Portrait of Stuart Davis

List of the 100 Most Famous Paintings by Stuart Davis

Updated October 2026 · ranked by our popularity score (searches, visits and orders for each work) · 189 works by Stuart Davis in our catalogue

Summary

The most widely known painting by Stuart Davis is Odol. The next entries are Lucky Strike (1924) and T View (1951). The catalogue documents 189 works by Stuart Davis; the 100 entries below are the best known, listed in rank order with date, holding museum and description.

1892 – 1964, Philadelphia Modernism Most works: The Phillips Collection

Stuart Davis: the 10 principal paintings

1
Odol by Stuart Davis

Odol

Ink On Paper

Subject and Composition This captivating artwork presents a stylized, almost cartoon-like depiction of everyday household objects, prominently featuring a bottle of "Odol" mouthwash, a glass, and a can, arranged on a surface that hints at a kitchen or bathroom setting. The composition employs a balanced triangular arrangement, guiding the viewer’s eye across the scene with clarity and purpose. The central placement of the Odol bottle draws immediate attention, emphasizing the…

7
Boats, Gloucester (1917) by Stuart Davis

Boats, Gloucester

1917 · Oil On Canvas · Philadelphia Museum of Art, Philadelphia

In "Boats, Gloucester" by Stuart Davis, the maritime essence of the coast emerges through a rhythmic, Cubist-inspired approach. The composition breaks the scene into a series of overlapping planes and simplified forms that dance across the canvas. Semi-circles suggest the curve of boat hulls or the swell of waves, while rectangular frames overlap one another to build a sense of depth and a layered perspective. This abstract expressionist arrangement transforms…

