Lines of Thought

OLD LYME, CONN. -Drawn entirely from a private Connecticut collection, "Lines of Thought: American Works on Paper from a Private Collection" is an exhibition of 50 rarely-seen watercolors, pastels and drawings by American artists working in the realist tradition from the 1850s to the present day.

The exhibition is a celebration not only of the subtlety and refinement of actual lines on paper revealing artists' thoughts, but also of two collectors' passion.

The collectors' insights into their assemblage are expressed both in the wall labels and in an essay in the exhibition catalogue.

The collection was not amassed with the goal of creating a comprehensive survey of American art - although notable masters of drawing and watercolor are well represented - rather it is unified by the quality and beauty of the works. With works on paper by American masters together with superb examples by lesser-known artists, "Lines of Thought" provides an intimate view into the accomplishments of American artists working in watercolor, pastel and pencil and suggests the hard-won skills they used to create lines of artistic thought, ranging from the spontaneous to the most infinitely detailed.

One of the major trends in American art represented in the exhibition is a focus on landscape and nature. Works on paper by leading landscapists in the Hudson River School tradition, including Thomas Cole and Thomas Moran, will be on view. Cole's "Indian Summer" and Moran's "Hot Springs, Yellowstone," with their views of both pastoral and wilderness settings, are strong examples of the Hudson River School aesthetic. The landscapes and city scenes by Twentieth Century artist Ogden Pleissner share the Hudson River School's emphasis on the detailed depiction of nature.

Toward the end of the Nineteenth Century and the beginning of the Twentieth Century, with the introduction of the European styles, Impressionism became the dominant mode, and the American Impressionist landscape is represented by John Henry Twachtman's "Hillside," Colin Campbell Cooper's "Ponte Vecchio" and Charles Adams Platt's "At the Wharf."

Pre-Raphaelite sensibility, with its focus on "truth to nature," is the theme of several Nineteenth Century works included in the exhibition. Landscapes and seascapes by a leading member of the American Pre-Raphaelite group, William Trost Richards, are marked for their meticulous realism. Ellen Robbin's "Wild Strawberry," a close-up view of a grassy patch of earth; Henry Roderick Newman's "Anemones," a flower study; and Ellen Thayer Fisher's "Poppies," a depiction of flowers growing in a natural setting, are minutely rendered, intimate views of nature.

Baron Ernst von Maydell's whimsical watercolors also portray focused natural settings. Similarly, the highly detailed still lifes by three Twentieth Century Realists, Paul Cadmus, James Aponivich and Daniel Massad, are reminiscent of Nineteenth Century Pre-Raphaelite works because of their concern for accurate description.

Portraiture and figurative work are also represented in the exhibition and many of the examples include depictions of women and children. Among them, John Singer Sargent's "Lady in a Bonnet," Winslow Homer's head studies of a young girl, Julian Alden Weir's "In the Pram," Lilian Wescott Hale's "The Veil," Edmund Tarbells' "Profile," J. Carroll Beckwith's "An American Queen," and Rosina Emmett Sherwood's "Cynthia Holding Baby Ros" are sensitive and intimate works. Two Nineteenth Century genre works also feature women: George Henry Boughton's "Flossie" is a depiction of a girl sitting on a stone bench in a lush forest, subject matter that may represent the courtship theme, and Francis Davis Millet's "Before the Bath" is a harem picture that shows a woman bathing in an eastern interior.

Accompanying the exhibition is a catalogue, including a checklist of the works on paper and essays by the lenders and by Charles Price, emeritus professor of art history at Connecticut College.

The Florence Griswold Museum is a National Historic Landmark located at 96 Lyme Street in the heart of the historic district in Old Lyme, Conn.

The view afforded by our window in the early morning always has something to behold - often subtle, sometimes dramatic. The changes, whether because of season, the elements or the random wanderings of various creatures, captivate and inspire. There are the predictable days, when we are simply pleased to be alive and well, and there are the unexpected mornings, enchanting for the quality of light, atmosphere, or surprising details. Those are the days that reawaken the joy and wonder of having that view once again.

Our life as collectors has a similarly serendipitous nature to it: We are always looking out that window, with little control over what the subtleties of the view might be or whether there will be a particularly magical element to it. In much the same way we have gradually assembled this group of drawings and watercolors, more by chance and circumstance than by design. Any given day may bring an opportunity to be romanced by a new discovery.

These works are very much a part of our home, hanging alongside oil paintings, fitting together both physically and aesthetically. In fact, it was only recently that the depth (or at least size) of the collection of works on paper became evident. We had not set out to specialize in the medium; rather, from piece to piece, we found ourselves drawing to the delicacy, refinement and sheer beauty of each work.

Our guiding principle in collecting both works on paper and oil paintings has always been how a work affects us as well as the quality and affordability of each piece. There is, however, a special appeal to what a fine artist can create in a drawing, watercolor, or pastel. There is a freshness, a spontaneity, and a directness that convey so much more of the core vision and talent of the artist. Mistakes can't be over-painted, artist changes are dramatically limited; the final work is purely of the artist's instincts more than from his labor.

We have never set out specifically to find and acquire a work by a certain artist - we have waited for paintings to move us. To be sure, there are a number of artists whose work we have always admired, and we can't help but hope that one day we will have the opportunity to find a work by one of our favorites. There is a certain appeal to focusing and directing a collection.

It would be fascinating to assemble a collection that thoroughly studies each period of American art history, including each of the notable artists of every period. But that is not our goal. Instead we have chosen to let the focus of our collection be our response to individual works, regardless of whether our choices are redundant or out of the mainstream. As such, there can never be any specific "gaps" in the collection.

Whether because of the medium, subject matter, execution, or quality of the work, there is a strong sense we get in every piece that we have come very close to the artist. Each of these works represents a very personal and immediate link to the individual artist's talent, sensitivity, vision and self, and it strikes a chord in our own emotions.

From the little landscape gem by Thomas Cole and the fine atmospheric views by William Hamilton Gibson, to the charming baby in her carriage by J. Alden Weir, the still lifes by Paul Cadmus, and the whimsical fantasies by Baron Ernst von Maydell, the drawings are barely linked, except by our own whim.

There really are no extraneous works in this group. While the artists may or may not be familiar or the subjects related in any way, the drawings are meaningful to us. Our acquisitive nature and eclectic taste afford us our own element of spontaneity and a chance to act on our instincts. We feel fortunate and grateful to have and to share our passion.

Our collection (perhaps it would be better termed an assemblage) will never be complete. We may or may not add to it physically, but mentally we will, we hope, bring many more works into our own experience. That, after all, is the thrill and satisfaction of enjoying and, when possible, owning art. The experience of encountering a person, a view, or works of art that evoke passion and give pleasure is indeed a great gift. We are honored, as we believe the artists themselves are, to share these personal views with you.

The collectors' remarks are excerpted from the longer essay that appears in Lines of Thought, the catalogue accompanying the exhibit at the Florence Griswold Museum.