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PROPERTY OF A DISTINGUISHED NEW YORK COLLECTOR
I have collected this group of twenty-seven bronzes over the past three decades, and all but one is American. I didn't set out with a grand plan to acquire examples from many of America's well-known sculptors. Instead, I sought out works that struck an emotional chord and caused an immediate visceral reaction in me. I let those feelings guide me as to what works would hopefully "follow me home."
Each of these sculptures appeals to me in different ways and runs the gamut from the young fawn's ungainly stance in Alexander Phimister Proctor's 'Fate', to the jaunty, self-assured body language of John Storr's depiction of his friend Howard E. Smith. This directness continues with the athletic exertion of the entangled, straining torsos and limbs of Cecil Howard's 'Wrestlers', to the Brancusi-like simplicity of Jane Canfield's 'Rabbit', to the whimsical and spirited group in Carl Paul Jennewein's 'Over The Waves', and to the humor exemplified in 'Bear Cub and Rabbit', another work by A.P. Proctor.
As my knowledge of the field grew over the years I came to appreciate, and indeed, love, these very American expressions of three-dimensional, representational art. In my quest to learn as much as I could about the field however, books and catalogs only took me so far, and I owe so much gratitude to my two greatest teachers; William Doyle, founder of the Gallery now known as Doyle New York, and Cameron Shay of James Graham & Sons. I thank them both for awakening my love for American sculpture in the first place, and for so generously sharing their knowledge and helping to educate me, but also allowing me to develop my own "eye" and tastes.
Finally, I am grateful to Christie's for bringing my sculpture to the public so that now others will have the opportunity to live with and enjoy them as much as I have, freeing me to eagerly pursue new fields of artistic expression, and begin the exciting process all over again.
New York City, January 2013
Christie's is pleased to present this wonderful collection of twenty-seven bronzes as lots 42 to 68.
Charles Humphriss (1867-1943)
'Appeal to the Great Spirit'
Details
Charles Humphriss (1867-1943)
'Appeal to the Great Spirit'
inscribed 'C H Humphriss' and 'ROMAN BRONZE WORKS N-Y-' (along the base)
bronze with brown patina
30½ in. (77.5 cm.) high
'Appeal to the Great Spirit'
inscribed 'C H Humphriss' and 'ROMAN BRONZE WORKS N-Y-' (along the base)
bronze with brown patina
30½ in. (77.5 cm.) high
Provenance
Sale: William Doyle Galleries, New York, 8 January 1986, lot 494.
Acquired by the present owner from the above.
Acquired by the present owner from the above.
Literature
P.J. Broder, Bronzes of the American West, New York, 1974, p. 259, pl. 284, another example illustrated.
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