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Lot 31: Walter Frederick Osborne RHA (1859 - 1903) Her

Est: €50,000 EUR - €80,000 EURSold:
Adam'sDublin 2, IrelandJune 01, 2011

Item Overview

Description

Walter Frederick Osborne RHA (1859 - 1903) Her Garden (1891) Oil on panel, 35.5 x 25.5 cm (14 x 10") Signed Exhibited: Royal Hibernian Academy, Dublin 1891, No. 224 Entitled ' Her Garden', £10-10 Literature: Jeanne Sheehy, Walter Osborne, Ballycotton, 1974, Cat No. 300, p. 130; Adrian le Harival and Michael Wynne, National Gallery of Ireland, Acquisitions, 1984 - 1986, 1986, p. 68 Among Walter Osborne's favourite subjects were scenes of girls in gardens,(1), farmyards, orchards and courtyards, and boys in the landscape, village street or by the seashore, painted variously in Antwerp, Brittany, England and Ireland. The theme of the garden became immensely popular during the Impressionist period.(2) Painted in an English village in the middle of his career, the present picture of a girl in a garden belongs to this tradition, and is notable for its sunlit atmosphere and vivid colouring. Executed on a sturdy wooden panel, the picture was exhibited at the Royal Hibernian Academy in 1891, entitled 'Her Garden'. Osborne recorded the painting in a small ink drawing for his sketchbook. In visits to England from the mid 1880's to the early nineties Osborne painted in a number of small towns and villages, working in the company of fellow artists. He painted many open air scenes of villages, streets, gardens and farmyards, of farming subjects with people at work or relaxing, and of landscapes and coastal subjects. In the late eighties his careful Realist style gave way to a broader more colourful approach. This marked a response to a series of exceptionally sunny summers, to the vivid red brickwork and verdant surroundings of English villages, and to the influence of contemporaries, such as W. Blandford Fletcher, or the Impressionism of Philip Wilson Steer or John Singer Sargent. Painted in 1888 'Her Garden' is a companion picture to the larger canvas A Cottage Garden, (probably originally entitled Bachelor's Garden, 1888, NGI) which also features a profuse garden, a similar red brick farmhouse, and a figure: that of a bearded man standing in his doorway in the background. The present picture shows a girl in a cottage garden watering flowers on a sunny day. The back door and window of the cottage are open, suggesting contact between house and garden. As in many of his paintings, Osborne enjoys the interlocking lines and forms of walls, rooftops, doors and windows. In Her Garden the lower roofs have red tiles, while the main roof of the house is thatched. Osborne captures the glare of a summer's day, where sunshine falls upon the farmhouse, the roof, and much of the garden; and upon the straw hat, the lower part of the girl's face, and upon her shoulders. Although her figure is treated with generality rather than detail, and her hat overshadows her eyes, there is a feeling of contentment to her. Osborne made a tiny ink sketch after the painting. This was included in a sketchbook in which he recorded many of his pictures painted 1879-1893. This remained in a family collection, and was presented to the National Gallery of Ireland by Mrs Sophia Mallin in 1984(3). The drawing features the girl watering flowers in the garden, with the house behind. Slight differences between the sketch and the painting: the windows, the lack of the gabled house on the left in the sketch, the slope of the roof, upper right, and the angle of the tree, can be explained by the fact that this is not a preparatory drawing for the painting but is a sketch made afterwards, probably from memory. The fluid lines on the left, indicating the foliage, suggest that Osborne had represented the garden and flowers in a broader, more abstract way. Below the sketch Osborne has written the title, which may initially appear to be the word 'Hereforden', ie. suggesting that the girl is a native of Hereford. However, Adrian le Harival and Michael Wynne have correctly interpreted the inscription as 'Her Garden'(4), the title of the painting which Osborne exhibited at the RHA in 1891. However it is worth noting that the sketch is included on a page of other drawings of pictures painted in 1888-89, indicating that 'Her Garden' was also painted in this period, and exhibited a couple of years later. Osborne was skilled at integrating the figures of children into the landscape, at work or resting. He often featured a girl in the foreground of his rural scenes, as for example in Apple Gathering, Quimperlé, 1883 (NGI), Feeding Chickens, 1884(5), Girl in a Garden (NGI) and Study from Nature (6). Girls wearing similar sturdy white straw hats and simple white dresses appear in several pictures of