Loading Spinner
Don’t miss out on items like this!

Sign up to get notified when similar items are available.

Lot 217: REV. ROBERT FRANCIS XAVIER GERRER Friar Gregory (1867 to 1946) ORIGINAL OIL PAINTING ON CANVAS THAT SIGNED & FRAMED MEASURING 31in x 23in

Est: $1,000 USD - $1,500 USDSold:
The Rug Life AuctionsMechanicsville, VA, USMay 28, 2020

Item Overview

Description

Original Friar Gregory Oil on Canvas showing a landscape with a convenience store from a Virginia estate, signed and framed and measuring 31in x 23in x 1in.

Dimensions

31in x 23in x 1in

Artist or Maker

Medium

Oil on Canvas

Date

1940s

Condition Report

Excellent

Provenance

Acquired from a Virginia Estate.

Notes

About The Artist: The following biography was created by the Mabee-Gerrer Museum of Art from Fr. Gerrer's own notes as well as his autobiography. Robert Francis Xavier Gerrer was born on July 23, 1867 in the village of Lautenbach, Alsace, and emigrated to the United States with his family in 1872 to escape the reign of German troops who had once again invaded the region. His family initially settled in St. Joseph, Missouri, but soon moved to Bedford, Iowa where Robert attended school. He demonstrated marked scholastic ability, and was allowed to skip more than one grade. At an early age he manifested an aptitude for art and music. Robert entertained other youngsters with drawings on school slates and used native clay to create sculpture. As he grew older he learned to play various musical instruments and even tried his hand at musical composition. His guitar became an intimate friend. At the age of 19, Robert and his brother Albert traveled the Pacific Coast. Upon returning to Bedford, Robert continued his musical training, and joined the Fifth Regiment Band of the Iowa National Guardsman. He expanded his repertoire to include playing the clarinet. Early in 1891 the Hurlbert and Leftwich Circus came to town; their orchestra and band needed a clarinetist, and thus began Robert's brief career as circus performer. Robert became a member of the Luther West band, and also taught guitar. He decided not to participate in the land run that fall, and planned to try his luck the following spring. During Christmas 1891, Robert met Abbot Thomas Duperou, Superior of the Benedictine community at Sacred Heart Mission, Oklahoma. Robert struck up a conversation with him after confession one day, and shared with him the fact that he had considered becoming a priest, but his family did not have the money to support his studies. Fr. Thomas invited Robert to consider joining the community at Sacred Heart, and it would not cost him a thing. Robert accepted, and a few days later took the train to Purcell to begin the 40 mile trip by prairie schooner to the Mission. Robert wrote to his family upon his arrival, to tell them that he had joined the Franciscans; he discovered soon that the community was Benedictine. In mid January of 1892, Robert received the Benedictine habit, and was given the religious name of "Gregory." He found other musicians in the community, and it was not long before they had formed their own orchestra. Under the guidance of several priests at Sacred Heart, Br. Gregory pursued his education to become ordained. He was also allowed to join in the art lessons being taught by Miss Kate Weyneck in Purcell, and gave all this spare time to it. His talent was recognized by Abbot Visitor Leander Le Moine, who proposed that Br. Gregory be sent to Europe to further study art. And so, shortly after his ordination at Buckfast Abbey in Devonshire, England in September 1900, Fr. Gregory Gerrer was sent to Rome to study art. He heeded their criticisms, but he soon realized that the student with initiative is not told how to paint. He may acquire certain skills and knowledge, but his inspiration and attitudes must come from the artist himself who is bound to record what he sees, what he feels. Equally as important as developing his own skill in painting was his development of critical analysis for all art. With professor Guisepi Gonnella, he learned the delicate art of pictorial restoration. Fr. Gregory also had ample opportunity to travel throughout Italy and the Near East during his time there. His journals detailed visits to all the major art centers: Rome, Florence, Venice, Vienna. On a mission to the Holy Land, Fr. Gerrer was presented with a gift, a small Egyptian scarab with a goose hieroglyph—the symbol for 'A', and to Gregory, the beginning of a museum collection. In 1917 representatives of the University of Notre Dame contacted Fr. Gerrer and requested that he apply his knowledge and talents to their growing art collection. He spent much time that year cleaning, classifying, and arranging the works that would come to be known as the Wightman Memorial Gallery. Fr. Gerrer would continue to act as an advisor and art instructor at Notre Dame for the next 15 years, spending summers in South Bend, autumns and sometimes winters in eastern cities as an artist, critic, or collector, and the remaining months devoted to the gallery and museum in Shawnee. In 1919 Fr. Gerrer moved his treasures from his studio to the newly constructed St. Gregory's College. There, several rooms were dedicated to exhibiting the museum collection of unusual objects, while the paintings were hung in the foyer and first floor hallway. No longer hindered by the constraint of the size of his studio, the collection began to grow. Before he was finished, Fr. Gerrer had amassed over 200 paintings representing the history of art from the time of the Egyptians into the 20th century, and more than 6400 objects from cultures around the world. Fr. Gerrer took advantage of every opportunity to travel. In 1907, he helped establish the landing place of Columbus in the Caribbean, visiting Cuba along the way. Throughout 1917 he traveled through northern New York, Canada, and later New Mexico. He made several trips through the northeast part of the country. And, in 1930, he returned to Europe, and northwest Africa. In his final trip, Fr. Gerrer spent the summer in Mexico in 1936. All these places continued to fuel his painting. Fr. Gerrer was commissioned to paint no less than 79 portraits during his lifetime. Half of these were portraits of ecclesiastical figures: a Pope, a cardinal, archbishops, bishops, abbots, priests, and nuns. The other half is represented by professional men, statesmen, heroes of war, friends, and relatives. Rev. Gregory Gerrer, a monk of St. Gregory's Abbey, set out just after the turn of the century to create a museum for all of Oklahoma to enjoy. His tireless efforts are evidenced by the number and kinds of things he collected. Before he was through, he had amassed some 6555 objects that included beautiful paintings and sculpture from the middle ages to early 20th century, artifacts of Western civilization, material examples from cultures around the world, botanical specimens, zoological specimens, mineralogical specimens, and oddities such as a block of tacks from the great Chicago fire. Nothing was outside his range of interest.

