Helga Schweininger (Costa Mesa, CA) signed original oil painting, titled “Bird Rhapsody” per the artist’s inscription on the verso (an alternate working title, “Bird & Constellation Rhapsody, ” also appears crossed out on the back). Canvas measures 30″ x 40″. A whimsical, naive-surrealist composition in deep cobalt blue: three stylized white and blue birds rest inside a gold-rimmed black oval “pod, ” surrounded by swirling star trails and painted planets in yellow, red, orange, and white. Heavy impasto brushwork throughout. Signed “Helga” in orange script, lower right. The artist, Helga Schweininger, was born and raised in the countryside near Graz, Austria, where she graduated from the Handelsakademie business college. She relocated to Southern California in 1962 following her marriage to her husband Ferdinand, and the couple settled in Costa Mesa, CA, where she has lived since. In addition to painting, she authored two published books: “Betrayal Of Lieschen’s Heart” (2004) and “Beyond Betrayal – Beyond Humanity: A Fictionalized Biography” (2012). No further attribution or authentication is implied or offered beyond the artist’s own signature and canvas inscription. CONDITION: Canvas front is clean and stable with no visible tears, losses, or overpaint. The verso shows scattered brownish staining and a faint scratch line (see photos) – cosmetic to the back of the canvas only; does not appear to have migrated to the painted surface. DIMENSIONS: 30″ x 40″ (unframed canvas). MEDIUM: Oil on canvas. SIGNATURE: “Helga” lower right, in paint. PROVENANCE: Costa Mesa, CA estate collection. Subject: Abstract/Surrealist, Birds, Celestial. Signed By: Helga Schweininger. Region of Origin: US-California. Style: Naive Art, Outsider Art, Surrealism. Width: 40 in. Height: 30 in. Features: One of a Kind (OOAK), Signed.
