Lot

59

Elizabeth Jane Gardner Bouguereau (American, 1837–1922) Deux Mères de Famille

In European Art and Old Masters

This auction is live! You need to be registered and approved to bid at this auction.
You have been outbid. For the best chance of winning, increase your maximum bid.
Your bid or registration is pending approval with the auctioneer. Please check your email account for more details.
Unfortunately, your registration has been declined by the auctioneer. You can contact the auctioneer on +1 215 563 9275 for more information.
You are the current highest bidder! To be sure to win, log in for the live auction broadcast on or increase your max bid.
Leave a bid now! Your registration has been successful.
Sorry, bidding has ended on this item. We have thousands of new lots everyday, start a new search.
Bidding on this auction has not started. Please register now so you are approved to bid when auction starts.
1/2
Elizabeth Jane Gardner Bouguereau (American, 1837–1922) Deux Mères de Famille - Image 1 of 2
Elizabeth Jane Gardner Bouguereau (American, 1837–1922) Deux Mères de Famille - Image 2 of 2
Elizabeth Jane Gardner Bouguereau (American, 1837–1922) Deux Mères de Famille - Image 1 of 2
Elizabeth Jane Gardner Bouguereau (American, 1837–1922) Deux Mères de Famille - Image 2 of 2
Interested in the price of this lot?
Subscribe to the price guide
Philadelphia, Pennsylvania

