Picturing Prestige at the Museum of the City of New York

Two generations of the Marston-Phillipse family by English painter John Wollaston (1710-1775)

On view now at the Museum of the City of New York Picturing Prestige: New York Portraits, 1700-1860 draws from the permanent collection and showcases some of the finest examples of early New York City portraiture. Early, in this case, means the late 18th and early 19th centuries when New York became a thriving, populous center of the still-young United States.  Portraits were the most popular form of painting at the time, an important and prestigious chronicle of the wealthy and successful merchant class.

From a frame perspective the exhibition offers the opportunity to see some fine examples of late 18th Century carved and gilded frames as well as some fine examples of American frames typical of the 1840’s.  I recently walked through the exhibition with Dr. Bruce Weber, MCNY Curator of Painting and Sculpture and curator of the show; much of the information about the artists and sitters included here draws upon Bruce’s knowledge and research.

As you enter, there are two remarkable groups of late-18th Century portraits; at left is a group of four portraits depicting two generations of the Marston-Phillipse family by English painter John Wollaston (1710-1775). 

At right are four portraits of mother Sara Bogart Ray (Mrs. Richard Ray) and her three sons by John Durand (active 1766-1782). Little is known of Durand though historical material regarding the portraits indicates that the frames were made by Thomas Strachan, a British maker working in New York.

Sara Bogart Ray (Mrs. Richard Ray) and her three sons (Cornelius Ray, Richard Ray, Jr., and Robert Ray with dog) by John Durand (active 1766-1782). 

The frames on the Wollaston and Ray portraits are different in design though both are not only carved, but also typify the British Rococo style popular during this time. Both expressions are light and delicate in appearance and include C-scrolls, S-scrolls and gadrooning. The Wollaston frames have a leafy primary section with gadrooning as a small accent at the sight edge and pierced carving at the corners and centers.

Mary Crooke Marston (Mrs. Nathaniel Marston), c.1751 by John Wollaston (1710-1775)

Detail of one of the four frames on the portraits by John Wollaston

In contrast, the Ray frames eliminate the central panel entirely and use both the gadroon ornament as a bold anchoring motif at the sight edge

Richard Ray,Jr., c. 1766 by John Durand (Active 1766-1782), Detail

Detail showing gadroon sight-edge on Richard Ray, Jr. by John Durand

and exuberant yet delicate scrolls around the entire frame- with the exception of the corners and centers, which are accented by acanthus leaf flourishes.

Detail showing acanthus leaf flourishes and C-scrolls at centers on Richard Ray, Jr. by Durand

It is remarkable that all these delicate frames have survived intact!

Also noteworthy in the show are a number of frames from the 1840’s. In America during that period it was popular to use a silk tulle on the frame as a ground for the applied ornament. The tulle gives the surface a delicate topography

Detail showing silk tulle ground on frame for Ann Eliza Moserman Brooks (Mrs. John E. Brooks), d.1845 by Shepard Alonzo Mount

not unlike that of the intricate surface recutting seen in earlier 18th Century French Louis frames.

Detail showing surface recutting on an 18th century French Louis XV carved frame.

Indeed, each of the frames on the portrait of Ann Eliza Moserman Brooks (Mrs. John E. Brooks), dated 1845 by Shepard Alonzo Mount (1804-1868) seen below

and the double portrait of Mr. and Mrs. Charles Henry Augustus Carter, circa 1848 by Nicholas Biddle Kittel (1822-1894)

Mr. and Mrs. Charles Henry Augustus Carter, circa 1848 by Nicholas Biddle Kittel (1822-1894)

Detail of frame on Mr. and Mrs. Charles Henry Augustus Carter, circa 1848 by Nicholas Biddle Kittel (1822-1894)

both echo Louis XV frames with swept sides, projecting corners and centers and lush floral embellishments. Typical of the ornamentation of 19th Century frames, all these motifs were molded and applied not intricately carved as were their 17th and 18th-century French predecessors. 

Late 18th Century French Louis XV style carved frame

These late 18th Century and 1840's frames are just highlights- there are a number of other excellent frames in the Museum of the City of New York exhibition- on view until September 18, 2016, it is well worth a visit.

A Tale of Two Portraits

At a recent Christie’s sale preview I saw two portraits that caught my eye due to their frames. It was gratifying to learn that both frames were original to the portraits.

The first, painted in 1844 by Jean-Auguste-Dominique Ingres (1780-1867) is a portrait entitled ‘Ferdinand-Philippe-Louis-Charles-Henri of Bourbon Orleans, Duke of Orleans’. The Duke looks out with an imperturbable, regal bearing from a most elaborate surround inspired by earlier Louis XV style frames with prominent corners and centers and a lavishly decorated inner spandrel.

