Paul Cadmus

(American, 1904–1999)

Paul Cadmus was an American painter, best known for his stylized, high-contrast renderings of male nudes and portraits. In his elegant tempura paintings, Cadmus emphasizes his subjects’ musculature in a style akin to Magical Realism, offering a level of intricate detail beyond observable life. Born on December 17, 1904 in New York, NY, he studied at the Art Students League in 1928 and thereafter worked in field commercial illustration, eventually receiving commissions in 1933 from the New Deal art program and going on to create mural paintings in post offices and other government offices. One of his earliest and most important works was The Fleets In!, a 1934 commission by the Public Works of Art Project of the WPA, wherein he painted a series of portraits of sailors on leave which controversially included a homosexual couple. His work garnered him both critical and commercial success, and he died in Connecticut on December 12, 1999. Cadmus has been featured in numerous important museum exhibitions, including the Whitney Museum in New York in 1996.

Paul Cadmus Artworks

Paul Cadmus (1,435 results)
Horseplay, 1935

Paul Cadmus

Horseplay, 1935

Sale Date: September 22, 2011

Auction Closed

Coney Island, 1935

Paul Cadmus

Coney Island, 1935

Sale Date: September 22, 2011

Auction Closed

Fleet's in!, 1934

Paul Cadmus

Fleet's in!, 1934

Sale Date: September 22, 2011

Auction Closed

Tired dancer, 1987

Paul Cadmus

Tired dancer, 1987

Sale Date: September 27, 2011

Auction Closed

Portrait of a man

Paul Cadmus

Portrait of a man

Sale Date: September 11, 2011

Auction Closed

Nude no.2, 1984

Paul Cadmus

Nude no.2, 1984

Sale Date: June 25, 2011

Auction Closed

Oak leaf and brich scroll

Paul Cadmus

Oak leaf and brich scroll

Sale Date: June 21, 2011

Auction Closed

Polo spill (from the Aspects of suburban..., 1938

Paul Cadmus

Polo spill (from the Aspects of suburban..., 1938

Sale Date: May 21, 2011

Auction Closed

Two boys on a beach, no. 1, 1938

Paul Cadmus

Two boys on a beach, no. 1, 1938

Sale Date: May 20, 2011

Auction Closed

Male nude, 1969

Paul Cadmus

Male nude, 1969

Sale Date: April 5, 2011

Auction Closed

Polo spill (Aspects of suburban life), 1938

Paul Cadmus

Polo spill (Aspects of suburban life), 1938

Sale Date: April 28, 2011

Auction Closed

Polo

Paul Cadmus

Polo

Sale Date: April 17, 2011

Auction Closed

Golfing

Paul Cadmus

Golfing

Sale Date: April 17, 2011

Auction Closed

Arabesque, 1947

Paul Cadmus

Arabesque, 1947

Sale Date: March 3, 2011

Auction Closed

Mother and child, 1934

Paul Cadmus

Mother and child, 1934

Sale Date: March 3, 2011

Auction Closed

Tom snoozing, 1935

Paul Cadmus

Tom snoozing, 1935

Sale Date: February 6, 2011

Auction Closed

Shirt and socks (study for The bath), 1951

Paul Cadmus

Shirt and socks (study for The bath), 1951

Sale Date: January 28, 2011

Auction Closed

Margaret French and Bernard Perlin, 1940

PaJaMa

Margaret French and Bernard Perlin, 1940

Sale Date: December 4, 2010

Auction Closed

Seated man reading, 1932

Paul Cadmus

Seated man reading, 1932

Sale Date: December 16, 2010

Auction Closed

Man leaning on a chair

Paul Cadmus

Man leaning on a chair

Sale Date: December 16, 2010

Auction Closed

Horse play, 1935

Paul Cadmus

Horse play, 1935

Sale Date: November 9, 2010

Auction Closed

Head (Sandy)

Paul Cadmus

Head (Sandy)

Sale Date: November 18, 2010

Auction Closed

Balanchine's Mourka, 1965

Paul Cadmus

Balanchine's Mourka, 1965

Sale Date: November 30, 2010

Auction Closed

Model and artist

Paul Cadmus

Model and artist

Sale Date: November 30, 2010

Auction Closed