Eastman Johnson Catalogue Raisonné
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13.7 Maine Haylofts, 1870s
In 1877, and possibly 1878, Johnson visited his sister Harriet May and her family in Kennebunkport, Maine. He found a delightful subject in the games the children played in the barn. For Johnson it was another opportunity to render darkened interiors, from which figures emerge, with sunlight shining through loft doors and playing off the partially illuminated figures and objects in the foreground. It is quite likely that many of the paintings were finished in his New York studio. —PH
Hills no. 13.7.3
1907 Sale no. 62
In the Barn
Alternate titles: possibly Jumping in the Barn; Children in the Hay-Mow
c.1877–79
Locale: Kennebunkport, Maine
Oil on canvas mounted on board
23 1/8 x 17 1/8 in. (58.7 x 43.5 cm)
Initialed lower left: E. J.
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Description/Remarks
Hills, 2022: Although John I. H. Baur owned and annotated a copy of the catalogue of Johnson's 1907 Estate Sale, he did not include this work in his own 1940 catalogue listing; he must have obtained it after publication.
1907 Estate Sale 
No. 62: "Five young children are enjoying the delights of a hay barn. Three girls, half buried in the soft hay, are watching the antics of two boys who climb upon a crossbeam above the mow. The sunlight, falling through the broad open barn door, strongly illuminates the figures and the large beam, and throws a mysterious shadow over the interior."
"Signed at the lower left, E. J.
Height, 23 inches; width, 17 inches."
[Annotation: “65.00”]
"Signed at the lower left, E. J.
Height, 23 inches; width, 17 inches."
[Annotation: “65.00”]
Markings
Inscribed on original stretcher bar, in graphite: In the Barn.
Affixed to same stretcher bar, remnants of 1907 Sale catalogue no. 62: above the mow. The sun…falling through the broad…
Affixed to same stretcher bar, remnants of 1907 Sale catalogue no. 62: above the mow. The sun…falling through the broad…
Provenance
Private collection
Exhibitions
Lady Managers of the Garfield Hospital, Washington, D.C., Exhibition of Paintings by American Artists, March 1889. (Exhibition catalogue: Garfield Hospital Aid Association 1889), no. 67, [likely, as In the Barn].
Century Association, New York, Memorial Exhibition of Eastman Johnson, February 9–13, 1907, [possibly, as Jumping in the Barn].
References
Garfield Hospital Aid Association. Catalogue of the Exhibition of Paintings by American Artists Held at Washington, D.C, March, 1889. New York: J. J. Little & Co., 1889. Exhibition catalogue (1889 Lady Managers of the Garfield Hospital), p. 28, no. 67 [likely, as In the Barn].
King, Edward. "The Value of Nationalism in Art." The Monthly Illustrator 4, no. 14 (June 1895), p. 266 illus., as Children in the Hay-Mow.
Catalogue of Finished Pictures, Studies, and Drawings by the Late Eastman Johnson, N.A. New York: American Art Association, February 1907. Sale catalogue, n.p., no. 62, as In the Barn.
Hills Examination/Opinion
Examination date(s): 1983-09-05; 1994-09-17
Examination notes: 1983-09-05: Sketchy quality. Sienna background. Little girl looking up—blond hair and red tie. Light from left along outside of figures. Turquoise colors.
1994-09-17: Oil on canvas mounted on board. Still looks good. Painting not filled in. Blond hair cascading down back; red bow. R. climbing boy—legs are the ground except for the linear blue highlights along the left. Background—black paint (original?) scumbled over the ground.
1994-09-17: Oil on canvas mounted on board. Still looks good. Painting not filled in. Blond hair cascading down back; red bow. R. climbing boy—legs are the ground except for the linear blue highlights along the left. Background—black paint (original?) scumbled over the ground.
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Record last updated April 7, 2022. Please note that the information on this and all pages is periodically reviewed and subject to change.
Citation: Hills, Patricia, and Abigael MacGibeny. "In the Barn, c.1877–79 (Hills no. 13.7.3)." In Eastman Johnson Catalogue Raisonné. www.eastmanjohnson.org/catalogue/entry.php?id=373 (accessed on December 2, 2024).