The 30 Minute Rule begins August 12 at 7:00 PM EDT. An Initial Bid Must Be Placed By August 12 at 6:00 PM EDT To Participate After 6:00 PM EDT
Original mixed-media artwork by celebrated songwriter Irving Berlin, accomplished in oil and photographic collage on an 11.25 x 15.5 artist's board, lightly signed in the lower left corner in paint, "I.B." The portrait features a photograph of Sam Hoffman centered on a background of swirling greens, blues, and yellows. Cloth-matted and framed without glass to an overall size of 16 x 20; a transmittal letter affixed to the reverse, signed "Irving," dated December 21, 1964, reads: "Dear Sam: I hope you like this portrait of you. Of course, having a photograph that Sam Shaw took some years ago helped a lot. Merry Christmas." In fine condition.
Provenance: From the collection of Irving Berlin's best friend, Irving Hoffman, a Hollywood press agent, drama critic, and columnist for the Hollywood Reporter.
Although Irving Berlin is remembered above all as one of America’s defining songwriters, archival evidence reveals a quieter visual-art side to his creativity. In a 1976 letter to playwright and lyricist Leonard Gershe, Berlin joked self-deprecatingly: 'I demonstrate that as a painter—I don’t know what the hell I’m doing.' The Library of Congress’s Irving Berlin Collection further supports this side of his life, noting an 'Original Artwork' series that includes photographed reproductions of original paintings. Seen alongside his vast musical legacy, this hobby shows Berlin as an artist whose imagination extended beyond words and melody into visual expression as well.