Payment & Shipping

Payment

Accepted forms of payment: American Express, Discover, MasterCard, Money Order / Cashiers Check, Paypal, Visa, Wire Transfer

Shipping

Once payment has been made, The Rug Life LLC (Hereinafter "TRL") will package and deliver your purchased item to one of the following shippers for a flat fee of $20.00. Purchaser must contact the shipping company directly after the auction to arrange shipment, and payment for shipping. We recommend;

The UPS Store - 10286 Staples Mill Road, Glen Allen, VA 23060-3064 - (804) 755-4877 - store4812@theupsstore.com

FEDEX - 8800 Staples Mill Road, Richmond, VA 23228 - (804) 261-2103

Fot International shipping, especially the Middle East, we recommend contacting Freindship Logistics in Alexandria, VA;

5505 Cherokee Avenue
Alexandria, VA 22312
703-658-1348
fhindi@friendshiplogistics.com

Ask for Feras.

Auction Details

End of Spring Rug, Art and Rare Book Auction

by
The Rug Life Auctions
May 28, 2020, 07:00 PM EST

10295 Summer Hill Road, Mechanicsville, VA, 23116, US

Terms

Buyer's Premium

30.0%

Bidding Increments

From:To:Increment:
$0$99$10
$100$299$25
$300$749$50
$750$999$100
$1,000$1,499$150
$1,500$1,999$200
$2,000$2,499$250
$2,500+$300

Extended Bidding

5 minutes/bid

Terms and Conditions

The bidding for this auction takes place online only. The rugs may be viewed by appointment at our Richmond, Virginia gallery. All rugs are offered and sold through The Rug Life LLC (Hereinafter "TRL") shall be offered and sold on the terms and conditions below. By bidding at the auction, the Purchaser agrees to be bound by these terms and conditions.

1. All items are sold as-is. All sales are final. No returns. No exceptions.

2. A 25% Purchaser's premium will be added to the hammer price of each lot sold.

3. All items are sold as-is, where-is. We do our best to describe the items; our descriptions are no way to be interpreted as a guarantee of any kind as to authenticity, age, condition and materials.

4. Shipping and insurance are the responsibility of the purchaser. Purchase is not contingent upon shipping costs. You must be aware of the shipping costs before you bid on an item.

5. No statements made at the sale, on the invoice or elsewhere shall be deemed as such a representation or warranty or be subject to liability. All weights and measurements are approximate.

6. All estimates or appraisals of value, as might be listed at the auction or elsewhere, are statements of opinion as to the range of the price a willing Purchaser might pay for the rug at auction. The actual price paid at auction or subsequently, may vary substantially from the estimates. TRL shall not be liable for any such differential.

7. All appraisals obtained by TRL are estimates of insurance replacement value only and are a qualified opinion only. The actual price paid at auction or subsequently, may vary substantially from the appraisals. TRL shall not be liable for any such differential.

8. Some lots in the sale may be subject to a reserve. The reserve is a confidential minimum price.

9. All rugs are sold to the highest bidder. The auctioneer has the right to not accept any bid. Bidding may be reopened at the auctioneer's discretion. The auctioneer reserves the right to withdraw any rug and to reoffer the rug at another time.

