Name/Title
The Dark Wood SaugatuckEntry/Object ID
2020.26.04Tags
Collecting the Art CoastDescription
This is a lithograph print made by Thomas Eddy Tallmadge, a prominent prairie style architect. It depicts a dark wooded scene with a body of water off in the horizon in Saugatuck. This could be of any lake, but is most likely to be of the Ox-Bow lagoon, as this is where Tallmadge spent a lot of his time while around town in the summer. Tallmadge bought a large parcel of wooded land as an addition onto the property of the Ox-Bow. The round spaces between tree branches in this print suggest sunlight shining through directed at the artist or viewer of the work. In the foreground there is a decaying log beneath a clearing, one that leads to the lake in the background. In bottom left corner the piece reads: "To Gertrude Hoodruff."Artwork Details
Medium
Etching, PrintSubject
The Dark WoodMade/Created
Artist
Tallmadge, Thomas Eddy 1876-1940Location
Shelf
AC bay 22 small worksRoom
Art Conservation RoomInterpretative Labels
Label
Thomas Eddy Tallmadge
1876 - 1940
The Dark Wood, Saugatuck
c. 1920s | etching
Notes: Tallmadge was born in Washington, D.C., but moved to Evanston, Illinois as a child.He earned a degree in Architecture in 1898 at the Massachusetts Institute of Technology.He taught at the Armour Institute in Chicago 1906-1926, and wrote extensively on architectural history.
Tallmadge was instrumental in securing the property for the Ox-Bow School of Painting and later purchased a large tract of land surrounding the colony to prevent development. That area is now known as Tallmadge Woods.
This etching is an example of Tallmadge’s competence as an etcher.
*adapted from Kit Lane, “Painting the Town”
Collection: Saugatuck Douglas History Center
Gift of: Chris Spencer in memory of Charles Ashbrenner
Accession: 2020.26.04Create Date
December 14, 2020Update Date
April 21, 2025