating around the internet. In 1692, Dutch artist A Boogert created a visual encyclopedia of watercolor studies. He hand-painted and wrote over 800 pages documenting every watercolor paint he could, intending to provide a resource for artists.
In 2014, Medieval book historian Erik Kwakkel wrote about the book on his Tumblr, after it had been hanging out in a French library for decades. So juicy. And I wonder how many more visual treasures in the form of forgotten books are yet to be re-discovered...
Anyway, I have several of the color study pages available as vintage art prints, along with 3 larger compilations in blues, reds, and neutrals. I intend to get more of them up there, but there are some beautiful options available so far. I never get tired of these color studies!
Yay for Hilma! Everything about her art is so modern, even though these paintings were created in the early 1900's. Her sense of color, abstract style, and exploration of spiritual subject matter make Hilma's work fascinating to so many people today.
Hilma af Klint made abstract paintings before abstract painting was a style - she kept her work hidden away and stipulated that it not be shown to the public until at least 20 years after her death. She knew the world wasn't ready for her at that time.
I feel like you could tuck a smaller Hilma af Klint art print into a gallery wall, or feature one of her artworks all by its lonesome, with equally good results. I personally love the look of pairing or tripling prints from her 'The Ten Largest' collection. They all work together beautifully and are some of my favorite vintage art ever.
Here is a smattering of more vintage art for you - including abstracts, nature, and other juicy picks. I am adding prints to my shop at lightning speed, because I keep discovering more art I love, so make sure to bookmark it or sign up for my newsletter (see side bar) to get notifications!
These are some of my favorite art pieces from my shop - I tend to like the stuff that is either slightly weird, kinda moody, or fabulously colorful.
Vintage print by Abraham Begeyn, a Dutch golden age painter well known for his landscapes. I love the dark, moody lighting and the perfectly-painted creatures.
This is one of my favorites, ever ever ever. It's called, "Tiger against blue background", translated from: Sho utsushi moko no zu, and is a color woodcut from 1860 by Utagawa Kunimaro, who "drew it from life". Yes.
The cool image above of abstract flowers, is a pattern from 1922 by an unknown artist. Is it not whimsical and wonderful?
Above are two vintage map prints from Harold Fisk created in 1944 by for The Army Corps of Engineers. He documented the area of The Alluvial Valley of the lower Mississippi in what resulted in perfectly frame-able art.
Hares (Hazen), by Johannes Tavenraat
The guy on the left is The Four-Toed Manis, by George Shaw, from sometime between 1789-1813, and is the cutest little fella I've ever seen, really. If I was getting ready to pop out a wee baby, this would be in the nursery 100%. Look at this close up of his/her/their face:
The colorful print on the right is a vintage print of a painting by Paul Klee from 1915, called Movement of Vaulted Chambers. This and the painting next to it are super modern-looking, right? Paul Klee and Kandinsky both have obviously influenced and inspired scads of artists through the decades.
Okay, indulge me for a moment, but isn't it cool how different an art print can look depending on how it's framed? Paying around with my digital mockup frames, and this Klee looks great both ways:
Have I piqued your interest in vintage art prints? Or maybe you were already there - I just love how there is a treasure trove of options out there for us to snap up and hang all over our walls. Alongside the big, fabulous original art, of course.
You can create an entire gallery wall of vintage prints, mix them in with contemporary art, tuck one in a special place (why do I keep visualizing an art print above the toilet in a cute little powder room?)
