Jasper Francis Cropsey 1823-1900

Sale: Artist to Artists' Fund Society, New York, February 6, 1871, lot 72 (possibly)
Private collection
By descent in the family to the present owner

New York, Union League Club, January 1871

"The Union League Club: Annual Meeting Last Night," New York Evening Post, January 13, 1871
"Art Notes," New York Evening Post, January 1871, p. 2, (as View of Lake George)
"Exhibition of Pictures at the Union League Club," New York Herald, January 18, 1871, (as Lake Geneva)
"Ladies' Annual Reception of the Union League Club," New York Evening Post, January 27, 1871, p. 3

Very good original condition; unlined; stretcher bar mark along top edge, small loss to canvas in water at lower right, a few small losses along edges, canvas at tacking edge is slightly torn in lower right corner, under UV: fine.
In response to your inquiry, we are pleased to provide you with a general report of the condition of the property described above. Since we are not professional conservators or restorers, we urge you to consult with a restorer or conservator of your choice who will be better able to provide a detailed, professional report. Prospective buyers should inspect each lot to satisfy themselves as to condition and must understand that any statement made by Sotheby's is merely a subjective qualified opinion.
NOTWITHSTANDING THIS REPORT OR ANY DISCUSSIONS CONCERNING CONDITION OF A LOT, ALL LOTS ARE OFFERED AND SOLD "AS IS" IN ACCORDANCE WITH THE CONDITIONS OF SALE PRINTED IN THE CATALOGUE.

Dr. Kenneth Maddox writes: "The mountain on the left is Black Mountain at Lake George, which the artist sketched September 8, 1945. In his journal for that date he wrote: 'Engaged a boy and went on the lake - as far up as the narrows & from one of the Islands - [illegible word] north on the east side, I made a ketch of Black mountain, returned at 4 PM. It was very blustering & cold - the clearest day I have had since I have been here, sometimes the sky was cloudless.' The sketches made by Cropsey on his two-week sketching excursion were used by the artist for over fifty views of Lake George that he painted during the rest of his life. The left foreground cutting diagonally across this composition was fabricated by the painter, as well as the male figure, which the artist may have intended as a surrogate image for himself."