<p>Signed 'Elizabeth Gardner' bottom right, oil on canvas<br />39 1/2 x 29 1/4 in. (77.5 x 74.3cm)<br />Executed in 1888.</p><br /><br /><p><strong>Provenance</strong></p><p>Private Collection, North Carolina.</p><br /><br /><p><strong>Exhibited</strong></p><p>"Salon de 1888," Palais des Champs-Élysées, Paris, 1888, no. 1071. <br />"North Carolina Collects: Traditional Fine Arts and Decorative Arts," Mint Museum of Art, Charlotte, North Carolina, July 9-September 18, 1994, no. 23.</p><p><strong>Literature</strong></p><p><span><em>Explication des Ouvrages de Peinture, Sculpture, Architecture, Gravure et Lithographie des Artistes Vivants Exposés au Palais des Champs-Élysées le 1er Mai 1888</em>, Paul Dupont, Paris, 1888 (second edition), p. 87, no. 1071 (listed, not illustrated).</span><span><br />Norma Broude and Mary D. Garrard, <em>The Expanding Discourse: Feminism and art History</em>, IconEditions, New York, 1992, no. 8 (illustrated).<br />Tamar Garb, <em>Sisters of the Brush: Women's Artistic Culture in Late Nineteenth-Century Paris</em>, Yale University Press, New Heaven, 1994, p. 157, no. 62.<br />Charles Pearo, <em>Elizabeth Jane Gardner: Her Life, Her Work, Her Letters, </em>MA Thesis, McGill University, 1997, p. 9, fig. 16 (illustrated).</span></p><p><strong>Note</strong></p><p>Elizabeth Jane Gardner Bouguerau was one of the most famous and successful American artists in Paris at the end of the 19th century. Dubbed an honorary French woman through her marriage to William Bouguereau, she was one of the first expatriates to be exposed to the male-dominated Parisian art market, which she learned to infiltrate and eventually master throughout her impressive fifty-eight-year career in the French capital city.</p><p><span></span><span>Born in Exeter, New Hampshire into a family of merchants, Gardner graduated from the Lasell Seminary (now Lasell University) in Auburndale, Massachusetts in 1856. At first a French teacher, she sailed for France in the summer of 1864 along with a former teacher of hers, Imogene Robinson, and the two settled in a studio 2, rue Carnot, across the street from the highly revered and successful painter, William Bouguereau.</span></p><p>Contrary to another famous American expatriate who arrived in Paris two years after her, Mary Cassatt, Elizabeth Gardner could not count on any financial aid from her family, and therefore did not receive private tutoring from eminent masters. Instead, she trained and made a living by copying Old Masters at the Musée du Louvre, as well as the more contemporary artists in the nearby Musée du Luxembourg. She would then sell her work to American collectors travelling through Europe, recommended to her by her own family. Yearning life-drawing classes, but denied the access to them because of her gender, Gardner joined a collective studio of women, where she studied anatomy among her peers during evening sessions. In parallel, and at the recommendation of her friend Rosa Bonheur, a true “sister of the brush and long-time career counselor” according to Charles Pearo, Gardner also joined a sketching class at the Jardin des Plantes, Paris’ Botanical Gardens and Zoo, where she painted living animals alongside the animal sculptor Antoine Barye. There, she met the famous painter Hugues Merle, who would invite her to join his studio and acted as a constant support throughout Gardner’s life, even when she decided to rally the studio of Bouguereau, Merle’s longtime rival.</p><p>The life of Elizabeth Gardner is marked by a strong desire to fit in. As an American woman from the low middle-class with an everlasting sense of duty and even guilt for leaving her country, Gardner could not afford to experiment with modern trends and embrace a radical career in the form of Impressionism. Instead, she had to study the rules set by the Institution and learn to respect them to blend and succeed in a very competitive <em>milieu</em>. This explains the artist’s polished, impeccable style, the true expression of French Academism adopted by many other American expatriates at the time, and her association with France’s ultimate forum and official place of recognition: the Salon. Gardner participated in thirty Salons, showing thirty-six of her works between 1868 (her first try, marked by two entries) and 1914, the apex of her participations being in 1887, the year she received a bronze medal for <em>La Fille du Jardinier</em>, thus becoming the only American woman to ever receive a medal.</p><p>The present, rediscovered work follows this immense success. Set against a homey kitchen interior marked by several utensils and a slowly burning fire, a young mother sits lovingly behind her toddler child. Next to her, in a cradle, sleeps her youngest. Playfully, she watches a family of chickens eating at her feet, thus creating a tender echo between her and the mother hen with her chicklets. The work bears close resemblance to the style of William Bouguereau, champion of the <em>Art Pompier</em>, and whom Gardner never felt embarrassed to channel as she proudly explained to an interviewer in 1910: “I would rather be known as the best imitator of Bouguereau than be nobody.” At the time, views of idealized peasantry untouched by modern life were popular among Victorian collectors. As Bouguereau was facing an impressive number of requests of that nature (having started the trend himself), Gardner must have understood the benefits, both academic and financial, to work within this niche market and emulate her famous master’s style to satisfy a hungry crowd. Here Gardner adopts a smooth brushwork, she creates solid lines heightened by soft glazes and soft colors. She frames her subjects in a way that makes them seem monumental and ennobling. Just like Bouguereau, she pays great attention to the rendering of the hands and feet, and depicts her peasant woman barefoot, a characteristic of the romanticized view of French peasantry outside of urban areas, and which American collectors were particularly fond of.</p><p>Despite the use of certain iconographic formulas however, one notes certain particularities that make the composition truly special, and which highlight Gardner’s very own artistic gifts. Contrary to Bouguereau’s figures, which are purposefully more static, Gardener’s mother and child interact with one another. They cuddle, and as such imply an inward movement which accentuates the intimacy of the moment. None of them are looking at us. On the contrary, they are so caught in the moment and display such a strong and natural bond that neither the artist nor the viewer can interrupt it. This feeling of a warm and pure love is further enhanced by the presence of the chickens. Traditionally seen as an element of femininity, they appear regularly in Gardner’s work, unlike Bouguereau’s (see for example <em>La Fille du Jardinier</em> -1887, <em>Dans le Bois</em> -1889, or <em>La Captive</em> -1883). The artist was fond of birds and owned herself an aviary of about 30 poultry in her studio.</p><p>Such iconography appealed to her prude, mostly feminine clientele. It also helped strengthen the moral undertones of family love and accentuate the irreplaceable nature of the mother figure in the patriarchal society. In this regard, the piece can be seen as a modern, secular version of a Madonna and Child. 

