Nathan Oliveira

(American, 1928–2010)

Nathan Oliveira was an American artist and prominent member of the second generation of the Bay Area Figurative artists. Though he worked with a variety of media, subjects, and disciplines over the course of his long career, Oliveira is best remembered for the brilliantly colored figurative and landscape paintings he created while associated with the California movement. “For me, painting is that magical material, that beautiful stuff that was invented, the ground-up pigments in oil which makes it very malleable,” he had said. “It can be manipulated and changed, darkened, lightened, given different hues and colors, so that by manipulating this material somehow I can find that figure I'm looking for, that figure that represents all the issues I'm bringing up and addressing.” Oliveira's works retain a sense of Expressionist looseness and melancholy, inspired by his interest in the works of Willem de Kooning, Francis Bacon, and Edvard Munch. His work has been met with critical acclaim, receiving numerous honors such as a 1996 Honorary Doctorate of Fine Arts from the San Francisco Art Institute and a major retrospective in 2002, “The Art of Nathan Oliveira,” mounted by the San Jose Art Museum. The Windhover Contemplative Center, a structure completed in 2014 at Stanford University, permanently displays four of Oliveira's paintings. Born in Oakland, CA on December 19, 1928, he died on November 13, 2010 in Stanford, CA at the age 81.

Nathan Oliveira Artworks

Nathan Oliveira (621 results)
Santa Fe nudes (#23 and 72) (2 works), 1999

Nathan Oliveira

Santa Fe nudes (#23 and 72) (2 works), 1999

Sale Date: May 12, 2012

Auction Closed

Untitled, 1957

Nathan Oliveira

Untitled, 1957

Sale Date: May 6, 2012

Auction Closed

Woman's Face, 1966

Nathan Oliveira

Woman's Face, 1966

Sale Date: May 1, 2012

Auction Closed

Dancing Girl, 1972

Nathan Oliveira

Dancing Girl, 1972

Sale Date: May 2, 2012

Auction Closed

Anne, 1979

Nathan Oliveira

Anne, 1979

Sale Date: March 9, 2012

Auction Closed

Sleeping woman

Nathan Oliveira

Sleeping woman

Sale Date: December 5, 2010

Auction Closed

Erotica, 1963

Nathan Oliveira

Erotica, 1963

Sale Date: December 6, 2010

Auction Closed

Head #3, 1959

Nathan Oliveira

Head #3, 1959

Sale Date: June 28, 2009

Auction Closed

Head #3, 1959

Nathan Oliveira

Head #3, 1959

Sale Date: August 9, 2009

Auction Closed

Head no. 3

Nathan Oliveira

Head no. 3

Sale Date: September 20, 2009

Auction Closed

Head no. 3, 1959

Nathan Oliveira

Head no. 3, 1959

Sale Date: January 24, 2010

Auction Closed

Woman undressing, 1961

Nathan Oliveira

Woman undressing, 1961

Sale Date: November 9, 2011

Auction Closed

Black Christ II, 1963

Nathan Oliveira

Black Christ II, 1963

Sale Date: October 25, 2011

Auction Closed

Untitled (Nude), 1965

Nathan Oliveira

Untitled (Nude), 1965

Sale Date: October 9, 2011

Auction Closed

Untitled (Nude), 1965

Nathan Oliveira

Untitled (Nude), 1965

Sale Date: October 9, 2011

Auction Closed

Profile and heart, 1962

Nathan Oliveira

Profile and heart, 1962

Sale Date: October 9, 2011

Auction Closed

Studio corner, Palo Alto, 1967

Nathan Oliveira

Studio corner, Palo Alto, 1967

Sale Date: September 22, 2011

Auction Closed

Untitled (Reclining figure), 1978

Nathan Oliveira

Untitled (Reclining figure), 1978

Sale Date: July 17, 2011

Auction Closed

Untitled, 1957

Nathan Oliveira

Untitled, 1957

Sale Date: June 18, 2011

Auction Closed

Acoma hawk I (+ Acoma hawk IV; 2 works), 1975

Nathan Oliveira

Acoma hawk I (+ Acoma hawk IV; 2 works), 1975

Sale Date: June 26, 2011

Auction Closed

Untitled, 1968

Nathan Oliveira

Untitled, 1968

Sale Date: May 24, 2011

Auction Closed

Male figure, 1985

Nathan Oliveira

Male figure, 1985

Sale Date: May 24, 2011

Auction Closed

Acoma hawk II, 1975

Nathan Oliveira

Acoma hawk II, 1975

Sale Date: March 1, 2011

Auction Closed

Reclining nude with smile, 1966

Nathan Oliveira

Reclining nude with smile, 1966

Sale Date: November 23, 2010

Auction Closed