| Medium: | oil on canvas |
| Size: | 20 x 36 in (51 x 91 cm) |
| Inscription: | l/l "T. Hill." Other inscriptions faintly visible; see Attribution note, below. |
| Verso: | "Ev. on Silver Lake, Cala." in black brush |
| Provenance: | With Kennedy Galleries, New York, in 1964. With Sotheby's, New York, 1973; to private collection, 1973; to private collection, Washington, D.C., 1980. |
| Reproductions: | Kennedy Quarterly, 1964, figure 16; Kennedy Galleries negative #12624, undated |
| Citations: | 1973 sale catalog 3467, lot 131. Inventory of American Paintings… record 61513472 |
| Attribution: | The Kennedy Quarterly and the photograph identify the painting as by Thomas Hill. However, on the basis of style, brushwork, and overall appearance, John Garzoli has strongly suggested that the work is not by Hill, but may be more appropriately attributed to Schafer. The composition, style, and palette are all consistent with that attribution, and the verso inscription is in Schafer's typical style of block lettering. The image of the signature area seems to reveal the letters "Sch…" faintly just above the recto inscription. |
| Description: | A view across a shallow lake at the right, with a clearing in the foreground left and a forest behind the clearing and the lake. A tent and a campfire are seen farther along the left shore at the edge of the lake. The nearby bank is a mud flat with stranded driftwood; just off the bank are several patches of water grass. At the far edge of the clearing are several leaning dead trees; near the left two tall conifers provide an anchor at the left edge of the painting. The sky is largely clear with a layer of clouds near the center and several more layers of clouds near the horizon; the water brightly but indistinctly reflects the sky. (From photographs.) |
| Note: | There are a half-dozen bodies of water named "Silver Lake" in California. Another painting with the words "Silver Lake" in its title provided by the artist adds "near Lake Tahoe", but that location is unconfirmed. |
| Identification: | In the Kennedy Quarterly the painting is given the descriptive title Indian encampment at sunset. The back of the Kennedy Galleries photograph gives the title as "Evening, Silver Lake, California". The 1973 Sotheby sale catalog gives the width as 36 1/4 inches. The current owner reports that he purchased the painting from the SPB purchaser. |
| Other title(s): | Indian encampment at sunset (Kennedy Quarterly photograph caption) |
| In index(es): | Title list, Indian encampments as incidental subjects, lake cove scenes, Lake Tahoe and environs, miscellaneous other well-known landmarks, sunset scenes, paintings probably attributable to Schafer |
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