<p>Signed 'Elizabeth Gardner' bottom right, oil on canvas<br />39 1/2 x 29 1/4 in. (77.5 x 74.3cm)<br />Executed in 1888.</p><br /><br /><p><strong>Provenance</strong></p><p>Private Collection, North Carolina.</p><br /><br /><p><strong>Exhibited</strong></p><p>"Salon de 1888," Palais des Champs-Élysées, Paris, 1888, no. 1071. <br />"North Carolina Collects: Traditional Fine Arts and Decorative Arts," Mint Museum of Art, Charlotte, North Carolina, July 9-September 18, 1994, no. 23.</p><p><strong>Literature</strong></p><p><span><em>Explication des Ouvrages de Peinture, Sculpture, Architecture, Gravure et Lithographie des Artistes Vivants Exposés au Palais des Champs-Élysées le 1er Mai 1888</em>, Paul Dupont, Paris, 1888 (second edition), p. 87, no. 1071 (listed, not illustrated).</span><span><br />Norma Broude and Mary D. Garrard, <em>The Expanding Discourse: Feminism and art History</em>, IconEditions, New York, 1992, no. 8 (illustrated).<br />Tamar Garb, <em>Sisters of the Brush: Women's Artistic Culture in Late Nineteenth-Century Paris</em>, Yale University Press, New Heaven, 1994, p. 157, no. 62.<br />Charles Pearo, <em>Elizabeth Jane Gardner: Her Life, Her Work, Her Letters, </em>MA Thesis, McGill University, 1997, p. 9, fig. 16 (illustrated).</span></p><p><strong>Note</strong></p><p>Elizabeth Jane Gardner Bouguerau was one of the most famous and successful American artists in Paris at the end of the 19th century. Dubbed an honorary French woman through her marriage to William Bouguereau, she was one of the first expatriates to be exposed to the male-dominated Parisian art market, which she learned to infiltrate and eventually master throughout her impressive fifty-eight-year career in the French capital city.</p><p><span></span><span>Born in Exeter, New Hampshire into a family of merchants, Gardner graduated from the Lasell Seminary (now Lasell University) in Auburndale, Massachusetts in 1856. At first a French teacher, she sailed for France in the summer of 1864 along with a former teacher of hers, Imogene Robinson, and the two settled in a studio 2, rue Carnot, across the street from the highly revered and successful painter, William Bouguereau.</span></p><p>Contrary to another famous American expatriate who arrived in Paris two years after her, Mary Cassatt, Elizabeth Gardner could not count on any financial aid from her family, and therefore did not receive private tutoring from eminent masters. Instead, she trained and made a living by copying Old Masters at the Musée du Louvre, as well as the more contemporary artists in the nearby Musée du Luxembourg. She would then sell her work to American collectors travelling through Europe, recommended to her by her own family. Yearning life-drawing classes, but denied the access to them because of her gender, Gardner joined a collective studio of women, where she studied anatomy among her peers during evening sessions. In parallel, and at the recommendation of her friend Rosa Bonheur, a true “sister of the brush and long-time career counselor” according to Charles Pearo, Gardner also joined a sketching class at the Jardin des Plantes, Paris’ Botanical Gardens and Zoo, where she painted living animals alongside the animal sculptor Antoine Barye. There, she met the famous painter Hugues Merle, who would invite her to join his studio and acted as a constant support throughout Gardner’s life, even when she decided to rally the studio of Bouguereau, Merle’s longtime rival.</p><p>The life of Elizabeth Gardner is marked by a strong desire to fit in. As an American woman from the low middle-class with an everlasting sense of duty and even guilt for leaving her country, Gardner could not afford to experiment with modern trends and embrace a radical career in the form of Impressionism. Instead, she had to study the rules set by the Institution and learn to respect them to blend and succeed in a very competitive <em>milieu</em>. This explains the artist’s polished, impeccable style, the true expression of French Academism adopted by many other American expatriates at the time, and her association with France’s ultimate forum and official place of recognition: the Salon. Gardner participated in thirty Salons, showing thirty-six of her works between 1868 (her first try, marked by two entries) and 1914, the apex of her participations being in 1887, the year she received a bronze medal for <em>La Fille du Jardinier</em>, thus becoming the only American woman to ever receive a medal.</p><p>The present, rediscovered work follows this immense success. Set against a homey kitchen interior marked by several utensils and a slowly burning fire, a young mother sits lovingly behind her toddler child. Next to her, in a cradle, sleeps her youngest. Playfully, she watches a family of chickens eating at her feet, thus creating a tender echo between her and the mother hen with her chicklets. The work bears close resemblance to the style of William Bouguereau, champion of the <em>Art Pompier</em>, and whom Gardner never felt embarrassed to channel as she proudly explained to an interviewer in 1910: “I would rather be known as the best imitator of Bouguereau than be nobody.” At the time, views of idealized peasantry untouched by modern life were popular among Victorian collectors. As Bouguereau was facing an impressive number of requests of that nature (having started the trend himself), Gardner must have understood the benefits, both academic and financial, to work within this niche market and emulate her famous master’s style to satisfy a hungry crowd. Here Gardner adopts a smooth brushwork, she creates solid lines heightened by soft glazes and soft colors. She frames her subjects in a way that makes them seem monumental and ennobling. Just like Bouguereau, she pays great attention to the rendering of the hands and feet, and depicts her peasant woman barefoot, a characteristic of the romanticized view of French peasantry outside of urban areas, and which American collectors were particularly fond of.</p><p>Despite the use of certain iconographic formulas however, one notes certain particularities that make the composition truly special, and which highlight Gardner’s very own artistic gifts. Contrary to Bouguereau’s figures, which are purposefully more static, Gardener’s mother and child interact with one another. They cuddle, and as such imply an inward movement which accentuates the intimacy of the moment. None of them are looking at us. On the contrary, they are so caught in the moment and display such a strong and natural bond that neither the artist nor the viewer can interrupt it. This feeling of a warm and pure love is further enhanced by the presence of the chickens. Traditionally seen as an element of femininity, they appear regularly in Gardner’s work, unlike Bouguereau’s (see for example <em>La Fille du Jardinier</em> -1887, <em>Dans le Bois</em> -1889, or <em>La Captive</em> -1883). The artist was fond of birds and owned herself an aviary of about 30 poultry in her studio.</p><p>Such iconography appealed to her prude, mostly feminine clientele. It also helped strengthen the moral undertones of family love and accentuate the irreplaceable nature of the mother figure in the patriarchal society. In this regard, the piece can be seen as a modern, secular version of a Madonna and Child. 

