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Lot Essay
Buck's Harbor belongs to an important body of work executed after Maurice Prendergast's pivotal trip to Paris in 1907. Painted circa 1907 to 1910, the present work exhibits Prendergast's predilection for capturing glimpses of picturesque crowds leisurely strolling along the tranquil New England shoreline expressed in a modern style uniquely his own. Considered the first American to champion the art of Cezanne in America, Prendergast found profound inspiration in the work of the Post-Impressionist masters which, despite his self-taught background, played a significant role in his painting career from 1907 onward.
Depicting mid-day strollers and picnickers along the Maine shoreline, Buck's Harbor poignantly illustrates Prendergast's particular approach to composition, color and brushwork. Keenly aware of the Post-Impressionist's aesthetic attitudes of composition and space, Prendergast uses an array of devices to emphasize the flatness of the surface, which in turn heighten the overall decorative effect. In addition to its purposeful arrangement of composition, Buck's Harbor is enhanced by a powerful use of color and a bold display of brushwork. The saturated green of the trees and landscape along with the crystalline blue of the sea and sky creates a backdrop from which emerges a resplendent display of contrasting yet brilliant color. This color scheme is applied in a variety of overlapping brushstrokes that are fluid, but tactile. In Buck's Harbor, these variations in brushwork and color are freely expressed an enhance the textural quality and jewel-like pattern of the work.
Buck's Harbor illustrates the artist's lifelong interest in observing urbanity at rest as well as his passion for color and composition. Bringing together several of Prendergast's favored devices and tools, this extraordinary oil reveals the artist's highly personalized approach to subject and style.
Depicting mid-day strollers and picnickers along the Maine shoreline, Buck's Harbor poignantly illustrates Prendergast's particular approach to composition, color and brushwork. Keenly aware of the Post-Impressionist's aesthetic attitudes of composition and space, Prendergast uses an array of devices to emphasize the flatness of the surface, which in turn heighten the overall decorative effect. In addition to its purposeful arrangement of composition, Buck's Harbor is enhanced by a powerful use of color and a bold display of brushwork. The saturated green of the trees and landscape along with the crystalline blue of the sea and sky creates a backdrop from which emerges a resplendent display of contrasting yet brilliant color. This color scheme is applied in a variety of overlapping brushstrokes that are fluid, but tactile. In Buck's Harbor, these variations in brushwork and color are freely expressed an enhance the textural quality and jewel-like pattern of the work.
Buck's Harbor illustrates the artist's lifelong interest in observing urbanity at rest as well as his passion for color and composition. Bringing together several of Prendergast's favored devices and tools, this extraordinary oil reveals the artist's highly personalized approach to subject and style.