Edward Mitchell Bannister (CANADIAN-AMERICAN, C. 1828-1901), ATTRIBUTED, LANDSCAPE PAINTING

Lot description

EDWARD MITCHELL BANNISTER (CANADIAN-AMERICAN, C. 1828-1901), ATTRIBUTED, LANDSCAPE PAINTING, oil on canvas, a fine Tonalist view of a river on a sunny day with figures and haystacks on the bank in the foreground, probably a Rhode Island scene, possibly the Palmer River, no signature located. Housed in a period molded giltwood frame. Circa 1885. 17" x 26" sight, 24 1/2" x 33 1/2" OA. Catalogue Note: Born in New Brunswick, Canada, Edward Mitchell Bannister (1833-1901) was an important artist of color who worked in the fourth quarter of the 19th century. He first arrived in the United States around 1848 when he is recorded as a barber in Boston, Massachusetts. Always keenly interested in the arts, Bannister began studying painting under Dr. William Rimmer at the Lowell Institute in the mid 1860s. By 1870, the artist had moved to Providence, Rhode Island, where he would remain, becoming an important part of the artistic community in that city during the last quarter of the 19th century. In 1876, he submitted a work titled Under the Oaks to the Centennial Exposition in Philadelphia, where, much to the chagrin of the prize committee who were unaware of his racial identity, he was awarded a bronze medal. In the wake of this new recognition, Bannister's career as a landscape painter blossomed, and his work, often executed en plein air in a Tonalist style, became much sought after amongst wealthy Rhode Island patrons. Sadly, towards the end of the 19th century, with the rise of Jim Crow in the South and the increase in institutionalized forms of racism throughout rest of the country, Bannister's work fell out of favor with the elite near Providence. It is even conjectured by scholars and collectors that his signature may have been removed from many of his works, which is entirely possible for the present landscape. Bannister scholar, Anne Louise Avery, authenticated the present painting in 2017, and a copy of her report accompanies the lot. In it she states "[d]espite the lack of signature and direct provenance, multiple elements of [the present landscape] point towards its authenticity as a painting by African American artist Edward Mitchell Bannister." She also mentions that the absence of a signature is "not unusual amongst Bannister's works."