European Art and Old Masters

Sale Date(s)
Venue Address
2400 Market St
Philadelphia
Pennsylvania
19103
United States

You will be emailed an invoice for the total amount of your purchases. This amount will include the hammer price, the buyer's premium as well as any applicable taxes. Payment is due within ten (10) days of the sale. You will also receive payment and shipment instructions along with a list of preferred shippers we work with during the Covid-19 pandemic.
For more details about your payment options please email our Client Services Team.
As a result of the current coronavirus situation, please be aware that delivery and shipments of property will be delayed. During the delays, we will store your property free of charge. Successful buyers should use the below portal to schedule an appointment with Megan Latona.
https://calendly.com/freemansauction/30-minute-pick-up-drop-off

 

Important Information

    

Terms & Conditions

1. All property offered and sold (“property”) through Samuel T. Freeman & Co, (“Freeman’s”) shall be offered and sold on the terms and conditions set forth below which constitutes the complete statement of the terms and conditions on which all property is offered for sale. By bidding at the auction, whether present in person or by agent, by written bid, telephone, internet or other means, the buyer agrees to be bound by these terms and conditions.1. Unless otherwise indicated, all Property will be offered by Freeman’s as agent for the Consignor.2. Freeman’s reserves the right to vary the terms of sale and any such variance shall become part of these Conditions of Sale.3. As a result of the Covid-19 Pandemic, in person inspections of the Property are available by appointment only and therefore, Freeman’s has also made available to the Buyer the opportunity to (a) view the lot online at freemansauction. com and to view the auction’s e-catalogue, (b) submit a request for a condition report either through the online lot listing or by contacting the specialist directly and (c) have a virtual consultation with the specialist. Buyer acknowledges that it has had the right to take advantage of the aforementioned inspections prior to the sale to determine the condition, size, repair or restoration of any Property. Buyer acknowledges that it had the right to make a full inspection of all Property prior to sale to determine the condition, size, repair or restoration of any Property. Therefore, all property is sold “AS-IS”. Freeman’s is acting solely as an auction broker, and unless otherwise stated, does not own the Property offered for sale and has made no independent investigation of the Property. Freeman’s makes no warranty of title, merchantability or fitness for a particular purpose, or any other warranty or representation regarding the description, genuineness, attribution, provenance or condition to the Property of any kind or nature with respect to the Property.4. Freeman’s in its sole and exclusive discretion, reserves the right to withdraw any property, at any time, before the fall of the hammer.5. Unless otherwise announced by the auctioneer at the time of sale, all bids are per lot as numbered in the printed catalogue. Freeman’s reserves the right to determine any and all matters regarding the order, precedence or appropriate increment of bids or the constitution of lots.6. The highest bidder acknowledged by the auctioneer shall be the buyer. The auctioneer has the right to reject any bid, to advance the bidding at his absolute discretion and in the event of any dispute between bidders, the auctioneer shall have the sole and final discretion either to determine the successful bidder or to re- offer and resell the article in dispute. If any dispute arises after sale, the Freeman’s sale record shall be conclusive in all respects.7. If the auctioneer determines that any opening or later bid or any advance bid is not commensurate with the value of the Property offered, he may reject the same and withdraw the Property from sale.8. Upon the fall of the hammer, title to any offered lot or article will immediately pass to the highest bidder as determined in the exclusive discretion of the auctioneer, subject to compliance by the buyer with these Conditions of Sale. Buyer thereupon assumes full risk and responsibility