“It has never ceased to thrill and amaze me the magic of what happens when you put one bit of paint next to another.” —Wayne Thiebaud
Steeped in memories both personal and cultural, Wayne Thiebaud’s colorful depictions of everyday life made him one of America’s most cherished painters. From pastries and pinball machines to ice cream cones and cakes, Thiebaud’s paintings are comfortingly familiar, celebrating shared experiences from mid-century America.
Thiebaud died in his home in Sacramento, California, on December 25, 2021. He was 101.
By the early ’60s, while exhibiting at the Allan Stone Gallery in New York, Thiebaud (pronounced T-Bow) had produced such paintings as “Four Pinball Machines,” “Bakery Counter,” “Cakes” and “Pies.”
Thiebaud’s lush and layered “Pies,” from 1961 (left), is one of his earliest paintings in the signature style that…
