Butterflies
Object number2007.131.66
Artist
Peter A. Contis
(died 1973)
Date1962-1973
MediumAcrylic; board; paper; glass; metal
Credit LineGift of Helen Contis
DescriptionAcrylic painting on board. Multicolored. Two large yellow butterflies with accented colors in center. Surrounded by a variety of flowers, multicolored. Border of multicolored dots. Blue background.Dimensions20.75 x 1.125 x 16.75 in. (52.7 x 2.9 x 42.5 cm)Signed"P. A. Contis" in white lower right corner on art.
Historical NotesThis painting is part of a large collection of paintings and sketches by Peter and Helen Contis. Butterflies were very significant to Peter. During walks in Highland Park with his wife Peter would catch butterflies and take them home. He would put them in a jar and use them as the subject for his painting. He would then release them. In the spring is when the flowers would bloom and there would be a lot of butterflies. 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
Helen P. Contis
(died 2004)
Subjects
Terms
On View
On view
