09-24-201009-25-2010
Skinner Auctions
Skinner AuctionsBoston MA
2517BBoston
September 24, 2010 12:00 PMCalender
500

Willard Leroy Metcalf (American, 1858-1925) Purple and Gold / A Vermont Landscape

Sell one like this
$281,000$240,000
Auction: American & European Works of Art - 2517BLocation: BostonDate / Time: September 24, 2010 12:00PM

Description:

Willard Leroy Metcalf (American, 1858-1925)

Purple and Gold/ A Vermont Landscape
Signed and dated "W. L. METCALF. 1922" l.l., titled and inscribed "...1216...RF
5036-E" in pencil on the stretcher, with a label from E. & A. Milch, Inc., New York, on the reverse.
Oil on canvas, 26 x 29 in. (66.0 x 73.7 cm),in a probable Albert Milch frame.
Condition: Minor surface grime.

Provenance: A private New England collection.

Exhibitions: Exhibition of Paintings by Willard L. Metcalf, February 12 to March 3, 1923, The Milch Galleries, New York, no. 5.

N.B. This painting will be included in the forthcoming catalogue raisonné of the works of Willard L. Metcalf by Ira Spanierman and Richard J. Boyle.

The present work was one of fifteen works shown at a one-man exhibition in February 1923 that marked a critical point in Metcalf's life and career. Having suffered a series of personal disappointments and low artistic productivity in 1921, Metcalf lapsed into a bout of alcoholism lasting several months. Metcalf, still in the grips of the addiction, was visiting Boston early in 1922 when several of his friends concerned for his well-being intervened and called his art dealer, Albert Milch. (1) Milch gave him an ultimatum: quit drinking or lose representation. (2) Metcalf promised to curb his drinking, and in a few months time, resolved to paint a group of superior works for an exhibit to be held a year later, in the early part of 1923. During this year, Metcalf worked in primarily two Vermont locations: Lower Perkinsville for most of the winter through summer, and Chester for the late summer through fall.

The present work is likely from his Chester period, where he created his tour-de-force work, "Indian Summer (No. 3)," 1922, presently in the Dallas Museum of Art collection. A critic praised "Indian Summer (No. 3)" for its "reserved yet brilliant tones" that "permeate the canvas," adding, "a beautiful light envelops the composition and the soft warm haze of the season is felt throughout." (3) The same may be said of the present work, though it offers a quieter, resigning view.

Perhaps as much out of pride as an assurance to Milch that he intended to deliver on his promise, Metcalf made a diagram of the fifteen works he had completed for his February exhibit. The present work is likely represented in the diagram as "November Morning," as it is identical in composition and size, and one may speculate that it was renamed to distinguish it from "November" in the same show. The sales from the exhibit were highly successful for Metcalf, and he returned to Chester later in the month in high spirits. (4)

(1) Boyle, Richard J., Elizabeth de Veer. Sunlight and Shadow: The Life and Art of Willard L. Metcalf. New York: Abbeville Press, 1987. p.137.
(2) Chambers, Bruce W. "Willard L. Metcalf: A Partial History of the Renaissance." Willard Metcalf: Yankee Impressionist. New York: Spanierman Gallery, 2003. pg. 48.
(3) Ibid, 148.
(4) Ibid, 149.

Estimate $100,000-150,000

Subtle craquelure to sky area of u.r. quadrant, surface grime along right edge of u.r. quadrant spanning approximately 8 x 1/2 in., may benefit from a light cleaning, no additional condition issues to report.

Keywords

Willard Leroy Metcalf, Albert Milch, Chester, E. & A. Milch Inc., New England, The Milch Galleries, Ira Spanierman, Richard J. Boyle, alcoholism, art dealer, Perkinsville, Vermont, Dallas Museum of Art, critic, he, Abbeville Press, Spanierman Gallery