The Valley of Ornans
- Date
- 1858
- Material
- Oil on canvas
- depicts
- Ornans, Franche-Comté region, France, Europe
- Classification
- Paintings
- Collection
- Modern and Contemporary Art
- Current Location
- On View, Gallery 206
- Dimensions
- 23 1/2 x 33 5/8 in. (59.7 x 85.4 cm)
framed: 32 11/16 x 40 3/4 x 4 5/16 in. (83 x 103.5 x 11 cm) - Credit Line
- Museum Purchase
- Rights
- Public Domain
- Object Number
- 74:1937
NOTES
Two disparate expanses of terrain - one infused with afternoon sunlight, the other in shadow - converge in a dramatic composition of geometrical shapes. Gustave Courbet's bold use of the palette knife to apply paint and his rejection of fussy details lend the work a quality of rugged strength.
Courbet painted numerous views of his birth town Ornans, located in the region of Franche-Comté in Eastern France. The area's robust and dramatic topography inspired the artist, and served as a guiding force in his painting.
Courbet painted numerous views of his birth town Ornans, located in the region of Franche-Comté in Eastern France. The area's robust and dramatic topography inspired the artist, and served as a guiding force in his painting.
Provenance
M. Fevbre, Paris, France [1]
P. Hartwood, Montreal, Canada [2]
by 1925 - 1926
Rhea Reid Topping [3]
1926
T. Eaton Company, Toronto, Canada, purchased from Rhea Reid Topping through M. Knoedler & Co., New York, NY [4]
1926
M. Knoedler & Co., New York, NY, USA, purchased from T. Eaton Company [5]
1926 - 1937
Josef Stransky (1872-1936), New York, NY, purchased from M. Knoedler & Co. [6]
1937 -
Saint Louis Art Museum, purchased from the Josef Stransky estate through Wildenstein & Co., New York, NY [7]
Notes:
[1] The invoice to the Museum from Wildenstein & Co. lists the previous collections as only M. Fevbre, P. Hartwood, and Josef Stransky [invoice dated November 9, 1937, SLAM document files]. M. Fevbre and P. Hartwood are the sole names included in the provenance of this painting in a 1935 publication about the Josef Stransky collection ["French Masters of the XIX and XX Century: The Private Collection of Josef Stransky, New York. Special Reprint from The Art News Supplement, May 1931, Including Recent Accessions Up to May 1935." New York: Art News, 1935]. An earlier version of this publication lists only P. Hartwood and M. Knoedler & Co. in the provenance for this painting [Flint, Ralph. "The Private Collection of Josef Stransky." "Art News" XXIX, no. 33 (May 16, 1931): 88].
[2] See note [1].
[3] The only source for the inclusion of Rhea Reid Topping and T. Eaton Company in the provenance of this painting is a 1994 exhibition catalogue [Tinterow, Gary, and Henri Loyrette. "Origins of Impressionism." New York: Harry N. Abrams, 1994, cat. 39].
[4] T. Eaton Company was a well-known Canadian department store company. According to the 1994 catalogue, they purchased the painting from Rhea Reid Topping through M. Knoedler & Co. in 1926, and sold it back to M. Knoedler & Co. later that same year (see note [3]).
[5] See note [4]. The 1977 catalogue raisonné includes M. Knoedler & Co. in the provenance directly between P. Hartwood and Josef Stransky; no other collectors are listed, however [Fernier, Robert. "La Vie et l'Oeuvre de Gustave Courbet: Catalogue Raisonné," Vol. I (1819-1865). Paris: Fondation Wildenstein, 1977, cat. 240].
[6] The 1994 catalogue (see note [3]) indicates that Josef Stransky purchased the painting from M. Knoedler & Co. in November 1926. Stransky was the conductor of the New York Philharmonic Orchestra. He also had a well-known collection of Modern French paintings which was published in articles in "Art News" in 1931 and 1935 (see note [1]), and exhibited at Marie Harriman Gallery in 1933, the Worcester Art Museum in 1933-1934, and at Wildenstein & Co. in 1936 ["Courbet and Delacroix." New York: Marie Harriman Gallery, November 7-25, 1933, cat. 7; Cott, Perry B. "The Stransky Collection of Modern Art." "Bulletin of the Worcester Art Museum" XXIII, no. IV (Winter, 1933): 147-157; "Collection of a Collector: Modern French Paintings from Ingres to Matisse (The Private Collection of the late Josef Stransky)." New York: Wildenstein & Co., July 1936, cat. 4]. Each of these publications includes this painting.
