George Inness (1825-1894)

Landscape

Details

George Inness (1825-1894)
Landscape
signed 'G. Inness.' (lower right)
oil on board
12 x 18 in. (30.5 x 45.7 cm.)
Painted circa 1884-86.

Provenance

The artist.
Helen Inness Hartley, New York, daughter of the above.
[With]M. Knoedler & Co., New York, 1919.
[With]Howard Young Galleries, New York, 1919.
Albert R. Jones, Kansas City, Missouri.
Virginia Jones Mullin, daughter of the above.
Ralph E. Mullin, husband of the above.
Estate of the above.
Sotheby's, New York, 15 March 2000, lot 29.
Acquired by the present owner from the above.

Literature

L. Ireland, Works of George Inness: An Illustrated Catalogue Raisonné, Austin, Texas, 1965, p. 210, no. 847, illustrated (as circa 1878).
M. Quick, George Inness: A Catalogue Raisonné, vol. 2, New Brunswick, New Jersey, 2007, pp. 160-61, no. 838, illustrated.

Lot Essay

About the present work, Michael Quick explains that the "overall blue color suggests a more specific date of 1884-1885, approximately when Inness went through the 'blue phase' described by Elliott Daingerfield (George Inness: The Man and His Art, p. 42)...much of this painting, especially the upper part, has been covered by a nearly translucent blue paint, then selectively wiped. As also in that blue-phase landscape, a few accents of additional paint have been added on top of the blue to restore clarity to the design. In this case the accents are the two prominent foreground tree trunks and maybe the foliage of the one on the left, as well as the lighted area of the house or barn." (George Inness: A Catalogue Raisonné, vol. 2, New Brunswick, New Jersey, 2007, p. 160)

More from American Art

View All