Carl Faber Modernist Abstract Oil Painting Dual Orientation Signed

Striking abstract oil on stretched canvas by New Mexico artist Carl Faber, signed lower left and uniquely signed twice—visible in either orientation. This compelling composition is intentionally designed to be displayed in two directions, each offering a distinct visual experience. One orientation reads as grounded and architectural, while the reverse introduces a more fluid, floating dynamic, giving the work a rare duality.

Faber’s confident, calligraphic brushwork and crisp, interlocking forms reflect his background in sign painting, while the bold palette—featuring saturated reds, soft pastels, and deep contrasting fields—creates a sense of movement and balance. The interplay between hard-edged geometry and biomorphic shapes invites prolonged viewing, making it especially appealing to collectors of modern and contemporary abstraction, as well as designers seeking a statement piece with versatility.

Carl Faber was an American painter whose work was deeply rooted in direct observation and a lifelong engagement with the landscapes of the Southwest. After early training in commercial art and work in sign painting and design, he relocated to the East Mojave desert in 1972, where he developed a disciplined practice of painting from life. His work gained attention in the 1980s through regional and national exposure, attracting collectors and visitors to his remote studio. Known for his sensitivity to color and structure, as well as his commitment to teaching, Faber spent his later years in Gila Hot Springs, New Mexico, where he continued to paint and refine his distinctive visual language. His works remain held in private collections throughout the region and beyond.

A visually engaging and intellectually rewarding piece, this painting offers both aesthetic impact and conceptual depth—an exceptional addition to any modern art collection.

Condition:
In good condition overall, with some chipping to the frame that has been touched up. The painting surface remains stable and presents well. 

Dimensions:
Overall: 31 x 27 inches
Visible: 30 x 26 inches

Artist Biography — Carl Faber
(Delaware — East Mojave — Gila, New Mexico)
Carl Faber was an American painter who spent the better part of his working life in the desert Southwest, developing a distinctive body of work rooted in sustained, first-hand observation of the natural world. He studied commercial art at a vocational school in Delaware, and worked professionally in sign painting, metalwork, business displays, and silkscreening in Florida and California before redirecting his energies entirely toward easel painting.

In 1972, Faber moved to the East Mojave desert to focus on landscape painting, studying the desert terrain that would become his hallmark subject for more than three decades. His artwork and austere desert lifestyle attracted attention from both local and national press during the 1980s, and organizations such as the Sierra Club and Friends of the Mojave Road brought a steady stream of visitors and buyers to his remote studio. It was in the East Mojave that Faber developed his philosophy of field painting — a rigorous commitment to painting directly from nature rather than from photographic reference, a practice he defended on both technical and philosophical grounds.

Faber's experiences with LSD in the 1960s shaped his perception of the natural world in ways he believed gave him an unusually acute sensitivity to color, light, and structural relationships in nature. This perceptual intensity carried through into his studio work as well — evident in the compressed chromatic energy and restless formal invention of canvases such as the present work. His training as a sign painter gave him a command of calligraphy and the importance of accurate, deft brushstrokes, producing a freshness and clarity achieved through single, confident marks rather than reworked passages.

Faber illustrated his partner Adrienne Knute's botanical study Plants of the East Mojave, published in 1991 and reprinted in 2002, demonstrating both his draftsmanship and his deep engagement with the Mojave ecosystem. He and Adrienne first came to Gila Hot Springs, New Mexico, in 2004 — originally seeking a winter home — but fell in love with the place and made it their permanent residence. It is from this final chapter of his life, based in the Gila wilderness near Silver City, that the present work originates.

Faber was known as a committed teacher who accepted students on a non-commercial basis, preferring to pass on his technical knowledge and philosophical outlook to those he judged capable of genuine dedication. He described his approach as one that "would have nothing to do with money." A notice from the ACE Studio Art Gallery in Silver City confirmed his passing, the date of which has not yet been independently verified in published sources. His work remains held in private collections across the Southwest and beyond.