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Photo: Godel & Co., Inc.
Photo: Patricia Hills
Detail
Photo: Patricia Hills
Detail
Photo: Patricia Hills
Detail
Photo: Patricia Hills
Detail
Photo: Patricia Hills
Frame
Photo: Patricia Hills
Inscription
Photo: Patricia Hills
Verso label
Photo: Patricia Hills
Verso label
Photo: Patricia Hills
⊠13.2 Maine Rustic/Farm, 1860s—Figures in Interiors
In the nineteenth century, attitudes towards work changed, especially in the northern states of America. Although some artists made fun of “country bumpkins,” in general, farm work and farmers began to take on greater prestige and admiration. During the 1860s, Johnson returned to his birthplace in Maine to make studies of maple sugar production and also to seek out subjects of a rural life far removed from slavery. Barn interiors and home interiors show the families of farmers husking corn, winnowing grain, of taking a smoke. Exteriors show farmers at harvest time, loggers cutting trees or simply relaxing. In choosing scenes of rural white America Johnson was following in the tradition of Francis William Edmonds, George H. Durrie, Tompkins H. Matteson, and William Sidney Mount—a tradition popularized by the prints of Currier and Ives. —PH
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Hills no. 13.2.6
Maine Interior—Man Smoking Pipe
Alternate titles: Gentleman Smoking by the Fire; Interior Scene with a Gentleman Smoking His Pipe by a Fire
1868
Oil on board
18 3/4 x 14 1/2 in. (47.6 x 36.8 cm)
Signed and dated lower left: E. Johnson./—68; also signed on image of box on shelf, above the figure: E. Johnson [with additional undecipherable letters]
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Markings
Original gilt frame inscribed along bottom edge: Eastman Johnson
Provenance
Private collection, by January 2018 (by descent)
Hills Examination/Opinion
Examination date(s): 2018-03-28
Examination notes: Hills opinion letter: The execution of the work is typical of Johnson’s work. There is graphite outlining along the back of the figure. Deft brushwork, with warm highlights on the nose, cheek, forehead, and ear. Grey highlights can be seen on the chair, objects on the mantel. Translucent shadows in the fireplace, and with careful looking the right andiron becomes visible. Careful and realistic painting of the brickwork, without being overly fussy. The eye and the right fist of the man is lightly done to give the atmospheric effect of a dim light. He sits in a low chair with a patterned cushion. To the left of the fireplace is a space that holds a box on which is stenciled “E. Johnson” and some other indecipherable letters, along with a blue patterned large jar. Above those objects are a number of handsaws. To the far left under the door is a sliver of grey light. The handling of the fabric is all typical; for example, on the sleeve the red-brown undertone represents the middle tones to contrast with the crisp whites and darker shadows. These middle tones also are used for some of the objects on the mantel; the effect is a wonderful rending of objects in the half light.
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Record last updated July 28, 2021. Please note that the information on this and all pages is periodically reviewed and subject to change.
Citation: Hills, Patricia, and Abigael MacGibeny. "Maine Interior—Man Smoking Pipe, 1868 (Hills no. 13.2.6)." In Eastman Johnson Catalogue Raisonné. www.eastmanjohnson.org/catalogue/entry.php?id=1593 (accessed on October 8, 2024).
