# Jan Matulka artist context and auction value notes

Canonical page: https://appraisily.com/artist/jan-matulka/
Profile generated: 2026-05-23T02:01:29.000Z
Quality: high confidence, strong sources

## Artist identity

- Birth date: 1890-11-07
- Death date: 1972-06-25
- Nationality: Czech, American
- Movements: American Modernism, Abstract Expressionism, Cubism
- Common media: Oil painting, Printmaking, Illustration, Watercolor

## About Jan Matulka

Jan Matulka (1890–1972) was a Czech-American painter, printmaker, and illustrator whose career bridged European modernism and the American avant-garde. Born in Prague, he immigrated to the United States and developed a versatile practice that moved between Cubist-influenced abstraction, figurative painting, and landscape. Matulka taught at the Art Students League of New York, where his students included Dorothy Dehner, Burgoyne Diller, and David Smith — sculptors who would become central figures in American abstract art. Though his name is less familiar to the public than some peers, art historians regard him as an important conduit of modernist ideas into mid-century American painting. His work is held by institutions including the Museum of Modern Art in New York.

## Common works and media

Matulka worked in oil on canvas, watercolor, gouache, and various print media. His subjects ranged from abstract and Cubist-inspired compositions to representational landscapes and still lifes. Illustration work also forms part of his oeuvre. Collectors most frequently encounter oil paintings, works on paper, and editioned prints at auction.

## Market and appraisal context

Jan Matulka's work appears at auction primarily in American Art and Post-War Contemporary categories, with over three hundred recorded lots. Oil paintings from his most engaged modernist periods tend to attract the strongest interest, while prints, watercolors, and illustrations trade at more accessible levels. Collectors should consider medium, date, provenance, and stylistic period when evaluating a Matulka work, as his output shifted across several modes. Condition and expert attribution remain important factors, especially for unsigned or lightly documented pieces. Comparable auction results should be reviewed for an informed appraisal.

## Appraisily data basis

Appraisily artist pages combine published artist identity research with auction records, auction-house context, sale dates, realized prices, and comparable lots when those records are available. For Jan Matulka, identity data is grounded in the RKD Netherlands Institute for Art History, Getty ULAN, VIAF, Wikidata, and the Library of Congress authority file.

## Sources

- RKD — Netherlands Institute for Art History: https://rkd.nl/en/explore/artists/88167
- Wikidata: https://www.wikidata.org/wiki/Q6149475
- Getty Vocabulary Program: https://vocab.getty.edu/page/ulan/500016408
- VIAF: https://viaf.org/viaf/32907145/
- Wikipedia: https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Jan_Matulka
- The Museum of Modern Art: https://www.moma.org/artists/3848
- Library of Congress: https://id.loc.gov/authorities/names/n79148425