Lot Details
Lot 98
Anna Mary Robertson Moses (Grandma Moses)
American, 1860-1961
A Dream (No. 1022), 1944
Signed Moses (lr); bears an original Grandma Moses label on the reverse, with the title as indicated, the date Oct. 17, 1944, and the number 1022
Oil on Masonite
13 x 19 7/8 inches
Provenance:
The artist
By gift to Grace M. Allen Qua, Eagle Bridge, NY
By descent to Atwood Qua, Valatie, NY
Thence by descent in the family to the current owner
Literature:
Otto Kallir, Grandma Moses, New York, 1973, no. 434, Grandma Moses no. 1022, Record Book p. 32, executed Oct. 17, 1944, location unknown.
Copyright reserved to Grandma Moses Properties Co., New York; Together with Pitcher with Landscape with Cottage, signed Moses near base and inscribed 1888 Moses / Stonware [sic] at rear bottom, oil and metallic paint on ceramic, height 9 inches
Provenance:
The artist
By gift to Grace M. Allen Qua, Eagle Bridge, NY
By descent to Atwood Qua, Valatie, NY
Thence by descent in the family to the current owner
Exhibited:
Bennington, VT, The Bennington Museum, Nov. 1990-Jun. 1991
Affixed to the reverse of A Dream is a handwritten note: "To Atwood G. Qua from Mother. Original painting by Grandma Moses. Questioned as to why it was so very different from her usual type she painted of an era of the New England scenes of her girlhood days, she explained, 'Just before rising one morning I dreamed I saw this scene and got up and painted it before the vision of it faded.' It is very unusual because it shows a different 'facet' of her personality and painting. Painted 1943."
Jane Kallir and Hildegard Bachert at Galerie St. Etienne have examined both works in this lot and confirmed their authenticity. The ceramic jug has been assigned the temporary catalogue raisonne number 1622.
In April 1947, Grandma Moses described her painting process:
"How do I Paint?
Well first I get a frame, then I saw my masonite board to fit the frame. Then I go over the board with oil, then give the board three coats of flat white paint. Now it is ready for the scene, what ever the mind may produce, a landscape picture, an Old Bridge, A Dream, or a summer or winter scene, childhood memory, or whatever one fancys,..." [Grandma Moses, as quoted in Otto Kallir, Grandma Moses, New York, 1973, p. 269]
Grandma conceived of each painting as a complete entity, first choosing the frame, then her panel, and finally the wallpaper with which she would back the panel and frame in order to make it attractive.
Although they are less well-known, Grandma Moses also painted decorative items such as hand-painted jugs, trays, and the like. The present, undated painted pitcher bears a painted "stamp": 1888 Moses Stonwar [sic] -- a bit of Grandma Moses humor. We extend our thanks to Jane Kallir and Hildegard Bachert at Galerie St. Etienne for their gracious assistance in authenticating both items in this lot.
C
Additional Notes & Condition Report
Pitcher: Surface grime, few tiny areas of loss of paint surface. Handle cracked at base and repaired.
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