$281,000
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
Auctioneer:
Skinner
Date:
2010-09-24
