Questroyal 2009

John G. Brown ( 1831 – 1913 ) Plate 7 Have a Drink Oil on canvas 23 5 / 8 x 17 1 / 16 inches Signed lower right: J.G. Brown provenance Estate of the artist Sale, American Art Association at the American Art Galleries, New York, Finished Pictures and Studies Left by the Late J.G. Brown, NA , February 9, 1914, no. 41 Private collection Turak Gallery, NewYork Spanierman Gallery, LLC, NewYork Alexander Gallery, NewYork exhibited Spanierman Gallery, LLC, NewYork, Nineteenth- and Twentieth- century American Masters , May 15 –July 3, 2008 literature Finished pictres and studies left by the well-known American artist, the late J.G. Brown, N.A., ex. cat. (NewYork: American Art Association, 1941 ), no. 41 . note This painting bears the artist’s estate stamp, dated February 1914 , on the verso. The painting is also recorded in the catalogue Finished Pictures and Studies Left by the Late J. G. Brown with the following description: “An old-fashioned well in the country, its gray curb built high, located under a shady tree, nearly fills the picture. In front of it a golden-haired child facing the spectator, a tin cup in her extended hand, awaits the answer to her invitation.” Whatever the motif he selects, it is at once recognizable as being wholly American in subject and treatment. samuel g. w. benjamin, art critic, 1882 1 It is not surprising that Mr. Brown, by such able renderings of popular subjects, receives not only the respect of his brother artists, but also the substantial applause of the public in the form of prompt sales at first-rate prices. samuel g. w. benjamin, art critic, 1882 2 Inspired by His Daughters In 1867 , John G. Brown’s first wife died, leaving the artist to care for his two young daughters, ages six and three. 3 At the time, the nation was also in mourning, as the wounds of the Civil War were still fresh in the American psyche. Significantly, Brown began to focus on sentimental country vignettes during this period, particularly ones featuring young girls. These children symbolized both the artist’s and America’s loss of innocence and hope for the future. 4 Have a Drink epitomizes these sentiments. Light permeates the scene and invites the viewer to bask in its warmth. The girl’s simple but kind offer of a drink suggests the return to America’s wholesome roots. Notably, Brown scholar Martha Hoppin proposes that the model pictured in Have a Drink could be Brown’s daughter, Mable. 5 — sjs Brown’s paintings are featured in the collections of The MetropolitanMuseum of Art, Pennsylvania Academy of the Fine Arts, National Academy Museum,Yale University Art Museum, Corcoran Gallery of Art, and the Museum of Fine Arts, Boston. 1 Samuel G. W. Benjamin, “A Painter in the Streets,” The Magazine of Art 5 (April 1882 ): 276 . 2 Ibid., 270 . 3 Martha J. Hoppin, Country Paths and City Sidewalks: The Art of J. G. Brown (Springfield, Mass.: GeorgeWalter Vincent Smith Art Museum, 1989 ), p. 11 . 4 Ibid., pp. 4, 17 . 5 Martha J. Hoppin, conversation with JessicaWaldmann, May 2009 .