$23,500
William Keith (American, 1838-1911) California Redwoods Signed "W. Keith" l.l., identified on a presentation plaque, a Philadelphia gallery label on the reverse. Oil on canvas, 40 1/4 x 22 in. (102.2 x 55.9 cm), framed. Condition: Lined, retouch. N.B. Born in 1838 in Aberdeen, Scotland, Keith immigrated to New York in 1850, where he apprenticed at the shop of a wood engraver. It was as an illustrator for Harper's that Keith first traveled to California. He settled there, married Elizabeth Emerson, and opened a studio for the exhibition of his works in 1864. Although he is best known for his Californian panoramas, Keith traveled extensively, both to the East Coast (including a stay in Boston, where he had a studio in the early 1870s), and in Europe. Through his studies in Germany and France, Keith was influenced by the Barbizon painters. John Muir, the famous naturalist and founder of the Sierra Club, and Keith were longtime friends and regularly camped together. Muir is said to have referred to Keith as a "poet-painter," but both brought a scientist's eye to landscape, and Keith's early works reflected this in the accuracy of his views and detailed depictions of flora and fauna.
Auctioneer:
Skinner
Date:
2007-05-18
