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| Home | Articles | Expressions of Innocence and Eloquence: Selections from the Jane Katcher Collection of Americana |
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Selections from the Jane Katcher Collection of Americana
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by Ruth Wolfe
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Several years ago Jane Katcher, a collector and longtime student of American folk art and Americana, was asked to prepare a magazine article about some of her favorite objects. As she discussed this project with David Schorsch, the folk art specialist who has been the principal advisor on her collection, the idea of producing a book emerged, and the result is Expressions of Innocence and Eloquence, to be published this December by Marquand Books in association with Yale University Press.
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Sarah and Mary J. Pool, Album Quilt, Baltimore, Maryland, circa 1845-1855. Cotton fabrics, appliqued, with ink details. 106 x 107 inches.
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Baltimore album quilts, prized for their exquisite craftsmanship and well-balanced compositions, rank among the finest examples of American quilt making. The designs of this example are attributed to a German-born immigrant, Mary (Heidentoder) Simon, a renowned practitioner believed to have sold kits of appliqued and basted quilt squares ready for assemblage and quilting. This very fine quilt abounds in historical allusions, including an American flag above a cabin and barrel of cider, referring to William Henry Harrison's 1840 "Log Cabin and Hard Cider" campaign, and a locomotive pulling a train car with a seated lady and gentleman, referring to the country's first passenger train, operated by the Baltimore and Ohio Rail Road Company in 1830. The quilt retains bright, unfaded colors and remains in a remarkable state of preservation.
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The book features more than two hundred works -- many never before published -- from Katcher's extensive collection, which is rich in portraits and carvings, quilts and needlework, weathervanes and whirligigs, family records and calligraphy, boxes and baskets, toys, painted furniture, Windsor chairs, and a variety of objects created in the Germanic regions of Pennsylvania and Virginia and in the Shaker communities of New York and New England. In addition to these frequently collected categories of American folk art, the Katcher collection holds some notable surprises: mocha ware and spatter ware -- colorful English pottery that was wildly popular with nineteenth-century Americans -- and a wealth of ephemera that includes handmade valentines, friendship albums and memory books, keepsakes woven from the hair of loved ones, and other fragile and intensely personal tokens of love and affection.
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Indian weathervane, Pennsylvania, probably Dauphin County, circa 1780Ð1820. Iron, copper, traces of original red paint and verdigris. H. 76, W. 35-1/2 in.
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One-of-a-kind examples of Pennsylvania-German weathervanes are among the rarest of early American vanes. This larger than life figure, brandishing a tomahawk and arrow, was fashioned from sheet iron and sheet copper and braced against the wind with wrought-iron strapwork. Figures of Indians were favored as weathervanes for tobacco barns and warehouses, no doubt because of the association of Native Americans with the cultivation and use of tobacco.
In her introductory essay, Jane Katcher expresses her "heartfelt desireÉthat this book will be an inspiration for both those who have had years of experience in this area of art and antiques as well as for those who are reading about objects such as these for the very first time." To fulfill her vision, a group of distinguished scholars was assembled to explore different aspects and themes of the collection in thought provoking essays by Jean M. Burks, Paul S. D'Ambrosio, Erin Eisenbarth, Robin Jaffee Frank, Robert Hunter, Patricia E. Kane, Richard Miller, Charles Santore, Robert Shaw, Scott T. Swank, and Philip Zea. The photographs, featuring multiple views and dramatic details, are by distinguished fine arts photographer Gavin Ashworth. A comprehensive catalogue by David A. Schorsch and Eileen M. Smiles includes detailed descriptions of each object, as well as the most complete information available on provenance and exhibition and publishing history; this section of the book will prove a valuable new resource in the field of American folk art.
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Bucket bench-cupboard, Pennsylvania, circa 1800-1830. Poplar, original painted decoration. H. 77-1/2, W. 44, D. 15-1/2 in.
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This bucket bench-cupboard exhibits a sophistication of form and workmanship that is rarely encountered in comparable examples of Pennsylvania-German decorated furniture. The case has chamfered corners and trapezoidal back supports; there is a cove-molded cornice; the paired inset-panel doors are fitted on the inside with carved spoon holders; and the sides form extended boot-jack feet. The freehand grained decoration executed in a swirling design in black on a salmon-red ground achieves a masterful optical effect and shows the hand of a highly accomplished ornamental painter.
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Lift-top chest with drawers for Daniel Eisz, Pennsylvania, probably Lehigh County, 1795.Poplar, iron hinges and lock, cast brass handles and escutcheons, original painted decoration. H. 28-1/2, W. 50-1/2, D. 23 in.
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In design and construction this chest is a classic expression of Pennsylvania-German workmanship, beautifully preserved. The unidentified artist shows a sure hand in the execution of classic Germanic design elements and a highly distinctive style of fraktur lettering. The chest was purchased from a house in Clearfield, Pennsylvania, in the 1970s by a well-known local antiques picker, Lester Zettle. At least one other chest by the same unidentified artisan is known.
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Tokens of friendship, American, possibly Ohio, circa 1850-1860. Cut lined paper, woven human hair, silk ribbon. Each 3-1/2 x 2 inches.
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These diminutive friendship tokens are almost identical and were most likely cut by the same person and then individualized by the donor with an inscription on the back and strands of his or her own hair fashioned into the shape of a heart. The more formal of the two (at left), reads: "To E. A. Fritz from M. J. Kelchy. Pledge of Friendship. When this you see, think of me"; while the second token (at right) says: "This lock of hair I used to wear. I know [sic] comit [sic] it to your care. Yours, Esther." In the nineteenth century, the exchange of locks of hair was a ritual of friendship, and they often appear in tokens like these, as well as in friendship albums and memory books, which contributor Robert Shaw describes as "commonplace books of the heart."
