Thomas Chambers (New York/England, 1808-1869) No. 10 View on the Rhine

Description:

Thomas Chambers (New York/England, 1808-1869)

No. 10 View on the Rhine
Unsigned, inscribed in pencil "Painted by European Artists/at No. 150 Spring Street
New York."
Oil on canvas, 14 1/4 x 17 3/4 in., in a molded giltwood and gesso frame.
Condition: Minor spots of discoloration in sky.

Note: The inscription on the back of this canvas is identical (except in the "number") to another work mentioned by Kathleen Foster in Thomas Chambers: American Marine and Landscape Painter, 1808-1869, Yale University Press, New Haven, 2008. In discussing the other work (numbered "No. 9"),Foster writes that "the Castles on the Rhine works leave us with an image of Chambers about 1860, and a glimmer of how he presented himself and marketed his paintings." In essence, "he was passing off his work as by multiple European artists, or that others worked with him - without excluding either possibility." It is clever bit of marketing that Foster tells us may have begun much earlier in Chambers's career, and which she discusses at length in her book, especially with regard to several dozen paintings in an 1845 Newport, Rhode Island, auction. At the Newport auction, Foster tells us, seven of those several dozen works were attributed to Chambers, all maritime subjects. Other landscapes were attributed to artists with names like "Mr. Nesbit," "Roberts," and "J.Miller," all of whom were and remain obscure. Through a careful analysis of those works and their histories, it is revealed that Nesbit, Roberts, and Miller very well may have been Chambers all along.
Estimate $8,000-12,000


The absence of a condition statement does not imply that the lot is in perfect condition or completely free from wear and tear, imperfections or the effects of aging. Condition requests can be obtained via email (lot inquiry button) or by telephone to the appropriate gallery location (Boston/617.350.5400 or Marlborough/508.970.3000). Any condition statement given, as a courtesy to a client, is only an opinion and should not be treated as a statement of fact. Skinner Inc. shall have no responsibility for any error or omission.

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