Lot 9
  • 9

Jessie Willcox Smith

Estimate
100,000 - 150,000 USD
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Description

  • Jessie Willcox Smith
  • Merry Christmas: Two Children Before the Fireplace
  • mixed media on paperboard
  • 30 by 28 inches
  • (76.2 by 71.1 cm)
  • Executed in 1914.

Provenance

Acquired by the present owner, circa 2010

Condition

The board is somewhat darkened and there are scattered dots and spots of staining primarily in the background. There is one dot of staining in the fireplace mantle at upper right and a few scattered pinholes in the background. There is adhesive residue from a former mounting at the far edges beneath the mat.
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.

Catalogue Note

The present work was an advertisement for Lowney's Crest Chocolates (fig. 1). Edward Nudelman, Jessie Willcox Smith expert and biographer describes Merry Christmas: Two Children Before the Fireplace, “A wonderful mixed media painting by Jessie Willcox Smith, published as an advertisement for Lowney's Crest Chocolates, reminiscent of her paintings for Twas the Night Before Christmas, Houghton, Mifflin, 1912, but displaying a more delicate and decorative quality characteristic of her best work.” 


Born in Philadelphia in 1863, Jessie Willcox Smith originally trained as a kindergarten teacher before discovering her talent and skill for drawing in her early twenties. She studied at the Pennsylvania Academy of the Fine Arts under Thomas Eakins and five years later was accepted into the inaugural class at Howard Pyle's eponymous school of illustration. Following graduation she began illustrating for publications such as Century, Collier's WeeklyHarper’s Bazaar, Leslie's, McClure's, Scribner's, Women's Home Companion and Good Housekeeping. She was also commissioned to illustrate advertisements, of which the present work is an example.