Stuart Davis: entries 11 to 100

11Hot Still-Scape for Six Colors. Seventh Avenue Style by Stuart DavisHot Still-Scape for Six Colors. Seventh Avenue Style 12The Mellow Pad by Stuart DavisThe Mellow Pad 13Tropes de Teens (1956) by Stuart DavisTropes de Teens1956 14Newark (1910) by Stuart DavisNewark1910 · Smithsonian American Art Museum 15Strawinsky by Stuart DavisStrawinsky 16Study for ''Blips and Ifs'' 1 by Stuart DavisStudy for ''Blips and Ifs'' 1 17Barber Shop Chord by Stuart DavisBarber Shop Chord 18Gloucester Terraces 1 by Stuart DavisGloucester Terraces 1 19Jersey City Portrait by Stuart DavisJersey City Portrait 20At the Metropolitan Museum of Art. ''Oh In Think Mr. Morgan Paints Awfully Well'' by Stuart DavisAt the Metropolitan Museum of Art. ''Oh In Think Mr. Morgan Paints Awfully Well'' 21Itlksez by Stuart DavisItlksez 22Sixth Avenue El by Stuart DavisSixth Avenue El 23Study for Men without Women by Stuart DavisStudy for Men without Women 24Multiple Views by Stuart DavisMultiple ViewsNational Gallery of Art 25Gee, Mag by Stuart DavisGee, Mag 26Babe La Tour by Stuart DavisBabe La Tour 27Composition 1 by Stuart DavisComposition 1Bavarian State Painting Collections 28Barber Shop Chord by Stuart DavisBarber Shop Chord 29The Terminal by Stuart DavisThe Terminal 30Artist in Search of a Model by Stuart DavisArtist in Search of a Model 31New York Mural by Stuart DavisNew York Mural 32T-Scape (T-View) by Stuart DavisT-Scape (T-View) 33Coffee Pot -2 by Stuart DavisCoffee Pot -2 34Dancers on Havana Street by Stuart DavisDancers on Havana Street 35Combination Concrete by Stuart DavisCombination Concrete 36Night Club, Havana by Stuart DavisNight Club, Havana 37Textile with Liquor and Prohibition Motifs by Stuart DavisTextile with Liquor and Prohibition Motifs 38Barrel House. Newark by Stuart DavisBarrel House. Newark 39Gloucester Terraces by Stuart DavisGloucester Terraces 40Newark (1910) by Stuart DavisNewark1910 41Babe La Tour (1913) by Stuart DavisBabe La Tour1913 42Garage No. 1 (1917) by Stuart DavisGarage No. 11917 43Table with Pipe (1922) by Stuart DavisTable with Pipe1922 · Pennsylvania Academy of Fine Arts 44Steeple and Street (1922) by Stuart DavisSteeple and Street1922 45Egg Beater No. 4 (1928) by Stuart DavisEgg Beater No. 41928 · The Phillips Collection 46Edison Mazda (1924) by Stuart DavisEdison Mazda1924 · Metropolitan Museum of Art 47Odol (1924) by Stuart DavisOdol1924 48Rue des Rats, No. 2 (1928) by Stuart DavisRue des Rats, No. 21928 49Corner Cafe (1930) by Stuart DavisCorner Cafe1930 · The Phillips Collection 50Boats (1930) by Stuart DavisBoats1930 · The Phillips Collection 51Still Life with Saw (1930) by Stuart DavisStill Life with Saw1930 · The Phillips Collection 52Jefferson Market, New York (1930) by Stuart DavisJefferson Market, New York1930 · Metropolitan Museum of Art 53Composition No. 5 (1932) by Stuart DavisComposition No. 51932 54Rue de L'Echaudé (1929) by Stuart DavisRue de L'Echaudé1929 55Mural (Radio City Men's Lounge Mural Men without Women) (1932) by Stuart DavisMural (Radio City Men's Lounge Mural Men without Women)1932 56Men and Machine (1934) by Stuart DavisMen and Machine1934 · Metropolitan Museum of Art 57The Terminal (1937) by Stuart DavisThe Terminal1937 58Waterfront Landscape (1936) by Stuart DavisWaterfront Landscape1936 59Impression of the New York World's Fair (mural study, Communications Building, World's Fair, Flushing, New York) (1938) by Stuart DavisImpression of the New York World's Fair (mural study, Communications Building, World's Fair, Flushing, New York)1938 60New York Under Gaslight (1941) by Stuart DavisNew York Under Gaslight1941 · Israel Museum 61Flying Carpet (1942) by Stuart DavisFlying Carpet1942 62West Indian Street (1940) by Stuart DavisWest Indian Street1940 · The Phillips Collection 63Pennsylvania, from the United States Series (1946) by Stuart DavisPennsylvania, from the United States Series1946 64Memo (1956) by Stuart DavisMemo1956 65Composition Concrete (Study for Mural) (1958) by Stuart DavisComposition Concrete (Study for Mural)1958 · Cleveland Museum of Art 66Int'l Surface No. 1 (1960) by Stuart DavisInt'l Surface No. 11960 67Rocks, Gloucester (1915) by Stuart DavisRocks, Gloucester1915 · New Orleans Museum of Art 68Study for 'Swing Landscape' (1938) by Stuart DavisStudy for 'Swing Landscape'1938 69Abstraction (1937) by Stuart DavisAbstraction1937 · Smithsonian American Art Museum 70Study for History of Communications by Stuart DavisStudy for History of Communications 71Shapes of Landscape Space by Stuart DavisShapes of Landscape Space 72Study for Package Deal by Stuart DavisStudy for Package Deal 73Study ‘Rapt’ by Stuart DavisStudy ‘Rapt’ 74Study for ''The Mellow Pad'' by Stuart DavisStudy for ''The Mellow Pad'' 75Composition Nº 5 by Stuart DavisComposition Nº 5 76Sheet from Sketchhook 6 by Stuart DavisSheet from Sketchhook 6 77Sketch of Max and of Rothko and Baziotes Paintings by Stuart DavisSketch of Max and of Rothko and Baziotes Paintings 78Study for New York Mural by Stuart DavisStudy for New York Mural 79Study for ''Contranuities'' by Stuart DavisStudy for ''Contranuities'' 80Anchors by Stuart DavisAnchors 81Study for ''Blips and Ifs'' by Stuart DavisStudy for ''Blips and Ifs'' 82Table with Easel by Stuart DavisTable with Easel 83Eggbeater No. 4 by Stuart DavisEggbeater No. 4 84Au bon coin by Stuart DavisAu bon coin 85Sunrise by Stuart DavisSunrise 86The Coast by Stuart DavisThe Coast 87Premiere by Stuart DavisPremiere 88Fabric Design, rose motif with blue stripe by Stuart DavisFabric Design, rose motif with blue stripe 89Flying Carpet by Stuart DavisFlying Carpet 90White Walls by Stuart DavisWhite Walls 91Study for ''The Outside'' by Stuart DavisStudy for ''The Outside'' 92Sketch 2 by Stuart DavisSketch 2 93Study for ''The Outside'' 1 by Stuart DavisStudy for ''The Outside'' 1 94Study for ''Eye Level'' by Stuart DavisStudy for ''Eye Level'' 95Radio Tubes by Stuart DavisRadio Tubes 96Edison Mazda by Stuart DavisEdison Mazda 97Variant Study of ''Synthetic Souvenir'' by Stuart DavisVariant Study of ''Synthetic Souvenir'' 98Still Life with ''Dial'' by Stuart DavisStill Life with ''Dial'' 99Ready-to-Wear by Stuart DavisReady-to-WearArt Institute of Chicago 100Fabric Design, rope motif by Stuart DavisFabric Design, rope motif

Stuart Davis: works by period

Principal subjects in the work of Stuart Davis

The four subjects most frequently represented among these works, each with its best-known example.

Stuart Davis: holding museums

The 8 museums that hold the most of the paintings on this page.