the period. There are several distinctive characteristics of Osborne's plein-air paintings of this period that appear in 'Her Garden'. First is his skill at representing the hands of women and children, at work or at rest. This can be seen in Apple Gathering, Feeding Chickens, Potato Gathering (7), St Patrick's Close, 1887 (NGI), and Piping Times (Boy and Girl in a Garden)(8). Secondly, there is the representation of the tree trunk, employing a 'square-brush' style, and the section of bare wood near the bottom of the tree. Thirdly, there is the depiction of a cottage rooftop and section of blue sky above it, as, for instance, in Flemish Farmstead (9), A Sunny Morning in the Fields, Pont Aven, 1883 (included in the present sale), The Intruder, 1883 (10), The Farmyard, Brittany (11), and in the present picture, 'Her Garden'. Within the relatively small picture Osborne employs a variety of colours, brushmarks and textures, to evoke the warm summer's atmosphere of the scene. Inspired by the vivid red of the brick houses and the verdant gardens of some English villages, a number of paintings of this period employed vibrant red, ochre and green tones. In 'Her Garden' Osborne uses a variety of colours to create a warm, vibrant effect: pale pinks, browns and reds in the cottage, white in the piece of fabric in the garden, a glowing green in the garden, dappled whites, blues and pinks in the girl's dress, viridian, burgundy and blue-green in the flowers, and a pale blue in the strip of sky. Osborne's skill in observing subtle hues is seen for instance in the soft blues present in the shadows of the girl's dress and the wall behind her head, and in the strip of lilac below the roof. Osborne's use of varied brushmarks and textures convey the feeling of sunlight: upright brushstrokes in the thatched roof of the cottage and light green areas of the garden; lively strokes in the girl's dress and in the bush, upper right; a 'square-brush' style in the trunk of the small tree; and more varied marks in the flowers and grasses in the foreground. In the companion picture A Cottage Garden (NGI) mentioned above, Osborne similarly experiments with bolder marks and thicker paint to suggest the varied forms and textures of flowers and grasses. Infra-red examination of 'Her Garden' has revealed the presence of the date '-88' below the signature, in the lower right hand corner. This indicates that the picture was painted in 1888, and that Osborne retained it in his studio for three years before exhibiting it. He would have been aware of the Impressionistic garden scenes of J.S.Sargent exhibited in London in this period, and may have been stimulated to experiment with a more colourful Impressionistic style. Thus 'Her Garden' is an important transitional picture between the 1880s and nineties. Upon his return to Dublin, in his garden scenes Osborne pursued a more fluid style of painting, using thinner paint. During his career Osborne enjoyed making use of different surfaces for his paintings: canvases, light wood panels, millboards, and here a sturdy wooden panel with bevelled edges (12). On the reverse is a label by the Dublin art suppliers: "from J.D.Spence, Printseller, Artists Colorman, Picture Frame Maker &c . 7, Lower Sackville Street, Dublin" This is the same artist's suppliers at which Osborne purchased his sketchbooks. This present work was exhibited at the Royal Hibernian Academy in 1891, touchingly entitled 'Her Garden', and priced £10-10. The critic of The Irish Times, although he didn't make particular reference to the picture, made overall comments on the show which seem perfectly appropriate to Osborne's painting : "The impression that .... the exhibition produces is one of vitality, brightness and life - of perfect truth to nature ..." (13) Julian Campbell, January 2011 Notes: See Margaret MacCurtain, Reflections on Walter Osborne's Study from Nature, in America's Eye : Irish Paintings from the Collection of Brian P. Burns, ed. By A.L.Dalsimer and V.Kreilkamp, Boston, 1996, p29-32 See eg J. Bumpus, Impressionist Gardens, London. 1990; The Garden in British Art, Tate, London and Ulster Museum, Belfast 2004-2005; and Clare Willsdon, Impressionist Gardens, National Gallery of Scotland, Edinburgh, 2010 NGI Cat. No. 19, 201, p.12 ,verso Adrian Le Harival and Michael Wynne, NGI Acquisitions, 1984-86, NGI 1986, p.68 Jeanne Sheehy, Walter Osborne, NGI, 1983, P.70 Christina Kennedy, Walter Osborne's 'Study from Nature' in America's Eye, 1996, op. cit. P.121 J. Sheehy, op cit. P. 85 de Vere's, 22 April 1998, lot 40 de Vere's, 25 November 2003, lot 50 Irish Sale, Christies, 21 May 1997, lot 150 Adam's, 8 December 2009, lot 59 Osborne made use of similar wood panels with bevelled edges in some of his Connemara pictures in the 1890s. Irish Times, 7 March 1891