[7] A letter dated November 8, 1937 from Wildenstein & Co. indicates that the gallery was simply acting as agent for the Stransky estate in the sale of the painting [SLAM document files]. Minutes of the Administrative Board of Control of the City Art Museum, November 4, 1937.
P. Hartwood, Montreal, Canada [2]
by 1925 - 1926
Rhea Reid Topping [3]
1926
T. Eaton Company, Toronto, Canada, purchased from Rhea Reid Topping through M. Knoedler & Co., New York, NY [4]
1926
M. Knoedler & Co., New York, NY, USA, purchased from T. Eaton Company [5]
1926 - 1937
Josef Stransky (1872-1936), New York, NY, purchased from M. Knoedler & Co. [6]
1937 -
Saint Louis Art Museum, purchased from the Josef Stransky estate through Wildenstein & Co., New York, NY [7]
Notes:
[1] The invoice to the Museum from Wildenstein & Co. lists the previous collections as only M. Fevbre, P. Hartwood, and Josef Stransky [invoice dated November 9, 1937, SLAM document files]. M. Fevbre and P. Hartwood are the sole names included in the provenance of this painting in a 1935 publication about the Josef Stransky collection ["French Masters of the XIX and XX Century: The Private Collection of Josef Stransky, New York. Special Reprint from The Art News Supplement, May 1931, Including Recent Accessions Up to May 1935." New York: Art News, 1935]. An earlier version of this publication lists only P. Hartwood and M. Knoedler & Co. in the provenance for this painting [Flint, Ralph. "The Private Collection of Josef Stransky." "Art News" XXIX, no. 33 (May 16, 1931): 88].
[2] See note [1].
[3] The only source for the inclusion of Rhea Reid Topping and T. Eaton Company in the provenance of this painting is a 1994 exhibition catalogue [Tinterow, Gary, and Henri Loyrette. "Origins of Impressionism." New York: Harry N. Abrams, 1994, cat. 39].
[4] T. Eaton Company was a well-known Canadian department store company. According to the 1994 catalogue, they purchased the painting from Rhea Reid Topping through M. Knoedler & Co. in 1926, and sold it back to M. Knoedler & Co. later that same year (see note [3]).
[5] See note [4]. The 1977 catalogue raisonné includes M. Knoedler & Co. in the provenance directly between P. Hartwood and Josef Stransky; no other collectors are listed, however [Fernier, Robert. "La Vie et l'Oeuvre de Gustave Courbet: Catalogue Raisonné," Vol. I (1819-1865). Paris: Fondation Wildenstein, 1977, cat. 240].
[6] The 1994 catalogue (see note [3]) indicates that Josef Stransky purchased the painting from M. Knoedler & Co. in November 1926. Stransky was the conductor of the New York Philharmonic Orchestra. He also had a well-known collection of Modern French paintings which was published in articles in "Art News" in 1931 and 1935 (see note [1]), and exhibited at Marie Harriman Gallery in 1933, the Worcester Art Museum in 1933-1934, and at Wildenstein & Co. in 1936 ["Courbet and Delacroix." New York: Marie Harriman Gallery, November 7-25, 1933, cat. 7; Cott, Perry B. "The Stransky Collection of Modern Art." "Bulletin of the Worcester Art Museum" XXIII, no. IV (Winter, 1933): 147-157; "Collection of a Collector: Modern French Paintings from Ingres to Matisse (The Private Collection of the late Josef Stransky)." New York: Wildenstein & Co., July 1936, cat. 4]. Each of these publications includes this painting.
[7] A letter dated November 8, 1937 from Wildenstein & Co. indicates that the gallery was simply acting as agent for the Stransky estate in the sale of the painting [SLAM document files]. Minutes of the Administrative Board of Control of the City Art Museum, November 4, 1937.
We regularly update records, which may be incomplete. If you have additional information, please contact us at provenance@slam.org.