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Spring Decorative Arts & Prints
Live Auction • Sunday May 19th, 2024 3PM EST
400+ lots of Fine & Decorative Arts, Historical Documents, and More
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Wilderness Idyll
Robert S. Duncanson (American, 1821-1872)
Robert Duncanson got his start in mid-19th century Ohio, largely due to private collectors in favor of abolitionism. The artist's sublime landscapes grace the original entry hall of the Taft Museum of Art, which were commissioned by Cincinnatian Nicholas Longworth (1783-1863). Born around 1821 in Fayette, New York, Duncanson was raised by two freed Black people. After spending time as a child in Detroit and Monroe, Michigan, Duncanson wound up in Cincinnati, which was considered an art hotspot at the time. It was there that he became a part of a growing network of Black artists that included James Presley Ball, who ran a daguerreotype studio for which Duncanson worked to hand color plates. Following his commission from Longworth in 1853, Duncanson took a grand tour of Europe. Believed to be the first Black artist to have made such a voyage, he stopped in Paris, London, and Florence.
Duncanson's legacy lives on through through many exhibitions that continue to showcase of the importance of his life and work. His paintings are held by institutions such as Metropolitan Museum of Art, the National Gallery of Art, and the National Gallery of Canada. Currently, the Smithsonian offers an exhibit titled J. P. Ball and Robert S. Duncanson: An African American Artistic Collaboration which "highlights the collaboration between two free, Black artists working in Cincinnati, Ohio, during the antebellum period."
We are incredibly honored to offer this original Duncanson painting, which is available private sale only.
Please email or call directly with any inquires.
Now accepting consignments of
Fine Art, American and European Furniture, American and European Decorative Arts, Oriental Rugs, Jewelry, Coins, and American History.
Maria Longworth Storer (1849-1932)
Founder of Cincinnati’s Rookwood Pottery Company
This letter was written by Maria Longworth Nichols Storer (1849-1932), one of the first businesswomen in America. The Cincinnati native rose in popularity in the late 19th century for founding Rookwood Pottery.
Maria's father, Joseph Longworth, helped shape Cincinnati's culture and would inevitably contribute to the construction of the Cincinnati Art museum. She would attend the Art Academy, as her interest in art began at a young age. Maria's inspiration began to echo Japanese motifs after visiting the first World's Fair in Philadelphia in 1876. This led to the development of a new perspective of incorporating fine art with pottery. Though the company was sold by the late 19th century, Maria's legacy still lives on and many of her original works are on display across the country. In this letter, believed to be written in 1889, she explains all Rookwood debts having been paid off before transferring ownership to William W. Taylor.
Sold, Hammer price of $2,400.
We are pleased to have offered an original oil painting by the coveted Frank Duveneck (1848-1919); a Cincinnati and Northern Kentucky artist regarded as the “Father of American Art”
Sold, hammer price of $15,000.
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