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Auction Details

Important Irish Art

by
Adam's
June 01, 2011, 06:00 PM GMT

26 St Stephen's Green, Dublin 2, Dublin, D02 X665, IE

Terms

Buyer's Premium

21.0%

Bidding Increments

From:To:Increment:
€0€99€10
€100€499€20
€500€999€50
€1,000€1,999€100
€2,000€4,999€200
€5,000€9,999€500
€10,000€19,999€1,000
€20,000€49,999€2,000
€50,000€99,999€5,000
€100,000€199,999€10,000
€200,000+€20,000

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2. Terms used in Catalogues have the following meanings and the Cataloguing Practice is as follows:
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'The surname of the artist preceded by 'after' - In the opinion of the Auctioneer a copy of the work of the artist.
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'Circle of' - In the opinion of the Auctioneer a work of the period of the artist and showing his influence.
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None of the terms above are appropriate but in the Auctioneer's opinion the work is a work by the artist named.

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CONDITIONS WHICH MAINLY CONCERN THE BUYER

The Buyer
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The Commission
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(e) To charge interest on the Total Amount Due at the rate of 2% over and above the base rate from time to time of Bank of Ireland or if there be no such rate, the nearest equivalent thereto as determined by the Auctioneer in its absolute discretion from the date on which payment is due hereunder to the date of actual payment;
(f) To retain that Lot or any other Lot purchased by the buyer whether
at the same or any other auction and release same to the buyer only after payment to the Auctioneer of the Total Amount Due;
(g) To apply any sums which the Auctioneer received in respect of Lots being sold by the buyer towards settlement of the Total Amount Due.
(h) To exercise a lien on any property of the buyer in the possession of the Auctioneer or whatever reason.

Liability of Auctioneer and Seller
19. Prior to auction ample opportunity is given for the inspection of the Lots on sale and each buyer by making a bid acknowledges that he has, by exercising and relying on his own judgment, satisfied himself as to the physical condition, age and Catalogue description of each Lot (including but not restricted to whether the Lot is damaged or has been repaired or restored). All Lots are sold with all faults and imperfections and errors of description. None of the seller, the Auctioneer nor any of their employees, servants or agents shall be responsible for any error of description or for the condition or authenticity of any Lot. No warranty whatsoever is given by the seller or Auctioneer or by any of their employees, servants or agents in respect of any Lot and any condition or warranty express, or implied by statute or otherwise is hereby specifically excluded.

Forgeries
20. Any amount paid by a buyer in respect of a Lot which, if it is proved within three (3) years of the date of the auction at which it was purchased, to have been a Forgery shall be refunded to the seller subject to the provisions hereof, provided that:
(a) The Lot has been returned by the buyer to the Auctioneer within three (3) years of the date of the auction in the same condition in which it was at the time of the auction together with evidence proving that it is a Forgery, the number of the Lot and the date of the auction at which it was purchased;
(b) The Auctioneer is satisfied that the Lot is a Forgery and that the buyer has and is able to transfer good and marketable title to the Lot free from any third party claims;


FURTHER PROVIDED THAT the buyer shall have no rights hereunder if:
(i) The description of the Lot in the Catalogue at the time of the auction was in accordance with the then generally accepted opinion of scholars or experts or fairly indicated that there was a conflict of such opinion;
(ii) The only method of establishing at the time of the auction in question that the Lot was a Forgery would have been by means of scientific processes which were not generally accepted for use until after the date of the auction or which were unreasonably expensive or impractical.
The buyer's sole entitlement under this condition is to a refund of the actual amount paid by him in respect of the Lot. Under no circumstances shall the Auctioneer be liable for any damage, loss (including consequential, indirect or economic loss) or expense suffered or incurred by the buyer by reason of the Lot being a Forgery.
The benefit of this condition shall be solely and exclusively for the buyer and shall not be assignable. The buyer shall for the purpose of this condition be the person to whom the original invoice in respect of the sale of the Lot is made.

Photographs
21. The buyer authorises the Auctioneer at any time to make use of any photographs or illustrations of the Lot purchased by the buyer for such purposes as the Auctioneer may require.
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22a) All lots are sold within the Auctioneer's VAT margin scheme. Revenue Regulations require that the buyers premium must be invoiced at a rate which is inclusive of VAT. This VAT is not recoverable by any VAT registered buyer.


Auctioneer's Right to Photographs and Illustrations
33. The seller authorises the Auctioneer to photograph and illustrate any Lot placed with if for sale and further authorises the Auctioneer to use such photographs and illustrations and any photographs and illustrations provided by the seller at any time in its absolute discretion (whether or not in connection with the auction).

VAT
34. It is presumed unless stated to the contrary, that the items listed herein are auction scheme goods as defined in the Finance Act 1995.


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Representations in Catalogues

Representations or statements made by the Auctioneer in any Catalogue as to contribution, authorship, genuineness, source, origin, date, age, provenance, condition or estimated selling price or value is a statement of opinion only. Neither the Auctioneer nor its employees, servants or agents shall be responsible for the accuracy of any such opinions. Every person interested in a Lot must exercise and rely on their own judgment and opinion as to such matters.
The headings of the conditions herein contained are inserted for convenience of reference only and are not intended to be part of, or to effect, the meaning or interpretation thereof.

The Commission

The buyer shall pay the Auctioneer a commission at the rate of 18% of the Hammer Price, exclusive of VAT at the applicable rate on all individual lots (21.78% inclusive of VAT).

Payment

The Auctioneer shall only accept payment from successful bidders in cash, draft in Euro or by the bidder's own cheque drawn on an Irish bank account vouched to the satisfaction of the Auctioneer. Cheques drawn by third parties, whether in the Auctioneer's favour or requiring endorsement, shall not be accepted. We also accept payment by credit card, Visa & Mastercard subject to a administration charge of 1.5% of the total amount due. American Expess 3.65% administration charge. We also accept debit card payments by way of Laser, with no surcharge, however the cardholder in person can only make the payment.

VAT

It is presumed unless stated to the contrary, that the items listed herein are auction scheme goods as defined in the Finance Act 1995. (Current VAT rate in Ireland is 21%).