Olaf Palm

"Newell and the Bobcat"

Oil on Board - framed

from a California private collection, 

purchased direct from the artist

circa 1983

SOLD

Signed in lower right corner. "PALM"

unframed dimensions: 12" wide x 16" high

framed dimensions: 20" wide x 24" high

Excellent Condition 

"Newell and the Bobcat" is an allegorical painting, a tribute to NC Wyeth, an artist Palm greatly admired.  The painting is a fanciful vision of Newell traveling the wilderness with his bobcat companion.  It is also worth noting the sensual figurative aspect of the tree in which the bobcat is perched, perhaps a tribute to the sensual quality of Wyeth's work, or life itself.

The painting is featured on page 40 of "Olaf Palm - A Life in Art", and featured on page 66 of "Southwest Art" magazine, August 1982

The painting is exceptional in its reference to one of the many great masters that Palm admired and emulated.  Like most of his works, the painting has an innocent, "outsider art" quality combined with an appreciation for the work of the great masters.  When I first saw and described this painting to others, I said it reminded my of a Wyeth or a painting by Howard Pyle, as indeed it does!

Olaf Palm was a well respected painter and active member of the arts community in Mendocino California.  Palm was inspired by he work of the Dutch and Flemish Masters, awed by what he called their "little masterpieces" small paintings beautifully rendered and alive with light and atmosphere.  Palm documented his environment and the lives of those around him, capturing a sense of the time and place of mid to late 20th century Northern California. Palm was a well-loved member of his community, still fondly remembered by those who know him and admired his work.  

Palm painted in oils in a realist style. Palm’s subjects included portraits, still life, genre scenes, political commentary, and autobiographical imagery. He was also an accomplished jazz musician.  Many of his works celebrate his love for music and the musicians he played with.  Palm was raised in the Santa Clara valley, traveled extensively in Europe, and eventually settles in Mendocino County, where he lived and worked for more than thirty years.  

A large collection of Palm's work can be seen at "The Restaurant" in Fort Bragg.  A history of his work "Olaf Palm - A Life in Art" by Irene D. Thomas, was published in 2005, and contains many excellent works and an extensive history of his life and work.