Museum City Works by Stuart Davis Paintings from this list
The Phillips Collection, Washington, D.C.The Phillips Collection Washington, D.C. 6 Blue Café, Egg Beater No. 4, Corner Cafe
Metropolitan Museum of Art, New YorkMetropolitan Museum of Art New York 3 Edison Mazda, Jefferson Market, New York, Men and Machine
Smithsonian American Art Museum, Washington, D.C.Smithsonian American Art Museum Washington, D.C. 3 Newark, Abstraction
Israel Museum, JerusalemIsrael Museum Jerusalem 2 New York Under Gaslight
Philadelphia Museum of Art, PhiladelphiaPhiladelphia Museum of Art Philadelphia 1 Boats, Gloucester
National Gallery of Art, WashingtonNational Gallery of Art Washington 1 Multiple Views
Bavarian State Painting Collections, MunichBavarian State Painting Collections Munich 1 Composition 1
Pennsylvania Academy of Fine Arts, PhiladelphiaPennsylvania Academy of Fine Arts Philadelphia 1 Table with Pipe

Stuart Davis: principal painting of each decade

Works per decade

Select a decade to display its principal painting.

Stuart Davis's paintings: reference questions

Which painting by Stuart Davis is the most widely known?Display the answer

Odol. The following entries are Lucky Strike (1924) and T View (1951).

Which ten paintings by Stuart Davis are the best known?Display the answer

Odol, Lucky Strike, T View, Blue Café, Sixth Avenue El, Arboretum by Flashbulb, Boats, Gloucester, Rue Lipp, Still Life-Flowers and Self-Portrait. The list above records the date and holding museum of each.

How many works by Stuart Davis are documented?Display the answer

The catalogue records 189 works by Stuart Davis, dated between 1910 and 1960.

Which museums hold the best-known paintings of Stuart Davis?Display the answer

Principally in The Phillips Collection (Washington, D.C.), Metropolitan Museum of Art (New York) and Smithsonian American Art Museum (Washington, D.C.). The museum table above gives the full distribution.

In which period were Stuart Davis's best-known works painted?Display the answer

In 1930s: 13 of the 100 works listed on this page are dated to that period, including Sixth Avenue El.

Which are the earliest and latest dated works by Stuart Davis on this list?Display the answer

The earliest dated work listed here is Newark (1910); the latest is Int'l Surface No. 1 (1960).

Which subjects recur most in the work of Stuart Davis?Display the answer

Geometric shapes (6), Urban landscape (5) and Geometric forms (4), out of the 100 works listed on this page.

Which medium predominates in the work of Stuart Davis?Display the answer

Oil On Canvas, in 2 of the 100 works listed on this page.

With which art movement is Stuart Davis associated?Display the answer

Modernism, as documented by the works on this page.

Which works by Stuart Davis are in the collection of the The Phillips Collection?Display the answer

Blue Café, Egg Beater No. 4 and Corner Cafe are among the 6 works on this page in the collection of the The Phillips Collection, Washington, D.C..

Stuart Davis: biographical notes

Stuart Davis: A Pioneer of American Modernism

Early Life and Training

Born on December 7, 1892, in Philadelphia, Stuart Davis was immersed in an artistic environment from a young age. His father, Edward Wyatt Davis, served as the art editor for the Philadelphia Press, while his mother, Helen Stuart Davis, was a sculptor. This familial background undoubtedly fostered his early interest in visual arts.

Davis received formal training at the Robert Henri School of Art in New York City from 1909 to 1912 under the guidance of Robert Henri. During this period, he formed lasting friendships with fellow painters John Sloan, Glenn Coleman, and Henry Glintenkamp.

Early Career and the Armory Show

Davis quickly gained recognition as one of the youngest exhibitors at the pivotal Armory Show in 1913. He presented five watercolor paintings that reflected the style of the Ashcan School, marking an early step in his artistic journey.

Artistic Development and Style

Throughout the 1920s, Davis developed his distinctive mature style. He began creating abstract still lifes and landscapes characterized by a proto-pop art element, incorporating contemporary subject matter like cigarette packages and spark plug advertisements into his compositions.

His work is known for its bold, brash, and colorful nature. Davis’s artistic expression was profoundly influenced by his love of jazz music, which became increasingly evident in his paintings from the 1940s and 1950s. The Ashcan School movement also played a crucial role in shaping his early aesthetic sensibilities.

Influences and Inspirations

  • Robert Henri: Provided foundational training and encouraged direct observation of life.
  • Ashcan School: Influenced his initial focus on urban realism and everyday subjects.
  • Cubism: Inspired his exploration of abstract forms and fragmented perspectives.
  • Jazz Music: Contributed to the rhythmic energy and improvisational quality of his paintings.

Notable Works

Odol (Modernism), completed in 1928, stands as a prime example of Davis’s unique style. This painting exemplifies his ability to blend abstract forms with recognizable imagery from popular culture.

Other significant works include Rocks, Gloucester (1915), The Mellow Pad, and Tropes de Teens (1956).

Legacy and Historical Significance

Stuart Davis’s contributions to American Modernism are undeniable. He paved the way for future generations of artists by challenging traditional artistic conventions and embracing contemporary themes.

As a pioneer in abstract art, he helped establish a distinctly American voice within the broader context of modern art history. His work continues to inspire and influence artists today, solidifying his place as a significant figure in 20th-century art.