Post War & Contemporary Art 
11 March 2021
Post War & Contemporary Art 
126

Robert Kulicke 1924–2007

Roses

1973
oil on paper board 8 h × 8 w in (20 × 20 cm)
estimate: $3,000–5,000
result: $2,500
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Signed and dated to lower edge ‘Robert Kulicke 73’.
provenance: Davis & Langdale Company, Inc., New York | Private Collection

This work will ship from Rago in Lambertville, New Jersey.

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Artist & Craftsman, Robert Kulicke

Robert Kulicke wanted to be artist from a very young age; he was inspired by the Philadelphia museums and galleries he visited with his father as a child.

He was a terrible student but voracious reader, studying the art books at the Philadelphia Library.

He served in the Army during World War II and afterwards studied painting with Fernand Léger and framing in Paris on the G.I Bill. 

Kulicke opened his own frame shop in New York City in 1951.  

In 1960, he created a simple welded aluminum frame, and credits Mies van der Rohe’s Barcelona chair from 1928 as his inspiration. Dubbed the "Kulicke Frame", it became a staple of 20th Century art display and a go to for institutions and artists alike. 

Mies van der Rohe's Barcelona chair orginally designed in 1928

The New York Times called Kulicke “the most innovative and influential picture framer in the United States.”

After being commissioned to frame 300 small still life paintings by Giorgio Morandi, Kulicke returned to painting, focusing primarily on small-scale studies of flowers and fruits.  

Oh, and in true Reniassance fashion, he also revitalized the ancient cloisonné technique of granulation. 

In 1994, Robert Kulicke was featured on CBS's "Sunday Morning" with Charles Osgood and Anthony Mason.

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