 It’s interesting to note that Louis XV frames would have been completely hand carved, while this frame, as a 19th century object, utilizes molded and applied composition ornament.

That the frame is original to the portrait is affirmed by a charming watercolor depicting the portrait of the Duke of Orleans in situ in the Grand Salon of Eisenach Castle, painted by the sitter’s younger brother Prince de Joinville in 1849.

Note the portrait in original frame on the wall at right.

The second portrait dates nearly 300 years earlier c.1541 and is by Renaissance painter and tapestry designer Jan Cornelisz Vermeyen (c.1500-c.1559).  The simple arch-top frame is painted black with simple, inner gilded moldings near the sight edge. The bottom of the frame with its canted horizontal rail is referred to as a wasserschlag or rain sill, a popular device in Northern European frames of the period that implies a window inviting the viewer inward.

The identity and position of the sitter is articulated in the script that occupies the central flat of the frame and tells us that it is Joost Aemszoon van der Burch, legal counsel to the Holy Roman Emperor, Charles V at the Council of Brabant.

The elegantly austere surround on the stoic, commanding presence of van der Burch couldn’t be more different from the florid extravagance of the Duke of Orleans and his dispassionate gaze and I am captivated by them both. Both men meet us in perfect attire, each emblematic of his own place and time.

Credit due to the Christie’s cataloging staff for suppling such excellent background on both artworks.

French Louis Frames at The Getty Center

View fullsize

Carved and gilded French Trophy Frame designed by Gilles-Marie Oppenard

A trip in early December 2015 to The Getty Center in Los Angeles provided an opportunity to see some of the finest examples of 17th and 18th Century French frames. I’d reached out to colleague and Getty frame conservator Gene Karraker to make a visit and he was a gracious host. It’s a terrific show and I am thrilled to have been able to see it. I was unexpectedly delighted to see my friend and colleague Lynn Roberts of The Frame Blog (London) there to join us, a special surprise arranged by friends and frame colleagues Rob and Barbara Markoff of San Diego.

The exhibition "Louis Style French Frames 1610-1792” (September 15, 2015- January 3, 2016) surveyed frame design in France when frame design, carving and gilding were at their zenith.  While I am offering here my own cursory impressions and observations of the show, the Getty website has a feature on the exhibition that provides a valuable download-able pdf of all label text with in-depth information on each era and individual frame . Further excellent reading can be found in the 2009 book ‘Looking at European Frames: A Guide to Terms, Styles, and Techniques’ by D. Gene Karraker.

The exhibition is in one high-ceilinged room with both an upper and lower row of frames and I especially appreciated being able to see the range of stylistic evolution from LOUIS XIII to LOUIS XVI frames. It is fascinating to see the use of profiles, forms and ornament as they reflected changing taste in decoration and style. Beautifully patterned Louis XIII frames reflect the Italian influence of the Italian queens Caterina de Medici (reigned 1547-1549) and Marie de Medici (reigned 1610 and mother and regent for the young Louis XIII) and the craftsmen they brought with them. 

View fullsize

Louis XIII frames reflect the influence of Italian design and craftsmanship.

Increasingly ornate frames during the Louis XIV period even occasionally incorporated the sunflower motif- the symbol of the ‘Sun King’.

View fullsize

Note the sunflower motif on the corners of the frame at upper left.

During the transitional Regence period (1715-1723) ‘center and corner’ frames became increasingly popular and lavish surface decoration with nuanced surfaces prevailed.

View fullsize

Center-and-corner frames became increasingly popular during the Regence period.

The most ebullient designs are embodied in the Louis XV style frame when exuberant Rococo ornament, swept sides and pierced carving were utilized to create frames of astonishing beauty and complexity. 

View fullsize

Swept sides and pierced carving are typical of Louis XV frames.

Note the reparure ('recutting') in the surface.

The surfaces are further embellished with recutting (reparure) a method of incising additional detail into the frame surface. The decoration is as delicate as fine jewelry.
The survey concludes with Louis XVI style frames that embody the restraint of Neoclassical forms. Straight edges and linear geometric patterns celebrated antiquity and the recent archaeological discoveries of Herculaneum and Pompeii. The fluted cove style frame first appeared and gilded surfaces used the interplay of matte and burnished surfaces to striking effect.

The final wall includes a didactic section showing tools of the carver and gilder, and images from pattern books and Diderot’s Encyclopedia.

View fullsize

Tools, pattern books and images from Diderot's Encyclopedia.

There’s even a small tablet that allows you to look at four different artworks in several different frame styles to get a feel for what works and what doesn’t.  It’s a wonderful glimpse into the artistry of gifted craftsmen.