Updated October 2026 · ranked by our popularity score (searches, visits and orders for each work) · 111 works by Philip Guston in our catalogue
In short
Of all the originals Philip Guston left, the most famous is The Pit (1976). Close behind it come The Room (1970) and Early Mail Service and Construction of Railroads (mural study, Commerce, Georgia Post Office) (1938). Our catalog holds 111 works by Philip Guston; the gallery has kept the 100 the world admires most, each shown with its date, its museum and its story.
We are looking at The Pit, a significant work by Philip Guston from 1976. This oil on canvas belongs to his Cyclops series, a period where his approach to the canvas underwent a profound transformation. It is a piece that marks a definitive departure from his earlier explorations, settling instead into a highly personal and direct mode of expression.
The canvas presents two hooded figures seated within the interior of an automobile. These figures are rendered with thick, heavy outlines and a cartoonish quality, their faces obscured by the white fabric of their hoods. One figure holds a smoking cigar between its fingers, the grey smoke curling upward into the surrounding space. The vehicle itself is positioned against a background of serially arranged, white, sheep-like clouds that drift across…
Last Piece is not Guston's last Abstract Expressionist painting, but it represents a transition away from the shimmering forms of the early 1950s towards the recognizable motifs of his later, more figurative works. If Buddhism, and concepts of nothingness, had informed his earlier abstractions, this represents a move away from those inspirations.
The title, which references Rome, suggests a preoccupation with the classical world and the layers of history that settle upon a place. There is a tension here between the modern hand and the ancient subject. The work avoids the easy path of mere imitation, opting instead to engage with the essence of classical relief. It captures a sense of what remains after time has passed. The shadows are deep, and…
Gladiators1940
12
The Palette1975
13
Bombardment1937
14
Monopoly1964 · Parrish Art Museum
15
Martial Memory1941
16
The Young Mother1944
17
Porch II1947
18
The Tormentors1948
19
Study for Tormentors1947
20
The Porch1947
21
Painting No. 61951 · Smithsonian American Art Museum
22
Painting, Number 51952 · Metropolitan Museum of Art
23
Painting No. 61951
24
Painting No. 91952
25
Ischia1949
26
Untitled1950
27
Loft I1950
28
Review1949
29
Red Painting1950
30
Three things are necessary for the salvation of man to know what he ought to believe to know what he ought to desire and to know what he ought to do. St. Thomas Aquinas, Two Precepts of Charity, 1273. From the series Great Ideas of Western Man1952
31
Drawing Related to Zone (Drawing No. 19)1954
32
Late April1961 · Israel Museum
33
Duo1961
34
Role1959 · Cleveland Museum of Art
35
Rite1958 · Art Institute of Chicago
36
Drawing 19601960 · Metropolitan Museum of Art
37
Close-Up III1961 · Metropolitan Museum of Art
38
Close Up III1961
39
To Fellini1958
40
Celebration1961
41
Inhabiter1965
42
Open Washes1966
43
Untitled (Book)1968
44
Untitled1968
45
City1968
46
Brushes1969
47
Discussion I1969
48
Shoes1968
49
Untitled1973
50
Untitled (Cup)1973
51
Untitled (Wall)1971
52
Painter in Bed1973
53
Roma1971
54
Painting, Smoking, Eating1972
55
Figure in Interior1970
56
Daydreams1970
57
The Street from Ten Lithographs by Ten Artists1971
58
Cerveteri1972
59
Pantheon1973
60
The Lesson1975 · The Phillips Collection
61
Web1975
62
The Street1977
63
Back View1977
64
Couple in bed1977
65
Deluge II1975
66
Ancient Wall1976
67
Midnight Pass Road1975
68
Monument1976
69
Inside - Outside1977
70
Head and Bottle1975
71
Step1979 · Museum of Fine Arts
72
Summer1980
73
Wheel1980
74
Room1980
75
East Side1980
76
Untitled (8)1980
77
As It Goes1978
78
Painter's Forms No. 21978
79
Tomb1978
80
Door1981
81
Studio Corner1981
82
Remains from Eight Lithographs to Benefit the Foundation for Contemporary Performance Arts, Inc1981
83
Gulf1983
84
Painter1983
85
City Limits1969
86
Drawing for Conspirators1930 · Whitney Museum of American Art
87
Curtain
88
Days Work
89
Untitled (9)
90
Box Tree, Rome
91
Clock
92
The return
93
Room
94
Entrance
95
Green Rug
96
Inscapes. Words and Images
97
Talking
98
Sleeping
99
A Critical Study
100
The lesson
The four subjects that come back most often in these originals, each with its finest example.
