All That is Glorious

It certainly was glorious watching Sanford Robinson Gifford’s master painting, A Lake Twilight, hammer at $2.9 million at Sotheby’s American Art sale this past May.the painting sold well over its high estimate and demonstrated the strength of the market for such work.

In this issue you will find a special column written by Questroyal Fine Art owner Lou Salerno. Lou has been collecting and dealing in Hudson River School painting for over 30 years. His column is an insightful and educated look at the market for these 19th-century paintings. Looking at the recent auction results, Lou finds plenty to be optimistic about. He writes,“the combined total of 25 paintings by Hudson River School painters was unusually high for the major spring or fall auctions.whenever there is an increase in supply for a particular category of art, it offers a good test for the actual demand for it.a thoughtful review of the results clearly demonstrates that enthusiastic buyers bid competitively for solid examples. All but four of the offerings sold and there is reason to believe that they may sell eventually because both houses confirmed that there is post-sale interest.the May auctions clearly affirmed that buyers continue to seek quality examples from the period.”

If you’re interested in 19th-century art, then the issue you are currently holding will help provide some insight into many aspects of this important area of American art history.the exhibition currently up at the Pennsylvania Academy of the Fine Arts titled From the Schuylkill to the Hudson: Landscapes

of the Early American Republic provides a glimpse into the early artists who influenced the Hudson River School. Our next column discusses the exhibition Homer at the Beach:a Marine Painter’s Journey, 1869-1880 opening August 3 at the Cape Ann Museum.this exhibition looks at Homer’s early paintings of the sea and traces his journey through his oils and watercolor as a way to celebrate the 150th anniversary of his first marine painting. Finally,

Thomas Cole’s Refrain:the Paintings of Catskill Creek is currently up at the Thomas Cole National Historic Site.the exhibition includes 12 original oil paintings by Cole and will explore the deeper meanings of Cole’s Catskill Creek paintings for the first time.

There is much to learn in studying the work of such great 19th-century luminaries.the groundbreakers, the risk-takers.a true testament to their hard work and excellence is that such new scholarship is still being written and researched some 150 years after they put down their brushes for the last time.

Sincerely,

P.S.WE will soon be unveiling something that will change the way American art is purchased in this country. Stay tuned for details!