Pueblos by Abraham P. Hankins

This is a lithograph by American modernist Abraham P. Hankins. The title, Pueblos, is mine but the scene does seem to be southwestern in origin. The buildings have the shape and rounded edges of adobe dwellings. The building on the left has logs extending from the roof, another typical feature of pueblo construction. A hitching post appears to be present at the right of the image. The handling of light and shadow also is characteristic of southwestern art. Lastly, the figures that are included in the scene look to be dressed in traditional southwestern attire. Hankins achieves a very atmospheric scene through the use of 4 colors, blue, purple, gray, and brown. The first three colors have a very narrow tonal range, which leads to very subtle treatment of the scene. The reddish-brown while generally not thought of as a bright color, is almost shocking in its impact when contrasted with the other muted colors. A very sophisticated scene built from very simple elements. The piece is unframed. The sheet size is 11.75 x 9 inches in size. The image is 9..5 x 6.5 inches. It is signed in pencil lower left A. P. Hankins. The piece is in generally good condition. There is tape residual on the edges of the sheet well away from the image. There is some mild toning of the paper with slight mat burn. Otherwise there is no paper loss, tears, foxing or staining. I've not found any other examples of this image online, so I don't have information about edition size or date, although it probably dates from the 1940s based on other similar images that date from that time. It's a very nice example of this artist's work.

Abraham P. Hankins (1904–1963) was born in Russia, but was sent to the United States (Philadelphia) by his parents when he was in his early teens. He had early art education at the Pennsylvania Academy of the Fine Arts followed by the Philadelphia Museum School of Art. He enlisted in the Army and served in France in WWI where his unit suffered a gas attack. On being sent home with lung damage, as part of his recovery he began singing. He was talented enough that he was sent to France to study, however his love for art led him to study at the Académie Julian. Upon returning to the United States, he returned to the Pennsylvania Academy of the Fine Arts and ultimately the Barnes Foundation. He subsequently taught at both institutions. He exhibited his work extensively in New York and Pennsylvania, but was also included in exhibits at the Grand Salon in Paris and the New York World's Fair. His work is held at the National Gallery of Art, Washington, D.C, and all the major Philadelphia museums. HIs papers are archived at the Archives of American Art.