Butterflies
Butterflies
Butterflies

Butterflies

Object number2007.131.37
Artist (died 1973)
Date1962-1973
MediumAcrylic on board
Credit LineGift of Helen Contis
DescriptionAcrylic painting on board/paper. Five multi-colored butterflies, with dots and solid colors. Brown background with multi-colored flowers.Dimensions24.125 x 1.5 x 18.352 in. (61.3 x 3.8 x 46.6 cm)
Signed"P.A. CONTIS" in green, lower right corner on art.
Historical NotesThis painting is part of a large collection of paintings and sketches by Peter and Helen Contis. Peter Contis emigrated to Pittsburgh in 1910 and began working in the restaurant business with his brothers. Peter later returned to his homeland of Greece and met Helen in 1928; they married three months later. Moving back to Pittsburgh, Peter eventually opened a restaurant called the Neon Grill in 1932, while Helen raised their three children. Nearly thirty years later, the restaurant was closed and razed, allowing the Contis' to realize their talent in art. A religious man all his life, Peter began painting landscapes, both of Pittsburgh and Greece, and other still lifes, focusing on God's perfect affection in nature: his buildings are symmetrical and colors are vivid. Helen's talents were not revealed until after Peter's death in 1973, when she began to paint poetically the landscapes and still lifes on her own. Helen died in 2004.
Related person (died 2004)
On View
Not on view
Butterflies in Blue
Peter A. Contis
1962-1973
Butterflies
Peter A. Contis
1962-1973
Painting
Peter A. Contis
1962-1973
Nafplion
Peter A. Contis
1962-1973
St. Basil's (Agios Basilios)
Peter A. Contis
1962-1973
Harper's Ferry #3
Peter A. Contis
1972
Ohiopyle
Peter A. Contis
1972
Our Cardinals
Peter A. Contis
1968
Homestead Works
Peter A. Contis
1962-1973
Birds in Paradise
Peter A. Contis
1962-1973
White Petunias 75
Peter A. Contis
1962-1973
Agora and Acropolis
Peter A. Contis
1968
navigate_beforenavigate_next