Ernest Trova

American · 1927–2009 · Painter, Printmaker

Ernest Tino Trova was a self-trained American surrealist and pop art painter and sculptor. Best known for his signature image and figure series, The Falling Man, Trova… (Wikipedia)

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116lots offered1995–2026years recorded91%sold (96)$1.8kSign up free to seemedian price

2 works by Ernest Trova with an auction history (offered more than once) →

Record prices

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Falling ManWright · Feb 2009$18,750≈ £13,074≈ €14,669Sign up to see
Study/Falling Man (Radical Hinge Figure #2)Bonhams · Jul 2022$16,575≈ £13,687≈ €16,375Sign up to see
Study/Falling Man (Flapman)Bonhams · Oct 2023$12,160≈ £9,953≈ €11,437Sign up to see

Ernest Trova’s highest prices recorded at auction, ranked in US dollars at each sale-date exchange rate and shown in the currency of the sale (with the buyer’s premium where the house publishes it).

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Longest side– Editioned With imagesReset

108 results · page 3 of 3

Untitled, c. 1959
Mixed media · Board
33 x 27in (83.8 x 68.6cm)
Bonhams · Nov 17, 2009 · Lot 1083
$1,220≈ £727≈ €820Price realizedSign up free to seeEst. $1,000–1,500View at Bonhams ↗
Falling Man portfolio, 1968
Screenprint · Paper
15 h x 12½ w in (38 x 32 cm)
Wright · Jun 4, 2009 · Lot 741
$2,250≈ £1,387≈ €1,596Price realizedSign up free to seeEst. $4,000–View at Wright ↗
Untitled (Falling Man), 1981
brushed chrome
21 1/2 x 16 3/4 x 4in (54.5 x 42.5 x 10.2cm)
Bonhams · May 4, 2009 · Lot 8042
$5,185≈ £3,489≈ €3,921Price realizedSign up free to seeEst. $3,000–5,000View at Bonhams ↗
Falling Man, c. 1972
enameled metal
76 h x 40 w x 24 d in (193 x 102 x 61 cm)
Wright · Feb 26, 2009 · Lot 148
$18,750≈ £13,074≈ €14,669Price realizedSign up free to seeEst. $20,000–View at Wright ↗
F.M. Profile Cantos, 1974
Sculpture
12 h x 15½ w x 3½ d in (30 x 39 x 9 cm)
Wright · Feb 26, 2009 · Lot 208
$2,000≈ £1,395≈ €1,565Price realizedSign up free to seeEst. $2,000–View at Wright ↗
Double Walking Figure, 1985
Sculpture
12 7/8 x 14 1/2 x 2 7/8in (32.8 x 37 x 7.3cm)
Bonhams · May 5, 2008 · Lot 86
$7,560≈ £3,840≈ €4,890Price realizedSign up free to seeEst. $7,000–9,000View at Bonhams ↗
Paris Review, 1968
Los Angeles Modern Auctions (LAMA) · Feb 10, 2008 · Lot 148
$960≈ £493≈ €660Price realizedSign up free to seeEst. $800–View at Los Angeles Modern Auctions (LAMA) ↗
Untitled, 1974
Sculpture · ed. 43/125
height 12in (30.5cm)
Bonhams · May 22, 2007 · Lot 162
$3,600≈ £1,824≈ €2,676Price realizedSign up free to seeEst. $1,500–2,500View at Bonhams ↗
Untitled (from the Falling Man Series), 1985
Sculpture
14 3/4 x 4 x 14in (37.5 x 10 x 35.6cm)
Bonhams · May 22, 2007 · Lot 163
$3,900≈ £1,976≈ €2,899Price realizedSign up free to seeEst. $3,000–5,000View at Bonhams ↗
Untitled (Canto Profile Sections), circa 1970
Oil · Canvas
24¼ h x 24¼ w in (62 x 62 cm)
Wright · Nov 21, 2006 · Lot 140
$1,800≈ £948≈ €1,405Price realizedSign up free to seeEst. $3,000–View at Wright ↗

Also offered, result not published (10)

Lots by Ernest Trova that were offered at auction where the house did not publish whether they sold. Not counted in any statistics.

Ernest Trova paintings (21)Ernest Trova oil paintings (9)Ernest Trova acrylic paintings (9)Ernest Trova prints (31)Ernest Trova screenprints (30)Ernest Trova sculpture (35)

Ernest Trova signature

38 catalogued lots by Ernest Trova record a signature line. The most common placement is lower right (50% of lots that state a placement). Most often: signed.

Placement

lower right5
along the bottom2
on the reverse1
on the base1
in the margin1

Form

signed27
signed and dated6
signed in pencil4
monogrammed1

Signed with the artist's monogram and numbered (Artist's Proof IX) to the reverse — Falling Man: Suspended Relief, 1969 Brass and, Circle Auction, Mar 15, 2025
Signed in pencil: Trova 1969 — Untitled, DuMouchelles, Mar 15, 2024
Signed and dated with an edition of 34/75 in the lower right — Falling Man Variant, DuMouchelles, Apr 18, 2025

Ernest Trova signature: all forms and examples →

About Ernest Trova

Ernest Tino Trova was a self-trained American surrealist and pop art painter and sculptor. Best known for his signature image and figure series, The Falling Man, Trova considered his entire output a single "work in progress." Trova used classic American comic character toys in some of his pieces because he admired their surrealism. Many of Trova's sculptures are cast in unusual white bronze. He began as a painter, progressing through three-dimensional constructions to his mature medium, sculpture. Trova's gift of forty of his works led to the opening of St. Louis County, Missouri's Laumeier Sculpture Park.

From Wikipedia, licensed under CC BY-SA 4.0.