The 8 museums that hold the most of the paintings on this page.
| Museum | City | Works by Philip Guston | Paintings from this list |
|---|---|---|---|
 Metropolitan Museum of Art |
New York | 3 | Painting, Number 5, Drawing 1960, Close-Up III |
 Smithsonian American Art Museum |
Washington, D.C. | 2 | Early Mail Service and Construction of Railroads (mural study, Commerce, Georgia Post Office), Painting No. 6 |
 Städel Museum |
Frankfurt | 1 | Ride |
 Georgia Museum of Art |
Athens | 1 | Untitled, #342 |
 Parrish Art Museum |
Water Mill | 1 | Monopoly |
 Israel Museum |
Jerusalem | 1 | Late April |
 Cleveland Museum of Art |
Cleveland | 1 | Role |
 Art Institute of Chicago |
Chicago | 1 | Rite |
Pick a decade to see the original that defines it.
Guston painted Gladiators in a social-realist style favored by many left-leaning artists in the 1930s, a style that reflected in part the political and aesthetic influence of the Mexican muralist movement led by Diego Rivera, José Clemente Orozco, and David Alfaro Siqueiros. At the time he painted Gladiators, Guston was painting murals in New York as part of a Works Progress Administration (WPA) program. Hooded Klansmen first appeared in his…
We are looking at The Pit, a significant work by Philip Guston from 1976. This oil on canvas belongs to his Cyclops series, a period where his approach to the canvas underwent a profound transformation. It is a piece that marks a definitive departure from his earlier explorations, settling instead into a highly personal and direct mode of expression.
The Pit (1976). The Room (1970) and Early Mail Service and Construction of Railroads (mural study, Commerce, Georgia Post Office) (1938) come next.
63 years old: The Pit dates from 1976, and Philip Guston was born in 1913.
The Pit, The Room, Early Mail Service and Construction of Railroads (mural study, Commerce, Georgia Post Office), Painter III, To B.W.T., Ride, The Studio, Agean, Last Piece and Untitled, #342. The ranking above gives each one's year and museum.
Our catalog holds 111 works by Philip Guston, dated from 1930 to 1980.
Mostly in Metropolitan Museum of Art (New York), Smithsonian American Art Museum (Washington, D.C.) and Städel Museum (Frankfurt). The museum table above lists them all.
In 1970s: 30 of the 100 works on this page were made then, The Pit among them.
On this page, the earliest is Drawing for Conspirators (1930) and the latest Agean (1980).
Symbols (7), Buildings (4) and Arts (4), across the 100 works on this page.
Oil On Canvas, for 2 of the 100 works on this page.
Neo-expressionism, judging by the originals on this page.
Painting, Number 5, Drawing 1960 and Close-Up III: the Metropolitan Museum of Art, New York holds 3 of the works on this page.
Philip Guston was a renowned Canadian-American painter and printmaker whose career spanned over four decades. His artistic journey is marked by significant shifts in style and subject matter, blending elements of abstract expressionism and representational art to explore complex themes of racism, antisemitism, fascism, and American identity.
Guston's early life was profoundly impacted by tragedy. His father, a Ukrainian Jewish immigrant, took his own life in 1923. This event deeply affected Guston’s artistic development. He began drawing at a young age and attended Los Angeles Manual Arts High School, where he started painting in 1927. Supported by his mother, he often created art in a small closet with a hanging bulb.
Guston’s artistic career can be broadly divided into two distinct phases. Initially, his work was figurative and representational, showcasing early influences from Renaissance masters like Piero della Francesca. He later embraced abstraction, becoming a prominent figure in the New York School alongside artists like Jackson Pollock and Willem de Kooning.
Guston’s later works are perhaps the most controversial and impactful of his career. These paintings often featured dark, satirical elements, including drawings of Richard Nixon and hooded Klansmen. He explored themes of racism, antisemitism, and American identity with a raw honesty that challenged conventional artistic norms.
Philip Guston's legacy continues to inspire artists and art enthusiasts alike. His unique perspective and artistic style have left an indelible mark on the world of art.