of the property sold, agrees to sign any requested confirmation of purchase, and agrees to pay the full price, plus Buyer’s Premium, therefore or such part, upon such terms as Freeman’s may require.9. No lot may be removed from Freeman’s premises until the buyer has paid in full the purchase price therefor including Buyer’s Premium or has satisfied such terms that Freeman’s, in its sole discretion, shall require. Subject to the foregoing, all Property shall be paid for and removed by the buyer at his/her expense within ten (10) days of sale and, if not so removed, may be sold by Freeman’s, or sent by Freeman’s to a third-party storage facility, at the sole risk and charge of the buyer(s), and Freeman’s may prohibit the buyer from participating, directly or indirectly, as a bidder or buyer in any future sale or sales. In addition to other remedies available to Freeman’s by law, Freeman’s reserves the right to impose a late charge of 1.5% per month of the total purchase price on any balance remaining ten (10) days after the day of sale. If Property is not removed by the buyer within ten (10) days, a handling charge of 2% of the total purchase price per month from the tenth day after the sale until removal by the buyer shall be payable to Freeman’s by the buyer. Freeman’s will not be responsible for any loss, damage, theft, or otherwise responsible for any goods left in Freeman’s possession after ten (10) days. If the foregoing conditions or any applicable provisions of law are not complied with, in addition to other remedies available to Freeman’s and the Consignor (including without limitation the right to hold the buyer(s) liable for the bid price) Freeman’s, at its option, may either cancel the sale, retaining as liquidated damages all payments made by the buyer(s), or resell the property. In such event, the buyer(s) shall remain liable for any deficiency in the original purchase price and will also be responsible for all costs, including warehousing, the expense of the ultimate sale, and Freeman’s commission at its regular rates together with all related and incidental charges, including legal fees. Payment is a precondition to removal. Payment shall be by cash, certified check or similar bank draft, or any other method approved by Freeman’s. Checks will not be deemed to constitute payment until cleared. Any exceptions must be made upon Freeman’s written approval of credit prior to sale. In addition, a defaulting buyer will be deemed to have granted and assigned to Freeman’s, a continuing security interest of first priority in any property or money of, or owing to such buyer in Freeman’s possession, and Freeman’s may retain and apply such property or money as collateral security for the obligations due to Freeman’s. Freeman’s shall have all of the rights accorded a secured party under the Pennsylvania Uniform Commercial Code.10. Unless the sale is advertised and announced as “without reserve”, each lot is offered subject to a reserve and Freeman’s may implement such reserves by bidding through its representatives on behalf of the Consignors. In certain instances, the Consignor may pay less than the standard commission rate where Freeman’s or its representative is a successful bidder on behalf of the Consignor. Where the Consignor is indebted to Freeman’s, Freeman’s may have an interest in the offered lots and the proceeds therefrom, other than the broker’s Commissions, and all sales are subject to any such interest.11. No “buy” bids shall be accepted at any time for any purpose.12. Any pre-sale bids must be submitted in writing to Freeman’s prior to commencement of the offer of the first lot of any sale. Freeman’s copy of any such bid shall conclusively be deemed to be the sole evidence of same, and while Freeman’s accepts these bids for the convenience of bidders not present at the auction, Freeman’s shall not be responsible for the failure to execute, or, to execute properly, any pre-sale bid.13. payable by the buyer as part of the total purchase price A Buyer’s Premium will be added to the successful bid price and is payable by the buyer as part of the total purchase price. The Buyer’s Premium shall be: 26% on the first $600,000 of the hammer price of each lot, 21% on the portion from $600,001 through $4,000,000 and 15% thereafter.

