ECA record control number: 24619
Archives of American Art #: -none-
Record level: Item
Record type: Movable work
Work title: Peacock
Alternate work titles:
2017: Peacock [title assigned by ECA]
Work date: ca.1889 [date based on similar paintings that appear to be dated 89, 86[?] or 99[?] ]
Work creator: Emil Carlsen [1848-1932]
Work medium: Oil on canvas
Work dimensions: 12 x 30 inches
Inscribed/signed front:
Location: At upper right.
Dated: Yes.
Text: ‘SKETCH — CENTRE / FOR HALLWAY • FRIETZ[?] 8[?]9[?] / EMIL. CARLSEN.’.
Verso:
Marking type: Pencil writing.
Location: Verso canvas[?]
Text: ‘Aliss[?]’.
Marking type: Printed label.
Location: Stretcher verso.
Text: ‘Frost & Adams Boston’. [from approximately 1889]
ECA category: People
ECA sub-category: Genre
Archives of American Art Subjects:
Animal
Animal — Bird
Animal — Bird — Peacock
Description of work:
Provenance/ownership:
2018 Private collection of [unknown] ;
2017 ( Litchfield County Auctions [1994- ], 425 Bantam Road, Litchfield, CT 06759 ) ;
ca.2010s Private collection of [unknown], CT ;
ca.2010s ( [unknown retail reseller] ) ;
ca.1975 Private collection of [unknown], CT ;
ca.1975 ( Wortsman/Rowe Fine Arts, Inc. [1972-1975], 516 Sutter Street, San Francisco, California 94102 or Irma Rudin [possibly] ) ;
1975 Estate of Florence B. G. S. Carlsen [1903-1974], Falls Village, CT, the artist’s daughter-in-law [possibly] ;
1966 Private collection of Florence B. G. S. Carlsen [1903-1974], Falls Village, CT, the artist’s daughter-in-law [possibly] ;
before 1966 Estate of Dines Carlsen [1901-1966], Falls Village, CT, the artist’s son [possibly] ;
1932 Private collection of Luella May (Ruby) Carlsen [c.1869-before 1966], New York, NY, the artist’s wife [possibly] ;
ca.1889 Emil Carlsen [1848-1932], the artist .
Exhibition history:
2018 Litchfield County Auctions [1994- ], Litchfield, CT, “Fine art, antiques & modernism”, January 20.
References/citations:
– Litchfield County Auctions [1994- ], Litchfield, CT, online auction catalog, “Fine art, antiques & modernism”, January 20, 2018, lot #[tba], illustrated: color.
Related works:
– Six peacocks, ca.1889.
– Two peacocks, ca.1889.
ECA notes:
– Around 1888, Carlsen resigned as director of the California School of Design (San Francisco Art Association School), unhappy with the management and funding methods of the school. He traveled to New York, but returned to San Francisco in 1889 to accept a private commission for the decorative work in the residence of William H. Crocker, an heir of the railroad magnet. The commission included designs for the ceilings, walls, and stained glass, as well as advice on the selection of furniture. Unfortunately, images of the interior are yet to be located. Based on the note at the top of this painting, this peacock may have been part of the decoration of the Crocker house entry hallway located at the rooms center. Several other studies of peacocks exist from Carlsen which exhibit a similar painting style, suggesting they may have been made about the same date. These studies, like most of Carlsen’s, was used to create finished pieces in his studio. That no finished paintings of a peacock has ever surfaced, may support the theory that these were used for the interior decoration of the Crocker house. The person referred to in the drawing could be a craftsperson for the construction of the decoration. Carlsen’s sketches were kept by the artist and handed down to his wife, then son, and finally his daughter-in-law who passed in 1975. Her estate in Falls Village, CT, was broken up among several art dealers at the time, including Irma Rudin and the Wortsman/Rowe Gallery. Other peacock oil sketches were sold by Wortsman/Rowe in 1975 suggesting that painting may have also been part of the Wortsman/Rowe grouping.
– The painting verso demonstrates Carlsen’s favored method of butt jointed stretchers versus the more common mitred ones used today. The stretcher configuration is common on original Carlsen works. The painting has notations written and scratched along the edges and corners, another tell-tale sign that the work is most likely a genuine Carlsen. The colors are unusual for Carlsen and also might point toward a clients tastes vs. the artist’s preferences. The painting, along with the other peacock studies utilize a lighter palette and background, something that Carlsen started in about 1888 and then “lost” for many years after being influenced by his mentor Antoine Vollon [1833-1900].
– Information and images sent via email directly to ECA on Friday, December 22, 2017 at 5:08, id#20171222150804.43d4d61a26721976b54bb891b482211a.99582a2e8f.mailapi@email23.godaddy.com.
Price history:
2018 – $2,500 USD. [auction]
Document information
Document permalink:
http://emilcarlsen.org/work/?p=24619
Digital-born document number:
ECA.2017.24619
Digital document provenance:
Original compiled and researched document by the Emil Carlsen Archives, 266 West 21st Street, Suite 4E, New York, NY 10011.
Document license:
Creative Commons Corporation shareAlike (sa) license. Some of the information contained within this document may hold further publication restrictions depending on final use. It is the responsibility of the researcher to determine.
Image license:
The author of this artwork died more than 70 years ago. According to U.S. Copyright Law, copyright expires 70 years after the author’s death. In other countries, legislation may differ.
Record birth date:
December 22, 2017
Last updated: January 30, 2018 at 20:51 pm