Orazio George Pinca (American, 1918-1981), Western Nocturne

Lot Details & Additional Photographs

Oil on canvas, 1949, signed at lower left, inscribed and titled to the verso, presented in a white painted frame.

Stretcher size 18 1/4 x 24 in.; Frame dimensions 24 1/2 x 30 1/2 in.

The Collection of Karen & Robert Milnes, Asheville, North Carolina

George (Orazio) Pinca was an American artist known for his work as a sculptor, watercolorist, and painter. Born in Wilkes-Barre, Pennsylvania, he began his career as a machinist before serving in the Army Air Corps in 1942. After World War II, he studied at the Art Students League and the New York Phoenix School of Design, later continuing his education in San Antonio, Texas, at Trinity University and the San Antonio Art Institute. He became an active figure in the Texas art community, first exhibiting at the Witte Museum in 1947 and participating in notable exhibitions such as the 1955 Texas General Exhibition.

Pinca was also a dedicated educator, teaching at Randolph Air Force Base, the San Antonio Art Center, and Alamo Heights High School, before establishing a successful advertising art agency. His work earned significant recognition, including multiple purchase prizes from the Texas Watercolor Society and the Julian Onderdonk Purchase Prize in 1957, the same year he was named Artist of the Year by the San Antonio Art League.

Slight waviness to the canvas, puncture to the canvas, minor flaking.