Autumn 2020 Preview

Autumn 12 www.afamag.com | w ww.incollect.com H umans have long expressed their experience of the world through the act of creation. The art of the people, or folk art, provides a strong link to the yearnings and beliefs of its makers as well as the culture they represent. In American Perspective: Stories from the American Folk Art Museum Collection (pages 70–83), Stacy Hollander provides examples of work that does just that, but, in addition, “lends coherence to our own experience.” Whether it’s a portrait of a young textile worker, or a quilt that holds an immigrant’s story through its fabrics and imagery, or the devastation of a hurricane told through reclaimed wood, each object, while it reflects the perspective of its maker, has the power to connect with the viewer in a personal way, uniting both artist and viewer across time and history. We can enjoy an object or an image without being aware of its backstory. But when known, it can make what we are seeing all the more potent. This is the case with some of the most significant artwork done by John Singer Sargent (1856–1925) in Boston. A series of drawings gifted by the artist to his patron and friend, Isabella Stewart Gardner, are the subject of Nathaniel Silver’s Boston’s Apollo (pages 56–61), and the focus of a current exhibition at the Gardner Museum. Silver’s research reveals that for nearly a decade, Thomas McKeller, a Black elevator operator at Boston’s Hotel Vendome, served as Sargent’s primary model for such well-known works as the murals at the Museum of Fine Arts, Boston, where the images of classical gods and goddesses are based on McKeller’s physique and facial features. As Silver notes, many questions are raised by this new information, not least the erasure of McKeller’s identity from history. Sometimes we think we know the scope of an artist’s output, particularly when that artist is famous for a particular oeuvre. Yet, as Robert McCracken Peck shows in his article on pages 62–69, John James Audubon (1785–1851), of Birds of America fame, first made his living as a portraitist. As we know, his passion lay with portraying the feathered subjects for which he is famous. But had he stuck with his first calling, Audubon might have become one of America’s great early portraitists. The things that influence an artist’s output can be many and varied, as illustrated by Alejo Benedetti in Ansel Adams in Our Time (pages 92–97), an article that looks to the work of Adams along with photography by contemporary artists. The images selected illustrate Adams’ dedication to the landscape and his innovative techniques; they also show how artists of today continue to experiment with photography while recording the changing terrain of the West. We’re delighted to introduce a new series that will focus on a single object from the Dietrich American Foundation in this and subsequent issues. For this installment, Christopher Storb introduces a John Brocas high chest in the Foundation’s collections, which gives us a glimpse of the artistic output of this little- known craftsman. We hope the research into this and subsequent featured works will continue, as readers are invited to contribute their knowledge to the historical record by sharing their information about objects discussed. These contributions and updates will be regularly posted to www.dietrichamericanfoundation.org. Enjoy all this and more in this issue of AFA magazine. Johanna johanna@antiquesandfineart.com Photography by Ellen McDermott LETTER FROM THE EDITOR Established 1976 Clive Devenish Antiques (510) 414-4545 www.clivedevenishantiques.com clivedevenishantiques@comcast.net Member: Antiques Dealers' Association of America Organ Bank (Boy and Girl) Circa 1882 Mechanical Banks All Original Organ Bank (Cat and Dog) Circa 1882