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拍品專文
In 1883, Martin Johnson Heade moved to St. Augustine, Florida, and turned to painting still lifes of flowers and blossoms of flora native to the Southeastern United States. Whereas his canvases of magnolia blossoms from this period expressed a sense of opulence, his still lifes of the Cherokee rose reflect a simpler, more innocent sense of natural beauty. As seen in the present work, Heade developed refined color harmonies for these compositions, using soft shades of white and yellow against rich green. The overall effect is both quiet and refined.
Heade made a series of oil sketches of the Cherokee rose (Rosa laevigata) in preparation for the paintings he completed of the subject. He created compositions with the flower both in a horizontal format directly lying on a velvet tabletop, as well as about a dozen examples in a vertical format where the roses are placed in a vase or glass. In the present example, Heade has placed the spray of blossoms in an etched glass filled with water atop a plush, draped green velvet. The multiple blooms on display each represent a different moment in the unfolding of the flower, from a closed bud to a completely opened blossom. Set against a dark background, the petals are painted a brilliant white with vibrant yellow centers, and are defined with crisp, sinuous outlines.
In its seeming simplicity, the painting is a tour-de-force of Heade's best still-lifes of his Florida period. Janet L. Comey notes, "The St. Augustine Tatler praised Heade's studies of the Cherokee rose that grows so profusely here, climbing over stumps and hedges, transforming them into things of beauty." Describing the still-lifes as wonderful likenesses, the reviewer praised Heade's precise draftsmanship and use of color, remarking that "the pure white petals, yellow stamens and glossy dark leaves are so natural as to deceive." (Martin Johnson Heade, Boston, Massachusetts, 1999, pp 123-24).
Indeed, Theodore Stebbins proclaims, "The late still lifes, especially the Cherokee roses and the magnolias, are the opposite of what one would expect…his touch seems surer than ever before in his life…to produce some of the most remarkable still-lifes in our history." (Martin Johnson Heade, p. 9).
Heade made a series of oil sketches of the Cherokee rose (Rosa laevigata) in preparation for the paintings he completed of the subject. He created compositions with the flower both in a horizontal format directly lying on a velvet tabletop, as well as about a dozen examples in a vertical format where the roses are placed in a vase or glass. In the present example, Heade has placed the spray of blossoms in an etched glass filled with water atop a plush, draped green velvet. The multiple blooms on display each represent a different moment in the unfolding of the flower, from a closed bud to a completely opened blossom. Set against a dark background, the petals are painted a brilliant white with vibrant yellow centers, and are defined with crisp, sinuous outlines.
In its seeming simplicity, the painting is a tour-de-force of Heade's best still-lifes of his Florida period. Janet L. Comey notes, "The St. Augustine Tatler praised Heade's studies of the Cherokee rose that grows so profusely here, climbing over stumps and hedges, transforming them into things of beauty." Describing the still-lifes as wonderful likenesses, the reviewer praised Heade's precise draftsmanship and use of color, remarking that "the pure white petals, yellow stamens and glossy dark leaves are so natural as to deceive." (Martin Johnson Heade, Boston, Massachusetts, 1999, pp 123-24).
Indeed, Theodore Stebbins proclaims, "The late still lifes, especially the Cherokee roses and the magnolias, are the opposite of what one would expect…his touch seems surer than ever before in his life…to produce some of the most remarkable still-lifes in our history." (Martin Johnson Heade, p. 9).