 

21% 14. Third-Party Internet Bidding Services (a) Third Party Bidding Platforms. We engage third party online bidding platforms to collect or facilitate auction bids (“Bidding Platforms”), each of which levy a fee for their services, and have their own rules on fees and how to bid and buy online using these Bidding Platforms. Freeman’s has no control over, and assumes no responsibility for, the content, privacy policies, or practices of any Bidding Platforms. Your dealings with Bidding Platforms are solely between you and such Bidding Platforms. We encourage you to be aware of, and to read, the terms and conditions and privacy policy of any Bidding Platforms that you visit. You expressly release Freeman’s from any and all liability arising from your use of any Bidding Platform or other third-party website or service. (b) Waiver. Absentee Bids left with Bidding Platforms are released to Freeman’s when a lot comes up for sale. UNDER NO CIRCUMSTANCES, INCLUDING, BUT NOT LIMITED TO, NEGLIGENCE, WILL WE AND OUR SELLERS BE LIABLE FOR ANY DAMAGES, LOST PROFITS OR ANY SPECIAL, INCIDENTAL, OR CONSEQUENTIAL DAMAGES THAT RESULT FROM THE USE OF, OR THE INABILITY TO USE, THESE BIDDING PLATFORMS. 15. Unless exempted by law from the payment thereof, the buyer will be required to pay any and all federal excise tax and any state and/or local sales taxes, including where deliveries are to be made outside the state where a sale is conducted, which may be subject to a corresponding or compensating tax in another state.All purchases made at Freeman’s, therefore, will be subject to the Pennsylvania State and Local sales tax--currently at a combined rate of 8%, which is applied to the hammer price plus buyer’s premium--unless the successful buyer submits the required tax exemption documentation. Those seeking exemption from sales tax must provide a valid certificate to Freeman’s prior to outgoing shipment.In accordance with Pennsylvania State law, if Freeman’s or the buyer arranges for a lot/s to be shipped outside of Pennsylvania through an independent, third-party shipping company, Freeman’s must collect Pennsylvania sales tax on the lot/s irrespective of the property’s final destination. If the item is first delivered to any hired service provider (e.g. restorer, storage facility, etc.) located in Pennsylvania, Pennsylvania sales tax will still be applicable and invoiced, even if the lot will ultimately be shipped out-of-state.16. Freeman’s may, as a service to buyer, arrange to have purchased property posted and shipped at the buyer’s expense. Freeman’s is not responsible for any acts or omissions in packing or shipping of purchased lots whether or not such carrier is recommended by Freeman’s. Packing and handling of purchased lots is at the responsibility of the buyer and is at the entire risk of the buyer.17. In no event shall any liability of Freeman’s to the buyer exceed the purchase price actually paid.18. No claimed modification or amendment of this Agreement on the part of any party shall be deemed extant, enforceable or provable unless it is in writing that has been signed by the parties to this Agreement. No course of dealing and no delay or omission on the part of Freeman’s in exercising any right under this Agreement shall operate as a waiver of such right or any other right and waiver on any one or more occasions shall not be construed as a bar to or waiver of any right or remedy of Freeman’s on any future occasion.19. These Conditions of Sale and the buyer’s, the Consignor’s and Freeman’s rights under these Conditions of Sale shall be governed by, construed and enforced in accordance with the laws of the Commonwealth of Pennsylvania and Consignor and Buyer agree to the exclusive jurisdiction of the Philadelphia, Pennsylvania Court of Common Pleas and the United States District Court for the Eastern District of Pennsylvania.

See Full Terms And Conditions