10. All rugs purchased from TRL must be paid in full within 5 days after the auction date. If the invoice is not paid within 5 days after the auction, TRL may, at its own discretion, consider the sale void.

11. All rugs purchased from TRL must be removed within 7 days after the auction date. Rugs left after 7 days will incur a $10/day storage fee per item.

12. All rugs not being picked up at our Richmond, Virginia Gallery, can be shipped by companies from our suggested list of shippers. TRL will charge a $20.00 fee to package each rug and deliver it to your choice of shipper. Purchaser must contact the shipping company directly after the auction to arrange shipment and payment for shipping.

13. TRL strives to deliver all rugs in a clean condition to the winning bidder. TRL cleans many of these rugs at their facility. While TRL does a more than adequate job of cleaning these rugs, TRL will not be able to get any rug 100% clean, nor will it be able to remove every stain or blemish. TRL predominantly auctions pre-owned rugs, and there is to be an expected amount of wear, abrash and minor staining.

14. Shipping, insurance packaging and handling of purchased lots is at the risk and expense of the purchaser. TRL shall not, under any circumstances, be liable for the loss, theft or damage to rug(s), including, but not limited to selection of shipper, the acts or omissions of any shipper or the acts or omissions occurring in packing for shipment.

15. Payments accepted; -Cash (in house only) - Credit cards (MasterCard, Visa, American Express & Discover) - Paypal, Wire Transfer, Money order and/or Certified check.

16. Any right of the purchaser under this agreement or under the law shall not be assignable and shall be enforceable only by the original purchaser and not by any subsequent owner or any person who shall subsequently acquire any interest. No purchaser shall be entitled to any remedy, relief or damages beyond return of the property, rescission of the sale and refund of the purchase price; and without limitation, no purchaser shall be entitled to damages of any kind.

17. All paid rugs left over 21 days will be considered abandoned, and no refunds will be issued by TRL.

18. If a Purchaser fails to pay for a purchased rug, or otherwise does not comply with these Terms and Conditions, the Purchaser shall be in default. In addition to all remedies available in law, the Purchaser shall be liable for the entire Purchase price. Additionally, at the option of TRL, TRL may either cancel the sale and retain all payments made by Purchaser as well as retain any and all items(s) of Purchaser in our possession as security against payment of the sums in default, and/or we may re-offer the rug(s) for sale, at auction or privately, without reserve. Purchaser shall be liable to us for the additional fees, commissions and costs on both sales (including handling, storage and court costs and attorney's fees) resulting from the cancellation or resale of the rug(s) and in the event of resale, and any deficiency which may result.

19. Modification: No modification or amendment of these Terms and Conditions shall bind TRL unless contained in a writing signed by TRL, except as may be posted, published or verbally announced at time of sale.

20. Successors and Assigns: These Terms and Conditions shall be binding on all the heirs and assigns of the Purchasers and inure to the benefit of TRL's successors and assigns.

21. Jurisdiction, Venue, Choice of Law: Dispute resolution shall occur in Henrico County, VA, USA. The provisions of the Terms and Conditions will be construed, and disputes determined by application of Commonwealth of Virginia Law, without regard to conflicts of law.

22. Notice, Service of Process: Purchasers agree to accept all notices and service of process relating to dispute resolution at the address provided by Purchaser on any registration forms required to be executed as a condition of bidding in our auction.
Once payment has been made, The Rug Life LLC (Hereinafter "TRL") will package and deliver your purchased item to one of the following shippers for a flat fee of $20.00. Purchaser must contact the shipping company directly after the auction to arrange shipment, and payment for shipping. We recommend;

The UPS Store - 10286 Staples Mill Road, Glen Allen, VA 23060-3064 - (804) 755-4877 - store4812@theupsstore.com

FEDEX - 8800 Staples Mill Road, Richmond, VA 23228 - (804) 261-2103

Shipping Terms

Once payment has been made, The Rug Life LLC (Hereinafter "TRL") will package and deliver your purchased item to one of the following shippers for a flat fee of $20.00. Purchaser must contact the shipping company directly after the auction to arrange shipment, and payment for shipping. We recommend;

The UPS Store - 10286 Staples Mill Road, Glen Allen, VA 23060-3064 - (804) 755-4877 - store4812@theupsstore.com

FEDEX - 8800 Staples Mill Road, Richmond, VA 23228 - (804) 261-2103

Fot International shipping, especially the Middle East, we recommend contacting Freindship Logistics in Alexandria, VA;

5505 Cherokee Avenue
Alexandria, VA 22312
703-658-1348
fhindi@friendshiplogistics.com

Ask for Feras.