Neal Auction Louisiana Purchase 2015

Additional information at www.nealauction.com 89 457. Charles‑Jean‑Baptiste Colson (French, c. 1810‑1851, act. New Orleans 1836‑1837) , “Pendant Portraits of an Elegant New Orleans Husband and Wife”, 1837, oil on canvas, each signed, dated and inscribed “New Orleans” upper right, artist supply stencil en verso of wife, 36 1/4 in. x 29 in., original frames. $12000/18000 Provenance: By descent in the family of Mrs. Charles D. Richardson; Didier, Inc., New Orleans, Nov. 9, 1996. Note: After studying at the École des Beaux-Arts and in the studio of Baron Antoine-Jean Gros (1771-1835) in Paris, Charles Colson, like many French portraitists, decided to travel to New Orleans, where likenesses by French artists were in great demand. In November of 1836, Colson and his sister, Honorine Colson St. Clair, arrived in New Orleans from Le Havre on the Salem with a group of artists including the leading portraitist in New Orleans at the time, Jean-Joseph Vaudechamp (1790-1866). Colson’s two other known portraits from his time in New Orleans, Creole Woman and M. Carti, are held at the Louisiana State Museum. These two works and the two rare paintings offered here from 1837 display Colson’s neo-classical painting technique, combined with the soft, smooth brushwork and romantic poses he had acquired from his training with Gros. In particular, the treatment of the silk, jewelry, and bonnet of the female portrait from this pair are extremely well rendered. Colson portrays the wife’s clothing, the height of c. 1835 European fashion, impeccably; her gigot sleeves that tighten at the wrists, hairstyle parted in the center with ringlets framing the face, and bonnet adorned with lace, flowers, and a large bow under the chin are all on par with the styles being worn in Paris and London in the mid-1830s. 458. American School , probably 19th c., “George and Martha Washington”, two oils on paper, each 10 in. x 8 in., original matching gilt frames. $800/1200 Provenance: Didier Inc., New Orleans, Oct. 28, 1999. 459. John McCrady (American, 1911‑1968) , “The Robert E. Lee and the Natchez”, 1945, lithograph, pencil‑signed and titled lower margin, edition of 250, published by Associated American Artists, 10 in. x 14 in., framed. $1000/1500 Provenance: Stone + Press Gallery, New Orleans. 460. Continental School , early‑to‑mid 19th c., “Gentleman” and “Lady”, pair of miniature watercolors on paper, unsigned, each sight 7 in. x 5 1/2 in., period frames. $700/1000 461. George Washington Sully (American/Louisiana, 1816‑1890) , “View of an American Canal and Towpath with Falls”, 1834, ink wash on paper, pencil‑dated upper right, label with title en verso, unsigned, 4 1/4 in. x 5 1/2 in., framed. $500/700 Provenance: Didier Inc., New Orleans.