Eggplant and Green Pepper
- Date
- 1925
- Material
- Watercolor and graphite
- made in
- United States, North and Central America
- Classification
- Drawings & watercolors
- Collection
- Prints, Drawings, and Photographs
- Current Location
- Not on view
- Dimensions
- 18 x 11 15/16 in. (45.7 x 30.3 cm)
- Credit Line
- The Eliza McMillan Trust
- Rights
- Public Domain
- Object Number
- 2:1948
NOTES
A colorful array of planes and floral forms swirls like a cyclone around the eggplant, pepper, and zinnia in a vase that form the centerpiece of this still life. Its bright palette, translucent layering of washes, and bold use of bare white paper mark the influence of the great French watercolorist, Paul Cézanne. Charles Demuth, however, made this watercolor uniquely his own, structuring the patterns of leaves, wood, and flowers. Working pigment around the paper with a blotter, he carefully balanced color and form. His economic use of line enabled him to emphasize the play of light as it glanced over the shiny surfaces of the vegetables. Both eggplants and green peppers were favorite subjects for Demuth. He regarded their shapes as anthropomorphic and once remarked that an eggplant could be likened to a human heart.
Provenance
- 1935
Charles Demuth (1883-1935), Lancaster, PA
1935 -
Robert Evans Locher (1888-1956), Lancaster, PA, USA, by bequest from the artist [1]
- 1948
Kraushaar Galleries, New York, NY, acquired from Robert Evans Locher [2]
1948 -
Saint Louis Art Museum, purchased from Kraushaar Galleries [3]
Notes:
[1] Robert Evans Locher, a close friend of Demuth, received by bequest all the watercolors in Demuth's possession at the time of his death in 1935 [Fahlman, Betsy. "Pennsylvania Modern: Charles Demuth of Lancaster." Philadelphia: Philadelphia Museum of Art, 1983, p. 23].
[2] According to a letter dated January 12, 1948 from Antoinette Kraushaar, Kraushaar Galleries acquired the watercolor from Charles Locher, who received it as a bequest from the artist. She may have incorrectly transcribed Robert's name as Charles [SLAM document files].
[3] Minutes of the Administrative Board of Control of the City Art Museum, January 8, 1948.
Charles Demuth (1883-1935), Lancaster, PA
1935 -
Robert Evans Locher (1888-1956), Lancaster, PA, USA, by bequest from the artist [1]
- 1948
Kraushaar Galleries, New York, NY, acquired from Robert Evans Locher [2]
1948 -
Saint Louis Art Museum, purchased from Kraushaar Galleries [3]
Notes:
[1] Robert Evans Locher, a close friend of Demuth, received by bequest all the watercolors in Demuth's possession at the time of his death in 1935 [Fahlman, Betsy. "Pennsylvania Modern: Charles Demuth of Lancaster." Philadelphia: Philadelphia Museum of Art, 1983, p. 23].
[2] According to a letter dated January 12, 1948 from Antoinette Kraushaar, Kraushaar Galleries acquired the watercolor from Charles Locher, who received it as a bequest from the artist. She may have incorrectly transcribed Robert's name as Charles [SLAM document files].
[3] Minutes of the Administrative Board of Control of the City Art Museum, January 8, 1948.
We regularly update records, which may be incomplete. If you have additional information, please contact us at provenance@slam.org.