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Lot Essay
In the late 1920s and early 1930s Benson painted extraordinary oil paintings and watercolors that depicted the sport of salmon fishing. In these works the artist combined his brilliant Impressionistic technique with subjects similar to the great Adirondack watercolors of Winslow Homer. An avid outdoorsman and sportsman, Benson was attracted to this rugged subject matter. The Shadow captures the essence of these two qualities-- the painting is infused with careful observation of light, color and atmosphere, and it speaks to the artist's understanding of the peacefulness and tranquility found in the North America Wilderness.
In the sporting subjects that Benson completed after 1900, he retained the Impressionistic style that received wide acclaim earlier in his career. The surface of the canvas of The Shadow is animated with vigorous brushwork. Cool blues and grays are placed side by side to give the effect of early morning light shimmering off the surface of the water.
Of Benson's sporting paintings from this period Bruce Chambers writes: "...the painter shapes his composition in broad, flat patterns; the motif is Winslow Homer's and the underlying aesthetic is still deeply ingrained in the Western tradition, but the effect is astonishingly Oriental." (Frank W. Benson: A Retrospective, New York, 1989, p. 158)
As an Impressionist, Benson was fascinated with atmospheric effects of various times of day. Faith Andrews writes: "Benson loved to paint at dawn. The titles of many works reveal his fascination with the pale light of early morning. In his younger days hunting on the marshes near Salem with his brothers and Dan Henderson, Benson had spent many a chilly hour waiting for the sun to rise and the birds to fly. As a painter the luminous quality of early morning challenged him time and again." (Frank W. Benson: An American Impressionist, New York, 1994, p. 201)
Benson was particularly sensitive to the nuances of a fine composition, regarding it as the most important quality of a painting. He said to his daughter Eleanor: "A picture is merely an experiment in design. If the design is pleasing the picture is good...Few appreciate that what makes them admire a picture is the design made by the painter." (Advice on painting from F.W.B. Notes Taken after Criticism by E.B.L., 22 February 1936, unpublished manuscript) With its refined subject matter and sensitive execution, The Shadow typifies Benson's personal brand of American Impressionism at its best.
This work will be included in the forthcoming catalogue raisonné of the artist's work being compiled by Vose Galleries of Boston.
In the sporting subjects that Benson completed after 1900, he retained the Impressionistic style that received wide acclaim earlier in his career. The surface of the canvas of The Shadow is animated with vigorous brushwork. Cool blues and grays are placed side by side to give the effect of early morning light shimmering off the surface of the water.
Of Benson's sporting paintings from this period Bruce Chambers writes: "...the painter shapes his composition in broad, flat patterns; the motif is Winslow Homer's and the underlying aesthetic is still deeply ingrained in the Western tradition, but the effect is astonishingly Oriental." (Frank W. Benson: A Retrospective, New York, 1989, p. 158)
As an Impressionist, Benson was fascinated with atmospheric effects of various times of day. Faith Andrews writes: "Benson loved to paint at dawn. The titles of many works reveal his fascination with the pale light of early morning. In his younger days hunting on the marshes near Salem with his brothers and Dan Henderson, Benson had spent many a chilly hour waiting for the sun to rise and the birds to fly. As a painter the luminous quality of early morning challenged him time and again." (Frank W. Benson: An American Impressionist, New York, 1994, p. 201)
Benson was particularly sensitive to the nuances of a fine composition, regarding it as the most important quality of a painting. He said to his daughter Eleanor: "A picture is merely an experiment in design. If the design is pleasing the picture is good...Few appreciate that what makes them admire a picture is the design made by the painter." (Advice on painting from F.W.B. Notes Taken after Criticism by E.B.L., 22 February 1936, unpublished manuscript) With its refined subject matter and sensitive execution, The Shadow typifies Benson's personal brand of American Impressionism at its best.
This work will be included in the forthcoming catalogue raisonné of the artist's work being compiled by Vose Galleries of Boston.