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Frederick Ferdinand Schafer Painting Catalog

Painting record FFSd0092

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[photo] [In the Catskills]

Medium: oil on canvas
Size: 30 x 50 in (76 x 127 cm)
Inscription: l/r "F Schafer." in the artist's characteristic block-letter hand
Provenance: Sold ca. 1970 by Jim Finlinson Antiques, Berkeley, California, to private collection, San Francisco; sold 1983 to Carlson Gallery, San Francisco. Sold 30 January 1987 for $1800+10% by Sotheby Arcade, New York, as lot 70 in sale 1189. Sold 23 March 2000 for $2200+15% by Sotheby's, New York as lot "OVE". Sold 4 October 2000 for $3750+20% by Christie's, New York, as lot 51 in sale 8441.
Reproductions: 30 January 1987 sale catalog; William K. Dick photo #68 (color, undated); 23 March 2000 sale catalog; 4 October 2000 sale catalog.
Citations: Inventory of American Paintings… record 63006062; Sotheby's lot OVE
Description: A mountain valley. A stream tumbles over a cliff in the center and descends directly toward the viewer over a small fall in the foreground, between boulders. A figure wearing a broad-brimmed white hat stands looking at the fall on the right bank. A few feet behind him is the figure of a girl sitting on a flat rock. Two large tree trunks stand on the bank to the left, brush on the bank to the right, dead trees lie scattered about on both sides. Bright sky and background above the cliff and bright water contrast with the dark banks and cliff. the painting is almost entirely in shades of brown. (From a color photograph.)
Note: The scene is almost identical to [Nevada Falls 2], in which the figure is on the left of the stream and there is a path along the left side. It is also very similar to Catskill Fall, Catskill Mountains, New York. The Christie's 4 October 2000 sale catalog lists Mongerson Galleries, Chicago, in the provenance but gives no dates or further information.
Identification: Descriptive title of unknown origin, as found in the 1987 sale catalog; the 1970 collector did not report a title, which suggests that the painting was not originally titled by the artist. The Inventory of American Paintings entry cites the Sotheby Arcade sale. Given the close resemblence of the scene in this painting to the scene in Catskill Fall, Catskill Mountains, New York, which title was assigned by the artist, this title seems appropriate. (And it seems likely that the scene in [Nevada Falls 2] is mistitled.)
Other title(s): At the waterfall (Christie's 8 October 2000 sale catalog); Western mountain landscape with waterfall (Sotheby's 23 March 2000 sale catalog)
In index(es): Title list, eastern United States scenes

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Mar 10, 2024, 11:47 MDT Accessibility