River-front

River-front

Item Information

Title:
River-front
Description:
East River, New York City. A favourite theme for both paintings and lithographs. (Bellows) / The river theme appeared repeatedly throughout the artist's career. The earliest painting on the subject, "River Rats," was done in 1906, just two years after Bellows arrived in New York. The lithograph, with its reversed image, is more formally structured. "River-Front" is one of the numerous works obviously influenced by Bellows dedication to Jay Hambidge's theory of Dynamic Symmetry that Charles H. Morgan described as "a series of geometric formulae governing the relationship of squares and rectangles within a composition." The vertically of the boy in the center is heightened by the lone building. The tugboat stretches the horizontal line formed by the dock. Two sails complete the triangle. "River-Front" is less realistic than "Splinter Beach" (M. 28); when the artist returned to the scene he had described earlier as "bathing urchins under the Brooklyn Bridge," he concentrated on geometry rather than on humanity. (Mason)
Artist:
Bellows, George, 1882-1925
Printer:
Brown, Bolton, 1864-1936
Name on Item:
Geo Bellows ; Bolton Brown - imp.
Date:
1923–1924
Format:
Prints
Genre:
Lithographs
Location:
Boston Public Library
Arts Department
Collection (local):
George Bellows (1882-1925). Prints and Drawings
Subjects:
Nudes
Swimmers
Waterfronts
Piers & wharves
Places:
New York > New York
Extent:
1 print : lithograph ; sheet 44 x 58 cm
Permalink:
https://ark.digitalcommonwealth.org/ark:/50959/7d279x05r
Terms of Use:
No known copyright restrictions.
No known restrictions on use.
Notes:
Title from Mason catalogue raisonné.
Mason: M. 168; Bellows: B. 24
Additional information accompanying item: In pencil, "Bolton Brown imp," "Geo Bellows."
Notes (acquisition):
Gift; Albert H. Wiggin
Notes (date):
Date from Mason catalogue raisonné.
Notes (citation):
Mason, Lauris. "The lithographs of George Bellows : a catalogue raisonné." KTO Press, 1977, Millwood, N.Y.
Bellows, Emma. "George W. Bellows : his lithographs." A. A. Knopf, 1927, New York.
Accession #:
1941.1.194
Identifier:
06_05_000093
W. 2859 (no longer used)
Barcode:
36666003815129