Charles Ephraim Burchfield
The Tree of the Owl
Estimate:
6,000 - 8,000 USD
101
102Charles Ephraim Burchfield
Charles Ephraim Burchfield
The Tree of the Owl
The Tree of the Owl
Estimate:
6,000 - 8,000 USD
Lot sold:
8,190
USD
Charles Ephraim Burchfield
1893 - 1967
The Tree of the Owl
signed with artist's monogram CEB, dated 1919-55 (lower right) and titled The tree of the owl (along the lower margin)
ink, charcoal and pencil on paper laid down on paperboard
sheet: 12 7/8 by 10 5/8 inches (32.7 by 27 cm)
framed: 22 1/4 by 18 1/2 inches (56.5 by 47 cm)
Executed in 1955.
We are grateful for the research conducted by Nancy Weekly, Burchfield Scholar, Burchfield Penney Art Center, Buffalo, New York.
The paper sheet is laid down to a paperboard support which is mounted to its mat along three sides. The paper sheet is slightly toned and there is mat burn along the extreme outer edges of the sheet. There are a few scattered small spots of staining along the outer margins and a small pindot of possible accretion in the white background at upper right. There do not appear to be any tears creases or losses to the sheet.
The lot is sold in the condition it is in at the time of sale. The condition report is provided to assist you with assessing the condition of the lot and is for guidance only. Any reference to condition in the condition report for the lot does not amount to a full description of condition. The images of the lot form part of the condition report for the lot. Certain images of the lot provided online may not accurately reflect the actual condition of the lot. In particular, the online images may represent colors and shades which are different to the lot's actual color and shades. The condition report for the lot may make reference to particular imperfections of the lot but you should note that the lot may have other faults not expressly referred to in the condition report for the lot or shown in the online images of the lot. The condition report may not refer to all faults, restoration, alteration or adaptation. The condition report is a statement of opinion only. For that reason, the condition report is not an alternative to taking your own professional advice regarding the condition of the lot. NOTWITHSTANDING THIS ONLINE CONDITION REPORT OR ANY DISCUSSIONS CONCERNING A LOT, ALL LOTS ARE OFFERED AND SOLD "AS IS" IN ACCORDANCE WITH THE CONDITIONS OF SALE/BUSINESS APPLICABLE TO THE RESPECTIVE SALE.
Acquired by the present owner from the above, 2009
According to Nancy Weekly of the Burchfield Penney Art Center, Buffalo, New York, "In 1919, after being discharged from the U.S. Army with the rank of Sergeant, Charles E. Burchfield returned to his home in Salem, Ohio. His artwork often expressed a more somber mood than his experimental, expressive, and joyous work from his self-named "Golden Year" of 1917. Among the subjects he painted were coal mines, small towns, and life from the perspective of birds. His New York dealer, Mary Mowbray-Clarke, and also others thought the latter were too different and would not be appealing to the public; and he destroyed them. However, many years later he regretted his actions.
in 1955, Burchfield reviewed his artworks and journals to share with John I.H Bauer, who was curating the retrospective, Charles Burchfield, that premiered at the Whitney Museum of American Art in January 1956 and subsequently traveled to six other museums in the U.S. through February 1957. During this year of preparation, he worked with his wife, Bertha, to organize everything, writing: 'Beginning on Jan. 3 (Monday) Bertha and I have attacked the problems of making scrapbooks of my notes & studies for pictures.' The dearth of material from 1919 would spur his recreation of memorable subjects."
Nancy Weekly concludes that the date range of 1919-55 recorded by the artist at lower right signifies that the present work was executed in 1955 but recreated from a related work of the subject probably destroyed by Burchfield in 1919.