“Tug Boats, New York City”

Original oil painting on artist canvas board of tugboats on the in New York City by the well known American artist, John Checkley. Signed “Checkley” by the artist lower right. Circa 1950 when Checkley lived in New York. Titled verso “Tugboats NYC”. Condition is excellent. The painting is housed in a custom polished chrome gallery frame. Overall framed measurements are 8.5 by 10.5 inches. Provenance: A Sarasota, Florida collector.

John Leonard Checkley (1922-1991)
New Zealander John Checkley, A San Franciscan since 1955, enjoys a well-deserved reputation for his charming water colors, which capture the
ever-changing moods of the Bay Area. Now he has developed a unique style in acrylics, gaining immediate recognition for himself and winning an enthusiastic following in art circles across the nation.
Checkley completed his schooling in New Zealand's St. Andrews College and went on to major in art at the University of New Zealand.
He entered the advertising profession only to have his career interrupted by three years of military service in the Pacific during World War II.
After the conflict, he concentrated on graphic arts. His career led him to the United States in 1948 where he joined Batten, Barton, Durstine and Osborn, one of the world's great advertising agencies, in New York City.

Checkley held a successful series of one-man shows in New York before moving to San Francisco in 1955. In the City by the Bay, he has appeared on KQED, the nation's most honored educational station, and he has conducted classes in painting.
Checkleys hang in numerous private collections and are prominently displayed in the permanent collections of the New York Historical Society and in the Bank of New York.
A realist by nature, Checkley interprets the many facets of San Francisco as he sees them. His sketching trips have taken him to Tokyo, Taiwan, Hong Kong, Singapore, Bangkok, Tahiti, and to the nations of Europe.
Checkley lived in Greenbrae, California, with his wife, two children and a cat until his death in 1991. Most of his painting was done on a houseboat — a converted World War landing craft - moored in Sausalito.