catalog text
CHARLES LINFORD
American, 1846-1897
An Autumn Landscape of Birches in the Forest
Oil on canvas | Signed lower left "C. LINFORD"
Item # 106EGP17A
A warm autumn view capturing birch trees in a loosely wooded forest with a small stream meandering through the center, it is an interesting work for the use of light throughout the scene. Captured during the late hours of the day as the sun is setting behind the viewer, the burnt orange hue of golden hour shifts the color of the leaves throughout the trees, amplifying the turning colors into brilliant hues of red, yellow and orange. The brilliant sunlight along the trunk shifts into shadows as the sharp angle of the sun leaves the ground cover obscured in shadows. The forest opens up to a small meadow in the distance bathed in golden light, the curving of the steam leading the eye of the viewer through the trees and the darkness of the forest.
The work is executed in oil on canvas and is signed in the lower left "C. LINFORD".
ARTIST
Born in Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania in 1846, he befriended the important landscape painter George Hetzel and through him was introduced to the Gillespie Group, a collective of artists who gathered around the Gillespie Gallery in Pittsburgh. He trained under Hetzel and it is believed they found Scalp Level while on a fishing trip in 1866. A small town just outside of Johnstown, Pennsylvania, the untainted natural beauty of the region would become a favorite destination for landscape artists seeking inspiration; many paintings were brought to life from Scalp Level, including many by Linford featuring their distinctive groves of birch trees. He had a great admiration for Henri Rousseau and Camille Corot; despite never traveling abroad he was heavily influenced by the French Barbizon school. His preference for honesty in landscape, the use of light in strong contrast to surrounding darkness, the overall impressionistic effect of loose brushwork and chaotic strokes to build up layers of pigment were all borrowed from the Barbizon movement. Linford differentiated himself with his attraction to trees, particularly the birch trees, and he incorporated these into his compositions with great effect.
In 1877 he moved to Philadelphia and began exhibiting his paintings at the Pennsylvania Academy of Fine Arts through 1893. He began exhibiting at the National Academy of Design in 1878, at which time he listed his studio address as 1420 Chestnut Street, Philadelphia. He moved to New York City for a time, listing his studio as being at 10 West 23rd Street in his 1890 exhibition at NAD. He exhibited at the Art Institute of Chicago and the 1896 exhibition at the Carnegie Institute International. Eventually he moved to Plainfield, New Jersey, where he remained until his death in 1897.
Artist Listings & Bibliography:
- Exhibition of the National Academy 1861-1900, Vol. I, Kennedy, 1973, p. 559
- E. Benezit Dictionary of Artists, Vol. VIII, Gründ, 2006, p. 1083
- Mantle Fielding's Dictionary of American Painters, Sculptors & Engravers, Opitz, 1983, p. 569
Measurements: 12" H x 17 1/8" W [canvas]; 18" H x 23" W x 1" D [frame]
Condition Report:
Professionally conserved (cleaned, losses consolidated and inpainted, sealed in fresh Damar varnish). Original stretchers, two keys replaced. Unlined linen structure in good condition, sturdy and stable. Surface with light craquelure and crazing. Examination under UV shows a surface somewhat obscured due to varnish and pigment flaring, particularly making any old restorations difficult to evaluate; inpainting in several spots along the lower edge just above the frame, in the foremost tree center and three areas in the upper right corner (the heavy purple flare in the images is due to uneven UV light during photography). Frame appears to be original to the painting with minor chipping/losses/inpainting/crazing as expected.