ERNIE BARNES (1938 - 2009) Vanquishment.

ERNIE BARNES (1938 - 2009)

Vanquishment.

Oil on cotton canvas, circa 1968. 1219x762 mm; 48x30 inches. Signed in oil, lower right.Provenance: private collection, New Jersey (2010) . This striking example of Ernie Barnes' football painting portays in this heroic figure both the emotional and physical toil of the sport. Ernie Barnes played professional football in the NFL in the late 1960s before beginning his celebrated career as a figurative painter and graphic artist. The artist was able to launch his career with the patronage of Sonny Werblin, owner of the New York Jets, and an acclaimed one person exhibition at Grand Central Art Galleries in 1968 of these football paintings.