Lot 143: Milton Bond Reverse Painting on Glass

Milton Bond (1918-2010, Connecticut), reverse painting on glass depicting a harbor scene, titled lower left "FAYERWEATHER LIGHT, BLACKROCK HARBOR" and signed lower left "Milton Bond". Excellent condition. Sight - 9 3/8" H x 13 1/4" W. Framed - 12 1/4" H x 16 1/4" W. Biography(Courtesy of Ask Art): Born in New York City, he was one of the few folk artists working in the exacting medium of reverse-glass painting. Most of his life was as a New England oysterman and sailor. For years, he was the master of one of the last commercial sailing ships operating out of Long Island. He traveled up and down the New England coast, which provided many visual memories. In the 1960s, he began recording these in small oil scenes on the back of clear glass, which protects the painting. He did the tiny frontal details first and the background last. He recorded bucolic rural scenes and busy urban vistas churning with activity. Mr. Bond's work is in numerous major collections including those of the Grand Palais in Paris, the Smithsonian Institute, Washington, D.C., the Museum of American Folk Art, New York City, the Henri Rousseau Museum, Paris, and the Ronald Reagan Presidential Library.