Ohio Finds: Clyde Singer’s “Beaten Ball Club”

It’s hard to imagine with the diamond covered in snow and the concession stand shuttered, but baseball’s opening day is swiftly approaching. Hopefully our teams fare better than the dejected one captured in Clyde Singer’s “Beaten Ball Club.”

Born in 1908 in Malvern, Singer was a natural artist. In 1933, he left Ohio to study at New York City’s Art Students League. After a year spent in Depression-era New York, Singer returned to his hometown, later making his way to Youngstown, where he served as The Butler Institute of American Art’s assistant director for nearly 60 years.

Singer’s experiences made his work distinct from both the iconic rural work of American regionalist artists and the urban-inspired work of American realist painters in the early 20th century. 

The resulting body of work captures landscapes, street views and ordinary humans, all with a warm, worn realism that makes Singer’s world seem familiar, even decades after his death. 

Sold: $7,995

Hollie Davis is a co-owner of Meander Auctions in Whipple, Ohio. meanderauctions.com

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