ICHABOD CRANE AT A BALL AT VAN TASSEL'S MANSION

Art

Historic Hudson Valley

Name/Title

ICHABOD CRANE AT A BALL AT VAN TASSEL'S MANSION

Entry/Object ID

SS.64.556 a-b

Description

a. Painting: Party scene painted primarily in shades of brown with Ichabod Crane and Katrina Van Tassel dancing foreground: Ichabod Crane wears green jacket, brown knee breeches, white stockings and brown shoes; Crane caught in awkward pose, back to audience with left elbow bent and hand extended, right arm with elbow bent and hand extended toward Katrina, left leg bent, weight resting on toes, holding bent right leg with pointed toe; Katrina's dress is boat-necked, red short sleeved top with pointed bodice and short, white skirt, both hands are on skirt, left hand holds skirt up waist high; appears to be dancing on toes while smiling at Crane; to the right, before a red curtain, a black fiddler with grotesque smiling face sits on bench, leaning to the right, with right foot and elbow extended; round-faced figure behind back with O-shaped mouth sitting in country style bannister-back chair; behind him fire blazes in fireplace, one andiron visible; mantle holds two burning candles, in background three apertures visible, possibly one door and one window; over them hangs a gun and powderhorn; three figures stand on staircase in left rear watching dancers; to the left of Ichabod Crane and in front of the staircase dance a man and woman; he dances with hands on hips and bowed legs in blue jacket, white waistcoat and breeches, the woman has one foot in the air and elbows bent and pointed outwards; she is dressed in a blue striped skirt, floral top with white background, white neckerchief trimmed in floral decoration and white cap; in the background there are at least eight people including a woman in a white and blue striped dress performing an arabesque; a turned chair with rush seat lies overturned in the right foreground, a dog howls in the left; inscribed "John Quidor/1855/N.Y." on back. b. Frame

Artwork Details

Medium

Canvas, Oil Paint, wood (unidentified), Gilt, Canvas, oil paint, wood (unidentified), gilt

Collection

Sunnyside Object Collection

Made/Created

Artist Information

Artist

John Quidor

Attribution

Artist

Date made

1855

Inscription/Signature/Marks

Type

Inscription

Transcription

(See Description)

Other Names and Numbers

Other Numbers

SP 2298

SS.64.556

Dimensions

Dimension Description

Framed

Height

32 in

Width

41 in

Depth

3-1/4 in

Dimension Notes

Display Dimensions: 32 x 41 x 3 1/4 in. (81.3 x 104.1 x 8.3 cm)

Condition

Notes

Remarks: Paintings conservator Felicity Campbell examined the Quidor in preparation for it traveling with the American Dance exhibition planned for 2015 (three venues); Collections Manager Jessa Krick was especially interested in determining if a cleaning was necessary, as the painting has a overall yellow cast to it. Felicity examined the painting under black light and saw that certain areas had been cleaned and retouched at a previous date (no record in the object files), in particular the areas with white: the back upper torso of the dancing woman on the left side of Ichabod; Ichabod, Katrina, and the area over the mantle (all very clearly seen under black light). There was some sort of significant repair and/or retouching at upper left (now the area is very dark and hard to determine, the area of repair/retouching was about 3" square at upper left but not at upper left corner, more along the top left margin and extending into canvas); Felicity discussed a Quidor she had conserved for the Newark Museum and how challenging it had been with a "pitted" or "orange peel" surface which she also took note of in HHV's example and suspects is characteristic of either Quidor's technique or his paints. She thought removing the uniform varnish, although it is yellow, would not only draw attention to the underlying isses with the surface but create more problems and turn this into a significant conservation project. Any old retouching would likely need to be redone, as well as mitigating the fine white stippling or pitting she identified. In short, she was of the opinion that although the painting does have surface dirt (which she tested with a swab), it is still very readable, particularly if one takes time to examine details like the dog at lower left, people on balcony at upper left, etc. She advised doing nothing to treat the painting for this loan and determined it was stable and safe to travel, having been wax-lined, having backing board, suitable hardware and a sturdy frame.

Notes

Remarks: Painting with slight cracking throughout; speck on woman's skirt behind Crane; wear on paint from frame on lower right corner and 5" below upper right corner. Frame with overall abrasions and gilt loss; brown-colored accretion left side of frame, 12" from top; carved foliate molding with cracks at approximate 3/4" intervals. Liner has separation in all four corners and loss of gilt on upper left corner.

Notes

Remarks: Painting with slight cracking throughout; frame with overall abrasions and minor gilt loss; brown-colored accretion left side of frame, 12" from top; carved foliate molding with cracks at approximate 3/4" intervals.

Relationships

Related Person or Organization

Person or Organization

Joseph Harrison Jr.

Notes

Former owner

Person or Organization

Thomas B. Clarke

Notes

Former owner

General Notes

Note Type

Curatorial Remarks

Note

The relevant quote from "Legend" appears on a frame plaque: "Ichabod prided himself upon his dancing as much as upon his vocal powers. Not a limb, not a fiber about his was idle and to have seen his loosely hung frame in full motion, and clattering about the room, you would have though that St. Vitus himself, that blessed patron of dance, was figuing before you in person." The painted frame plaque with a quote from "Legend" has been removed, but will be returned to its place on the frame for the loan to the New-York Historical Society. John Quidor also painted several other literary subjects, many based on Irving. Quidor's works include a chase scene from "Legend" now in the Smithsonian Museum of American Art, The Money Diggers (The Brooklyn Museum), Wolfert's Will (the Brooklyn Museum), Wolfert Webber at the Inn (High Museum), Dorothea (the Brooklyn Museum), Vigilant Stuyvesant at the Wall Street Gate and Leatherstocking's Rescue (both MMA), The Return of Rip Van Winkle (National Gallery of Art), Antony Van Corlear Brought Into The Presence of Peter Stuyvesant 1839 (Munson-Williams-Proctor Arts Institute), The Flight of Tom Walker (Fine Art Museums of San Francisco), The Devil and Tom Walker (Cleveland Museum of Art), The Embarkation from Commipaw (Detroit Institute of the Arts) and Voyage to Hell Gate from Communipaw (Wichita Museum of Art). William Gerdts "has suggested that Quidor's associaion with Henry Inman, who had been a fellow apprentice in Jarvis' studio, may have been inspirational to the stylistic development of Quidor's literary paintings." For Visions exhibition, packed in Crate #9.

Note Type

General Note

Note

According to Joseph T. Butler, the inscription "John Quidor/1855/N.Y." on back may have been copied from the original inscription. Included in the Bicentennial Inventory of American Paintings Executed Before 1914 by the National Collection of Fine Arts/Smithsonian Institution in 1976. The letter from Mrs. Gravan to Dr. Hugh Rowell of Philipse Castle initiaiting the donation is dated 10/30/1951. The painting was donated the Selantic Fund for expediency, since "a new corporation has been formed called Sleepy Hollow Restorations... collections will presently be transferred to the new organization." The painting has been in the SHR/HHV collection since 1951, although the accession number is SS.64.556 a-b. Used for the Historic Hudson Valley annual Christmas card in 2015.

Note Type

StorageNote

Note

Home Location: Historic Hudson Valley, Union Church, Storage, Unit 3 Slot 4