Beauford Delaney (American, 1901-1979) pastel on paper portrait depicting a young man in a blue shirt, signed and dated above right shoulder “B. Delaney 38”. Sheet – 25″ H x 19″ W. Unframed. Provenance: Estate of Beauford Delaney, Derek L. Spratley, Esquire, court-appointed administrator. Biography: Beauford Delaney was born in Knoxville, Tennessee. An apprentice to artist Lloyd Branson, Delaney was encouraged by his mentor to study art in Boston. In 1929 he traveled to New York and established himself as a prominent artist of the Harlem Renaissance. There he gained the attention and admiration of well known writers and artists such as James Baldwin, Georgia O’Keefe, Alfred Stieglitz and many others. His departure from New York to Paris in 1953 also marked his transition from figurative compositions to abstract expressionism, with a focus on color and light. CONDITION: Unframed. Multiple pinholes along the upper margin, especially to the corners, 1/2″ tear upper margin, slight losses to upper corners. Pinholes to lower corners, tear lower left margin. Tape residue mid-right margin. Examined under black light no alterations detected.