The Piece

A cohesive pair of original watercolor seascapes by Charlotte Bancheri Milligan, each signed and dated 1993.

Both works depict rolling ocean surf beneath expansive skies. One composition captures cresting waves with distant sails on the horizon. The other presents a calmer shoreline scene with layered breakers and open sky.

Executed in soft, controlled washes of teal, sea green, and muted sky blues, the paintings demonstrate confident handling of watercolor — particularly in the rendering of light across water and the transparency of surf.

Each piece is double-matted in complementary teal tones and housed in coordinating green-and-gold frames, creating a unified presentation intended to hang together.

This is a matched pair — balanced in palette, scale, and subject.

Historical Context

Charlotte Bancheri Milligan (1936–2017) lived between Salt Lake City, Utah and La Quinta, California. She earned a Ph.D. from Temple University in 1993 — the same year these works were completed — and later took up painting after relocating to Utah.

Her obituary notes that she embraced painting later in life, incorporating it into a full and accomplished personal and professional career.

These works reflect the late 20th century tradition of watercolor landscape painting — intimate, accessible, and grounded in observation rather than abstraction.

While not associated with major institutional exhibition records, the artist is identifiable and documented, adding a layer of personal provenance beyond anonymous decorative art.

Product Attributes

Artist: Charlotte Bancheri Milligan (1936–2017)
Date: 1993
Medium: Watercolor on paper
Subject: Coastal seascapes
Signature: Signed and dated lower margin
Framing: Teal double mat with coordinated green-and-gold frames
Quantity: Two (sold as a pair)
Orientation: Horizontal

Framed Dimensions (each): [insert measurements]
Sight Size (each): [insert measurements]

Why It Belongs in Your Home

These work because they create atmosphere.

The palette is restrained and coastal without feeling theme-driven. The teal matting enhances the ocean tones, giving the pieces presence without overwhelming a room.

Hung together, they create balance — one composition slightly more dynamic, the other more serene. That tension is what makes a pair effective.

Ideal placement:

• Above a console or sideboard

• In a coastal or transitional bedroom

• In a light-filled hallway

• Flanking a mirror or centered above a sofa

They bring movement and calm at the same time.

Not speculative investment art. Not mass-produced décor.
Simply thoughtful, signed original works with documented authorship and cohesive presentation.

Condition

Both watercolors appear in very good condition.

Light age-appropriate wear to frames. Minor mat imperfections visible upon close inspection. No visible major tears or structural damage to the paper within the presentation.

Frames present cleanly and consistently as a pair.