Allegory of Music: Solemnity (1936) is the painting David Park is best remembered for; it belongs to the Fine Arts Museums of San Francisco, San Francisco. The Jazz Musicians (1954) and Sunbather (1953) complete the trio of best-loved canvases. Our catalogue counts 13 works by David Park. Here are the 11 most famous, with the year, the museum and the story of each canvas.
Ranked by our popularity score, which combines the searches, visits and orders for each work. Updated October 2026.
In "Allegory of Music: Solemnity" by David Park, the focus rests entirely upon a single piece of millinery. This white fabric cap, or bonnet, sits centered in the frame, anchored by a simple wooden stand. The object is captured from a slightly elevated side view, revealing the architecture of its construction. Radial pleating and gathered folds create a rhythmic texture across the textile, suggesting a quiet, frozen movement. The cream-colored…
The air in the room feels thick with the heat of a live performance. On stage, the musicians are caught in a moment of pure, rhythmic motion. A trombone player takes center stage, his body leaning into the instrument as he pushes a swell of notes into the room. Nearby, a trumpet player adds his own sharp, brassy voice to the melody, while a drummer maintains the heartbeat of the…
Two Bathers is an oil on canvas created by David Park. The work emerged in 1958, a moment when the artist had already turned his hand away from pure abstraction to reclaim the human form. This painting captures a specific slice of existence through thick, deliberate strokes of oil.
The four subjects that return most often on these canvases, each with its best-loved example.
The 3 museums that hold the most of the paintings on this page.
| Museum | City | Works by David Park | Paintings from this list |
|---|---|---|---|
 Fine Arts Museums of San Francisco |
San Francisco | 2 | Allegory of Music: Solemnity, Allegory of Music: The Muses |
 Cantor Arts Center at Stanford University |
Stanford | 1 | The Jazz Musicians |
 San Francisco Museum of Modern Art |
San Francisco | 1 | Two Bathers |
24 years of David Park's light and colour, 1936 to 1959: the most famous canvases of each year, one after another.
In "Allegory of Music: Solemnity" by David Park, the focus rests entirely upon a single piece of millinery. This white fabric cap, or bonnet, sits centered in the…
The air in the room feels thick with the heat of a live performance. On stage, the musicians are caught in a moment of pure, rhythmic motion. A…
Two Bathers is an oil on canvas created by David Park. The work emerged in 1958, a moment when the artist had already turned his hand away from…
Allegory of Music: Solemnity (1936), Fine Arts Museums of San Francisco, San Francisco. The Jazz Musicians (1954) and Sunbather (1953) follow.
David Park, born in 1911, was 25 years old: Allegory of Music: Solemnity dates from 1936.
Allegory of Music: Solemnity, The Jazz Musicians, Sunbather, Woman with Red Mouth, Two Bathers, Allegory of Music: The Muses, Two Flutists in Yellow, Two Violinists, Beach Profile and Head. Each canvas in the ranking above comes with its year and its museum.
13 works by David Park are in our catalogue, dated 1936 to 1959.
Mostly in Fine Arts Museums of San Francisco (San Francisco), Cantor Arts Center at Stanford University (Stanford) and San Francisco Museum of Modern Art (San Francisco); the list above names each museum and its canvases.
In 1936, which gave 2 of the 11 works on this page, Allegory of Music: Solemnity among them.
The earliest canvas here is Allegory of Music: Solemnity (1936); the latest is Head (1959).
Oil On Canvas, used in 2 of the 11 works on this page.
Bay area figurative, as the canvases on this page show.
The Fine Arts Museums of San Francisco, San Francisco holds 2 of the works on this page, among them Allegory of Music: Solemnity and Allegory of Music: The Muses.
