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THBJOSEPH H. DAVIS (New Hampshire/Maine, 1811-1865), Profile portrait of Gideon Varney playing with his puppy., Watercolor, pen and ink on paper, 7" x 6"
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About Auction
LiveJul 22, 2025
At our Cape Cod headquarters. Eldred's info@eldreds.com
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- Lot Description
JOSEPH H. DAVIS
New Hampshire/Maine, 1811-1865
Profile portrait of Gideon Varney playing with his puppy. Unsigned. Inscribed lower margin "Gideon G. Varney aged 12 years -- 1833" and with proverb "Hear Thou My Son and be Advised and guide thine Heart in the way of virtue and happiness".
Watercolor, pen and ink on paper, 7" x 6" sight. Framed 8.5" x 7.25".
Provenance:
Found in New Hampshire.
Bihler and Coger, Ashley Falls, Massachusetts.
Collection of Edgar William and Bernice Chrysler Garbisch.
The Collection of Martha Hamilton.
Exhibited:
The Art Institute of Chicago, the Saint Louis Art Museum, the Abby Aldrich Rockefeller Folk Art Collection and the Currier Gallery of Art: "Three New England Watercolor Painters" traveling exhibit, November 16, 1974-September 1, 1975. Illustrated in the exhibit catalog, p. 39, fig. 25.
Notes:
According to "Joseph F. Davis: Identity Established" by Arthur and Sybil Kern in the Summer 1989 issue of The Clarion: America's Folk Art Magazine, Joseph Davis painted both Gideon Varney and Sarah Elizabeth Varney, who probably lived in the Dover area of New Hampshire or the Berwick area of Maine. The portrait of Sarah is in the collection of the New York State Historical Association. A portrait of Delia Varney is part of Karolik Collection at the Museum of Fine Arts, Boston, and one of Mary D. Varney in the New York State Historical Society.
Joseph H. Davis was an itinerant portraitist, most prolific between 1832 and 1837 when he is said to have painted about 150 small-scale watercolor likenesses, mostly residents of New Hampshire and Maine.
His typical portraits depict a husband and wife in profile, seated on opposite sides of a table, often accompanied by a cat. The details of their belongings -- newspapers, Bibles, letters, top hats, bonnets and books-- and their parlor interiors -- decorated with paintings, boldly patterned carpets and tablecloths, banjo clocks, maps, swags of greenery, and lively compotes of fruits and flowers -- often provide clues to their profession, political leanings, and levels of education and refinement.
While Davis's paintings give us a unique snapshot into the everyday lives of the comfortable New Englanders of the era, little is known about Davis's own life. He identified himself as a "left-handed painter" on one portrait, but because quills, paper and pots of ink figure prominently in so many of his works, some scholars hypothesize he may also have been a traveling calligraphy teacher. This is supported by the strong calligraphic line seen in his work and the particularly fine script used to record the subject names.Condition
Adhered to a hard paper backing at the corners only. Toning at the edges with some small and scattered spots of foxing. Vertical tone line on left side. Some minor and typical loss of pigment, mostly in the green areas of the rugs. No obvious repairs.
The absence of a condition report does not imply an object is free of defects. All items may have normal signs of age and wear commensurate with their age; these issues will likely not be mentioned in the condition report. Please contact Eldred's before the auction with any condition questions. Questions about condition will not be answered after purchase. Condition reports are provided as a courtesy, and we are not responsible for any errors or omissions. Important note on frames: Frames are not guaranteed to be in the same condition as they are in the item photograph. Due to handling and shipping, many frames, especially antique ones, are prone to losses. If you have questions about the condition of a frame, please contact us prior to the auction.
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