Original antique painting mystery

Engineer1911

Engineer1911

US Veteran
Bronze Supporter
Joined
Aug 26, 2007
Messages
6,139
Reaction score
6,328
Location
Augusta, GA
UPDATE: See post #8 for complete information about the artist and 2 links. Thank you to everyone who helped me find this information.

Andrew Gunderson | Andrew Gunderson Pastel Painting's
Gunderson Pastel Paintings - Photos | Facebook

I have an original painting that is done with chalk. It is 40" wide and 17" high. I estimate that it is about 85 to 100 years old. The original frame was heavy plaster of Paris about 3" wide and up to 1-1/2" thick with green and gold paint. It was badly chipped and damaged.

Sometime in the 1990's I had the wood frame done and asked the young lady if any art students worked in the frame shop (Michael's). She replied she was an art student. I asked her to repair the lower right hand corner, the damaged area was about 1-1/2" square. She examined the painting, said she would be very happy to do it at no charge, and would I sign a letter so she could get credit for the work in one of her classes? I told her I'll sign your letter when I pick up the new framed picture.

Signature is in lower left corner. I believe the original owners were Norwegian immigrants who came to west central Wisconsin in the 1880's. I have learned that this Forum has a deep pool of knowledge on almost any subject. Can some one help me learn what it is I have. I believe that I made a big $$ mistake getting rid of the plaster frame, but it was beyond ugly. Mostly I like to know how old it is, who the original artist might have been, and a guesstimated value.

A farm kid in 1905 might have done it as a "one of a kind" work of art, but I'm not sure of that considering the heavy plaster frame it used to have.

EDIT: Added signature photo, I never saw the signature before.
 

Attachments

  • 1910 Country Church.jpg
    1910 Country Church.jpg
    89.8 KB · Views: 327
  • Signature.jpg
    Signature.jpg
    79.4 KB · Views: 228
Last edited:
Register to hide this ad
It's signed in the lower left corner,,I can't read it too well. Looks something like G V Hof-----??
 
I don't know the answer to your questions. Sorry.

But I believe that the frame would have little affect on value, and I doubt the painting itself is worth much, even if the artist could be identified. (Which seems unlikely to me.)

But I like the painting. I like the frame you put on it, too. I think you should just continue to enjoy it in your home. Or, maybe give it away to someone who does.

(I have a pastel drawing -- chalk painting? -- of the view of the ocean, waves, on a gray and stormy looking day, off the stern of a ship, that, the story goes, was purchased in San Francisco in the early 1900s.

A friend gave it to my mother, who admired it on his wall, and commented that it was so realistic that it made her seasick. (The waves near the boat are higher than the stern.) About 20 years later, after she and my father enjoyed it, she gave it to me, and it is on my wall now.

It will move along when I pass, or, perhaps, if someone admires it a lot, I while give it away one of these days.

I don't think it is valuable, but I do enjoy it, and it reminds me of my mother, and her gift of it to me.

I have no idea who the artist is, and I doubt he was/is well known.

After my father died, a number of years after she was given the painting, the guy who had given it to her, a widower, asked her to marry him. My mother thanked him for the offer, but declined, saying she could not imagine marriage to anyone but my father.

I reflect on these things, looking at that painting...
 
I like the scene, can not tell much without seeing it in person of course, I would have to agree that removing the original frame is not usually a good thing. If the picture or painting falls under folk art then the frame would add to the value.

But you are the one looking at it. I myself have messed up some antique items by refinishing them so we live and learn. Not anything worth big money but things I should have left alone.:o
 
"But I believe that the frame would have little affect on value, and I doubt the painting itself is worth much, even if the artist could be identified. (Which seems unlikely to me.)"

A period-correct frame will enhance the value of the artwork somewhat, vs. its having a more modern frame. No way I could even guess the value of yours, as there were a lot of artists who worked in pastel chalk, and not many of them were named Rembrandt or Picasso.
 
I believe your artwork is by Andrew Gunderson, an artist born in Iowa in 1888 who worked primarily in oil pastels. If your art is original, it should most likely be pastel on board, not canvas or artist paper. Or maybe what's called flint paper. It could be worth from $1100-$1500 (this is my opinion, okay?). A vintage frame would have made it worth a bit more. Gunderson passed away in 1964 in Illinois.

The trees in your artwork look like American Beech trees, or possibly Silver Birch trees, a familiar subject for Gunderson and are featured in several of his works. The white buildings (village?) are also a recurring theme in his work.

EDIT: Work done in oil pastels can have a chalk-like appearance, but are (obviously) oil or wax based...sort of like a crayon. Work done with them often has a sort of "glow" look to it, or a somewhat idyllic dreamlike appearance. I usually think of it as based on an artist's perception of a scene, rather than a totally realistic view.

ONE MORE EDIT: If you're interested, you can learn a lot more about Andrew Gunderson and his work here. He was more prolific than I remembered, and lots of folks in Monee, Illinois seem to remember him well, and a good many people collect his work.
 
Last edited:
jlrhiner said:
Ahhh, but what that painting needs are some happy little trees right over there...........
Click to expand...

I remember Bob Ross and watching him paint on his PBS show. His techniques fascinated me...watching him pile paint on paint, watching those globs of paint turn into mountains and trees and rivers. And I'd never seen anyone paint with a paint knife before. His work was deceptive, because he made the process look so simple when it was anything but simple.
 
WATCHDOG said:
I remember Bob Ross and watching him paint on his PBS show. His techniques fascinated me...watching him pile paint on paint, watching those globs of paint turn into mountains and trees and rivers. And I'd never seen anyone paint with a paint knife before. His work was deceptive, because he made the process look so simple when it was anything but simple.
Click to expand...

I don't know if you've seen this yet, but it reminded me of Bob and I'm sure this young fellow at least had seen him work. @ 10 minutes long when you have the time.[ame]https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=CV4mxN8MLz0[/ame]
 
jlrhiner said:
I don't know if you've seen this yet, but it reminded me of Bob and I'm sure this young fellow at least had seen him work. @ 10 minutes long when you have the time.
Click to expand...

Thank you so much. Fascinating art form.
 
Try contacting the curator of the Madison art museum. (Google search). He, or she, might recognize the artist, or put you in contact with someone who could. It's a nice painting, good use of color, well composed. I don't think it was done by an amateur.
 
Last edited:
You must log in or register to reply here.

Similar threads

oldbrownhat
One year-old puppy nurses kitten
Replies
6
Views
409
Spleenless Dave
Spleenless Dave
Faulkner
About a month ago . . .
2 3
Replies
40
Views
1K
Faulkner
Faulkner
oldbrownhat
The people who still use typewriters
2 3 4
Replies
62
Views
2K
GaryS
GaryS
Ματθιας
Body shop estimates or guesses or laziness
2
Replies
24
Views
865
Rule3
Rule3
G
Obituary For My Amazing Wife
2 3 4
Replies
63
Views
2K
rwsmith
rwsmith

Latest posts

Back
Top