拍品專文
This painting was executed circa 1912.
Born in 1880, Max Kuehne received his artistic training in New York from Kenneth Hayes Miller and William Merritt Chase at Chase's New York School of Art. During 1909 and 1910, Kuehne attended night classes conducted by Robert Henri, one of the most progressive leaders in the New York art world just prior to the Armory show of 1913. Equipped with formal art instruction, Kuehne made the requisite journey abroad, travelling throughout Europe and studying Old Master paintings in the principal galleries in England, France, Germany, Holland and Belgium.
On his return to America in 1911, the artist spent the next four years living in Greenwich Village and mingling with the Hoppers, the Barnes, and the Prendergast brothers. Later in the 1930s, the work of Charles Prendergast had a profound influence on the direction of Kuehne's work, which for financial reasons turned towards decorative screens, panels, furniture and frames. However, during these New York years, Kuehne followed the lead of the Ashcan School by painting in the vicinity of the ferry houses, the East River and its bridges.
Executed around 1912, Brooklyn Bridge in Snow depicts John Roebling and his son Washington's 1883 construction spanning 1600 feet across the East River. The massive piers and soaring gothic arches of the bridge recall earlier architectural achievements of a highly spiritual period and lend a sense of hope and positivism to the structure. This monument to America's achievements in engineering and technology sits high above the nearby snow-laden factory rooftops and steamships, both of which signify industry with their billowing smoke.
The Brooklyn Bridge was immediately recognized as an American icon and became a popular subject for New York artists. While more aesthetically advanced artists, such as John Marin and Joseph Stella, concentrated on the bridge's dynamic modernity, Kuehne chose to emphasize its expansive horizontality, reflecting the lateral growth of the city. This choice to ignore the inherent dynamism of the bridge was common amongst Kuehne's Impressionist contemporaries, who preferred to emphasize the temporal qualities of the seasons and the picturesque attributes of the city.
Born in 1880, Max Kuehne received his artistic training in New York from Kenneth Hayes Miller and William Merritt Chase at Chase's New York School of Art. During 1909 and 1910, Kuehne attended night classes conducted by Robert Henri, one of the most progressive leaders in the New York art world just prior to the Armory show of 1913. Equipped with formal art instruction, Kuehne made the requisite journey abroad, travelling throughout Europe and studying Old Master paintings in the principal galleries in England, France, Germany, Holland and Belgium.
On his return to America in 1911, the artist spent the next four years living in Greenwich Village and mingling with the Hoppers, the Barnes, and the Prendergast brothers. Later in the 1930s, the work of Charles Prendergast had a profound influence on the direction of Kuehne's work, which for financial reasons turned towards decorative screens, panels, furniture and frames. However, during these New York years, Kuehne followed the lead of the Ashcan School by painting in the vicinity of the ferry houses, the East River and its bridges.
Executed around 1912, Brooklyn Bridge in Snow depicts John Roebling and his son Washington's 1883 construction spanning 1600 feet across the East River. The massive piers and soaring gothic arches of the bridge recall earlier architectural achievements of a highly spiritual period and lend a sense of hope and positivism to the structure. This monument to America's achievements in engineering and technology sits high above the nearby snow-laden factory rooftops and steamships, both of which signify industry with their billowing smoke.
The Brooklyn Bridge was immediately recognized as an American icon and became a popular subject for New York artists. While more aesthetically advanced artists, such as John Marin and Joseph Stella, concentrated on the bridge's dynamic modernity, Kuehne chose to emphasize its expansive horizontality, reflecting the lateral growth of the city. This choice to ignore the inherent dynamism of the bridge was common amongst Kuehne's Impressionist contemporaries, who preferred to emphasize the temporal qualities of the seasons and the picturesque attributes of the city.