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Sheldon Peck (1797-1868), George Weld Hilliard, Brighton, Illinois, circa 1849. Oil on canvas, 27 x 22 inches.
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This portrait of George Weld Hilliard (1840-1928) was painted when Sheldon Peck's skills were at their zenith. The only known portrait of a single child from Peck's Illinois period, it is one of seven examples having trompe l'oeil frames painted on the surface of the canvas, a characteristic unique to the artist's Illinois period. The subject's father was a prosperous farmer and orchardist, who specialized in raising apples. George Hilliard grew up to become a farmer and also president of the First National Bank of Brighton, Illinois. He died at age 89 as a result of being kicked in the head by a mule.
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Dome-top box, New England, circa 1825-1835. White pine, original paint, watercolor and ink on paper, panels under glass, brass wire hinges, tinplated sheet-iron interior latch. H. 5-1/2, W. 10-1/2, D. 5-3/8 in.
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This is one of four known boxes with inset watercolor panels that were probably made at the same unidentified school, perhaps one of the academies for young women that flourished in New England in the early nineteenth century. Similarities of construction and workmanship among these boxes suggest a single craftsman, while at least three distinct painters seem to be represented. The watercolors on this dome-top box and on a related box in the Smithsonian Institution are clearly by the same artist.
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Teapot with five-color spatter decoration, England, circa 1840. Lead-glazed earthenware. H. 7-1/4, W. 11-1/2 in.
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This small rainbow-patterned teapot comes from the peak production period of spatter ware, between 1830 and 1850. More than sixty different patterns can be identified today, with some of the names -- such as "rainbow" -- the invention of twentieth-century collectors. As many as five different colors were used to create the illusion of motion in spatter-ware patterning.
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Highchair, Pennsylvania, circa 1770-1790. Maple, ash, white pine, rush seat, old or original grain-painted finish. H. 37, W. 13, D. 11 in.
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In this tour-de-force of the chair-maker's art, the very best attributes of a full-sized Pennsylvania ladder-back armchair have been artfully compressed into a dynamic and unique expression. Bold, double-splaying stiles and front posts draw one's eye to the upper portion of the chair with its Queen Anne turnings and acorn finials, arched serpentine slats, and remarkable barrel and cylindrical turned arms. The arm supports are turned in the classic Pennsylvania baluster-and-ring design, and the front legs terminate in original ball feet. The old or original grain-painted surface adds the culminating dimension to this highchair. Use by many generations of tiny hands has resulted in a pattern of natural wear and richness of patina, especially apparent in the finials and arms.
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Asa Phillips, Jr. (1785-1855), Certificate of merit to Warren Knight, Plainfield, Connecticut, or Scituate, Rhode Island, circa 1816-1817. Ink on paper, 13-1/4 x 16-1/4 inches.
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From the pen of a talented and accomplished instructor, this certificate of merit exemplifies the seldom-encountered oversized format. A probable identification for the calligrapher is Asa Phillips, Jr., of Plainfield, Connecticut, home to Plainfield Academy, once one of the most respected private schools in New England. A William Warren Knight (1795-1878), who is listed in census records for Rhode Island, may have been a boarding student at Plainfield Academy and the recipient of this certificate.
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Sack-back Windsor settee, New York City, circa 1790-1800. Hickory, maple, pine, old salmon-colored paint. H. 37-1/2, W. 41, D. 20-1/2 in.
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This is the first recorded example of a sack-back Windsor double settee made in New York City. It is one of about ten Windsor double settees known to have been made in this country in the eighteenth century; the others were made in Pennsylvania, Connecticut, Rhode Island, and Massachusetts. By virtue of the early, experimental nature of their design, most exhibit a somewhat crowded appearance. Here, a skilled artisan has created a diminutive bench with the presence of a full-scale settee. This example bears a stylistic relationship to settees made by John Dewitt and the partnership of Always and Hampton, active in New York City in the 1790s.
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John Scholl (1827-1916), Snowflake on stand, Germania, Pennsylvania, circa 1907-1916. Poplar, iron, original painted decoration. H. 70, W. 31-1/2, D. 22 in.
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In his 80s, the farmer and carpenter John Scholl began to make fanciful constructions that ranged in size from small puzzles to large freestanding sculptures. Over a period of nearly a decade, using simple tools, he created some forty-five sculptures. Scholl's work is characterized by symbols from his Germanic heritage, such as tulips and birds, combined with late-nineteenth-century furniture forms and the Victorian "gingerbread" millwork embellishments he would have known from his work as a carpenter. Eventually Scholl opened the parlor of his home as a "museum" and was known to discuss each sculpture with his guests. This extravagant work appears at the foot of the artist's coffin in a photograph of his wake in 1916.
In conjunction with the book's publication, the Yale University Art Gallery will present Made for Love: Selections from the Jane Katcher Collection of Americana, from February 13 to August 26, 2007, featuring works created as tokens of affection or commissioned to reflect the loving bonds between families and friends in early America. A major scholarly symposium is scheduled for the weekend of March 30-31, 2007, in New Haven. For more information visit www.artgallery.yale.edu or contact Yale University Art Gallery at 203.432.0611. To order a copy of Expressions of Innocence and Eloquence (ISBN: 0-300-11965-8; cloth, 428 pages, 510 color illus.; $75.00), visit yalepress.yale.edu/yupbooks
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Ruth Wolfe is an editor, writer, and independent curator in the field of American folk art and the principal editor of Expressions of Innocence and Eloquence.
All photography by Gavin Ashworth except Sarah and Mary J. Pool album quilt, courtesy of America Hurrah Archive.
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