John Henry Twachtman Catalogue Raisonné
An online catalogue by Lisa N. Peters, Ph.D., in collaboration with the Greenwich Historical Society
OP.840
Harbor Scene
Alternate title: Harbour Scene
ca. 1889
Oil on panel
12 x 16 in. (30.5 x 40.6 cm)
Signed and inscribed lower left: J. H. Twachtman; To my friend Jimmy
Provenance
Literature
Auction catalogue, December 9, 1925. New York: Anderson Galleries, 1925, lot 65 ill. in b/w, as Harbor Scene.
Auction catalogue, February 20, 1930. New York: American Art Association, 1930, lot 44, as Harbor Scene.
Auction catalogue, May 16, 1946. New York: Parke-Bernet, 1946, lot 776, as Harbor Scene.
Hale, John Douglass. "Life and Creative Development of John H. Twachtman." 2 vols. Ph.D. dissertation, Ohio State University, 1957. Ann Arbor, Mich.: University Microfilms, 1958, vol. 2, p. 551 (catalogue A, no. 242), as Harbour Scene. (Hale concordance).
Commentary
This unlocated painting exemplifies the geometric clarity characteristic of Twachtman's images of Newport, created during the summer of 1889. Its first recorded owner is Isabel de Puga Morrell Kelley (1858–1924). She was the wife of James Douglas Jerrold Kelley (1847–1922), a naval commander who authored several books on ships and naval warfare and became one of three directors of the New York Herald. The painting's inscription, "to my friend Jimmy" was possibly to Kelley.