Abraham Clark and His Children, 1822

Not on View

Medium

oil on wood

Dimensions

overall: 64.8 x 81.3 cm (25 1/2 x 32 in.)

framed: 80.6 x 94.9 x 6.9 cm (31 3/4 x 37 3/8 x 2 11/16 in.)

Credit Line

Gift of Edgar William and Bernice Chrysler Garbisch

Accession Number

1953.5.40

Artists / Makers

J. H. (artist) American, active 1822

Image Use

This image is in the public domain.
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Inscription

on reverse: April / 29.1822 / JH (in monogram)

Provenance

Recorded as from New Jersey. Abraham Clark (life dates and city unknown). Edward and Cora Clark, Aldine, New Jersey.[1] Sold to (H. Gregory Gulick, Middletown, New Jersey), by whom sold in 1947 to Edgar William and Bernice Chrysler Garbisch; gift to NGA, 1953.

[1] A handwritten note in the NGA curatorial files, apparently supplied to Gulik by Edward and Cora Clark, is headed "Aldine N.J. Nov 27/43." It states that the painting had been in the Clarks' house for about sixty years and that it was previously owned by Edward Clark's grandfather, Abraham Clark, "one of the signers of the Declaration of Independence." Because of the time span, Abraham Clark the signer (1726-1794) cannot have been Edward Clark's grandfather, though he may have been related in an earlier generation, nor, given the date inscribed on the back of the painting, could he be the man in the painting.

Associated Names

Clark, Abraham
Clark, Edward and Cora
Garbisch, Edgar William, Mr. and Mrs.
Gulick, H. Gregory
Unknown Patron

Exhibition History

1954: American Primitive Paintings from the Collection of Edgar William and Bernice Chrysler Garbisch, Part I, National Gallery of Art, Washington, 1954, no. 47.

1955: American Primitive Pantings, National Gallery of Art, Washington, D.C., 1955.

1968: The American Primitive Paintings Exhibit, organized by the Triton Museum of Art, Santa Clara, California, for de Saisset Art Gallery, University of Santa Clara, 1968.

1988: A Little Bestiary: Naive Paintings from the Collection of Edgar William and Bernice Chrysler Garbisch, Montclair Art Museum, New Jersey, 1988, no catalogue.

Bibliography

1970: American Paintings and Sculpture: An Illustrated Catalogue. National Gallery of Art, Washington, 1970: 62, repro.

1980: American Paintings: An Illustrated Catalogue. National Gallery of Art, Washington, 1980: 167, repro.

1992: American Paintings: An Illustrated Catalogue. National Gallery of Art, Washington, 1992: 190, repro.

1992: Chotner, Deborah, with contributions by Julie Aronson, Sarah D. Cash, and Laurie Weitzenkorn. American Naive Paintings. The Collections of the National Gallery of Art Systematic Catalogue. Washington, D.C., 1992: 160-162, repro. 161.