Woman Cradling Man - Expressionistic Figure Pastel Drawing Dynamic and intriguing drawing of two figures, a woman in red and a man in blue, by Louis Nadalini (American, 1927-1995). The woman sits upright, gazing down at the man whose head rests on her chest. The mans bottom half is distorted, with his legs bending back and appearing shorter than they should given the perspective. This distortion creates the sense that perhaps the man is injured or in need of care which the woman sits strong and upright. The difference in color further cements the dichotomy between the two figures. The background is an abstract field of different colors, rendered in energetic pastel strokes. Signed "Nadalini" bottom right. Mat: 20"H x 16"W Paper: 16 7/8"H x 13 5/8"W Image: 16 1/8"H x 13 1/8"W Louis Nadalini (American, 1927 - 1995) was born in San Francisco and attended the Art Students League where he studied with George Grosz. He also studied with Martin Baer in San Francisco from 1955-1957. In the late 1960s, he developed a form of painted relief, which was painting hard-edge forms of vertical louvers arranged so that different compositions were seen when observed from the right or the left side of the picture. Exhibited: Pennsylvania Academy of Fine Arts, 161st Annual Exhibition of American Painting and Sculpture 1966; Richmond Art Center & University of California; Pelican Bay Art Gallery, Seattle, WA; Village AC, NYC, 1953 (solo); & Am. Student & Artist Center, Paris, France, 1954 (solo); SFMA, Printing Ann., 1957-59 & 1966; CPLH, 1963-67; PAFA Ann., 1966; Oakland Art Mus., Painting Ann., 1966-69; Esther Bear Ga., Santa Barbara, CA, 1970s. Studied: City College San Fran.; ASL with George Grosz; Martin Baer, San Fran., 1958-60. Member: AFA; Artists Equity Assn.; East Bay Artists Assn.