Frederick Ferdinand Schafer Painting Catalog

Problematic painting record FFSp0691


[photo] [A Study for Yosemite Valley]

Date: undated
Medium: oil on canvas
Size: 12 x 9 in (30 x 23 cm)
Inscription: not signed
Verso: Frame u/r, partial sticker of Butterfield & Butterfield from 2001 sale. Frame u/l, sticker of George Stern Fine Arts, Los Angeles. Stretcher l/r, sticker of Denenberg Fine Arts Inc., San Francisco. Frame l/l, sticker of Butterfield & Butterfield from 2013 sale. Frame u/c, unidentified sticker with handwritten "21".
Provenance: Sold 12 December 2001 for $2000+17.5% by Butterfield & Butterfield, San Francisco, as lot 5177 in sale 7274D. Offered 29 September 2013 by Bonhams, San Francisco, as lot 4096 in sale 21005 (not sold); Sold 16 February 2014 for $650 + 20% by Clar's Auction Gallery, Oakland, California, as lot 2177.
Reproductions: Butterfield & Butterfield 12 December 2001 sale catalog; Bonhams 29 September 2013 sale catalog; Clar's Auction Gallery 16 February 2014 sale catalog.
Attribution: Not being signed, attribution is problematic. The foreground snags and botanically accurate trees are the only features that suggest that the painting might be by Schafer. The palette is atypical, there is no central focus, and the overall style simply does not look right. The attribution to Schafer thus seems unlikely.
Site: Although the title suggests Yosemite Valley the site is not recognizable.
Identification: Title as found in the 2001 sale catalog. The two art galleries used the title "Oil Study for Yosemite Valley". The 2013 and 2014 sale catalogs used the simpler title "Yosemite Study".
In index(es): questioned attributions

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Mar 10, 2024, 11:47 MDT Accessibility