Lot 272, Auction 4/20/2026: Arthur Knebel Painting – Mealtime

$390.00

In stock

Arthur Knebel (American, 1925-2013). Mealtime. Oil on canvas, n.d. A shared table becomes the quiet center of gravity in “Mealtime,” where Knebel captures the unremarked intimacy of an everyday ritual. Three figures gather around a worn surface, their gestures unposed and inward, absorbed in the simple choreography of pouring, holding, waiting. There is no overt drama here, only the steady presence of companionship, rendered with warmth and patience. Knebel builds the scene through dense, layered brushwork, allowing color and texture to do the work of description. Greens, blues, and earthen reds mingle across the canvas, giving the interior a lived-in softness rather than fixed definition. Forms emerge gradually from the surface, hovering between recognition and suggestion, as if memory itself were shaping the image. The table curves gently toward the viewer, drawing the eye inward, while the figures remain loosely articulated, bound more by tonal harmony than by line. Size: 30″ W x 24″ H (76.2 cm x 61 cm)

Light in “Mealtime” is diffused and domestic, settling into the space rather than illuminating it outright. Knebel’s sensitivity to balance and rhythm is evident in the way visual weight moves across the composition, from the quiet smile of the central figure to the careful tilt of a pouring vessel. The surface bears signs of reworking and abrasion, lending the painting a tactile quality that mirrors the passage of time embedded in routine.

More than a depiction of eating, “Mealtime” is a meditation on presence and connection. Knebel treats the scene with the same attentiveness one might give to music played softly at home, unperformed yet deeply felt. The result is a painting that honors the beauty of ordinary moments, held together by color, touch, and shared silence.

About the artist: Arthur Henry Knebel Jr. was a gifted painter, photographer, and professional violist whose life intertwined the disciplines of sound, color, and light. Born in Cincinnati, Ohio, in 1925 to Arthur Henry Knebel and Margie Shafer Knebel, he grew up in a household steeped in the arts. His mother, a lecturer on modern art in the 1940s, and his father, a drafting artist, instilled in him both technical discipline and creative curiosity.

Before devoting himself fully to painting in 1986, Knebel enjoyed a distinguished musical career spanning more than four decades. He performed as a violist with the Cincinnati Symphony, St. Louis Symphony, North Carolina Symphony, Houston Symphony, and Denver Symphony orchestras, among others. After joining the Denver Musicians Association in 1964, he later taught at Metropolitan State College from 1987 to 1988.

Knebel’s visual art reflects his mid-century sensibilities and a deep engagement with color, light, and design. A perfectionist by nature, he sought balance between realism and abstraction, frequently reworking his canvases to achieve ideal tonal harmony. His paintings often show the influence of photography – an art form he practiced with precision, developing his own prints and manipulating negatives to control the distribution of light. When painting, he sometimes used an orbital sander on the dried surface to refine texture and form.

Arthur’s work was poetic both in mood and method. His subjects were often figurative, imbued with a quiet lyricism that mirrored his musical compositions. His poem “Shadow” encapsulates his introspective spirit:

“My shadow is the prisoner of the sun / Xeroxed days stapled on the wall / Taller than you, smaller than me / The tricks that run this show / Are wound up like a clock / Stretched like a lie / Sent like an errand in search of a meaning / Clenched like a fist at night / My shadow.”

Though deeply private, Knebel exhibited occasionally, including at the Denver Art Museum and the Koelbel Library’s Joan R. Duncan Gallery in Centennial, Colorado, in 2008, where he and his wife, pianist Susan Cowan Knebel, provided live music during the show. Their marriage, beginning the day after Thanksgiving in 1986, united two artists in a lifelong devotion to music and art.

Arthur Knebel passed away in 2013 at the Denver Hospice Care Center. His legacy endures through his paintings, which continue to find new homes through the ongoing efforts of his estate.

Condition: Painting is in excellent overall condition.

Provenance: private Shawnee, Colorado, USA collection

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