Annual Chrysanthemums
Framed: 38 3/8 × 36 5/8 × 4 1/4 inches (97.47 × 93.03 × 10.8 cm)
- 127
The One Hundred and Twenty-Second Exhibition, The Royal Academy of Arts, London, opened May 5, 1890, no. 13, as Chrysanthèmes d’été.
Eighth Autumn Exhibition, Corporation of Manchester Art Gallery, 1890, no. 250, as Chrysanthèmes d’été.
The Sixty-Fifth Autumn Exhibition, Royal Birmingham Society of Artists, UK, 1891, no. 144, as Summer Chrysanthemums.
Possibly The One Hundred and Thirtieth Exhibition, The Royal Academy of Arts, London, 1898, no. 251, as Chrysanthèmes d’été.
"Flowers" by French Painters, Knoedler Galleries, New York, November 1932, no. 6, as Fleurs diverses dans un vase.
The Development of Flower Painting, City Art Museum of Saint Louis (in association with the Associated Garden Clubs of America), May–June 1937, no. 35, as Flowers in a Vase.
Exhibition of Nineteenth-Century French and American Paintings, Colorado Springs Fine Arts Center, April–June 1938, no cat.
Flower Paintings, The William Rockhill Nelson Gallery of Art and Mary Atkins Museum of Fine Art, Kansas City, MO, May 14–25, 1950, no cat.
Fine Arts Festival, Allyn Art Gallery, Southern Illinois University, Carbondale, February 26–March 10, 1956, no. 8, as Flower Piece.
Flower Paintings, Colorado Springs Fine Art Center, April 10–May 22, 1956, no cat.
Henri Fantin-Latour, 1836–1904, Smith College Museum of Art, Northampton, MA, April 28–June 6, 1966, no. 18, as A Bouquet of Flowers in a Vase.
Fantin-Latour, Galeries nationales du Grand Palais, Paris, November 9, 1982–February 7, 1983; National Gallery of Art, Ottawa, March 17–May 22, 1983; California Palace of the Legion of Honor, San Francisco, June 18–September 6, 1983, no. 102, as Annual Chrysanthemums.
Working Among Flowers: Floral Still-Life Painting in Nineteenth-Century France, Dallas Museum of Art, October 26, 2014–February 8, 2015; Virginia Museum of Fine Arts, Richmond, March 21–June 21, 2015; Denver Art Museum, July 19–October 11, 2015, no. 26, as Chrysanthemums.
Fantin-Latour: À fleur de peau, Musée du Luxembourg, Paris, September 14, 2016–February 12, 2017; Musée de Grenoble, March 18–June 18, 2017, no. 70, as Chrysanthemums.
With Elizabeth "Ruth" (née Escombe, 1833–1907) Edwards, London, by August 14, 1890–at least 1891 [1];
Barr Smith, Adelaide, Australia, possibly by June 1924 [2];
Sold by Lockett Thomson, Barbizon House, London, 1932 [3];
Mrs. John D., New York, before October 15, 1932 [4];
With Galerie Étienne Bignou, Paris, stock no. 2059, and Bignou Gallery, New York, as Les Marguerites and Chrysanthèmes d’été, by October 15, 1932–February 13, 1933 [5];
Purchased from Bignou, through Knoedler and Co., New York, by The Nelson-Atkins Museum of Art, Kansas City, MO, 1933 [6].
NOTES
[1] Ruth Edwards and her husband Edwin Edwards (1823–1879) were patrons of Fantin-Latour and acted as art dealers for him in London. After her husband’s death in 1879, Ruth Edwards continued to act as his agent, selling his works from her London house in Golden Square and submitting works to the Royal Academy and Society of French Artists. See William Gaunt, "Fantin-Latour: In the Maturity of His Art," Connoisseur, no 152 (January–April, 1963): 220–22.
The painting was submitted by Edwards to the Eighth Autumn Exhibition at the Corporation of Manchester Art Gallery in 1890 and on August 14, the sub-committee selected it for exhibition. See GB127.M901/Art Galleries Committee: Art Sub-Committee/2–Oct 1888–Mar 1900, Manchester Central Library. Special thanks to Michelle Owen, archives officer, Archives and Local History, Manchester Central Library. Edwards also submitted the painting a year later to The Sixty-Fifth Autumn Exhibition, Royal Birmingham Society of Artists.
[2] "Barr Smith, Adelaide" is cited in the provenance in Douglas Druick and Michel Hoog, eds., Fantin-Latour, exh. cat. (Paris: Éditions de la Réunion des musées nationaux, 1982), 266.
The constituents were probably Robert (1824–1915) and Joanna (1835–1919) Barr Smith, and/or their son, Australian financier and philanthropist, Thomas Elder Barr Smith (1863–1941). Thomas Elder was reported in June 1924 to own two Fantin-Latour flower pieces, although it is unclear which two these may have been. See Howard Ashton, "Our Southern Collections," Art in Australia 3, no. 8 (June 1924): unpaginated. Thomas Elder had a significant art collection, some of which he had acquired with his wife, Mary Isobel Mitchell (1863–1941), and some of which had been passed down by his parents, Robert and Joanna. The elder Barr Smiths owned five paintings by Fantin-Latour, including four flower pieces that were acquired from the artist through their English friends Edwin and Ruth Edwards. See Sarah Thomas, and Angus Trumble, Vive La France!: Hidden Treasures of French Art (1824–1945) from Adelaide Collections, exh. cat. (Adelaide: Art Gallery of South Australia, 1998), 49.
[4] According to a handwritten note on a photograph of the painting in the Bignou Gallery albums, the painting was in the "collection of Mrs. John D., New York." See Frick Art Reference Library Archives, New York, Bignou Gallery Albums, MS.024, Album 1: Boudin, Fantin-Latour.
It is possible that Mrs. John D. is Abigail Greene "Abby" Aldrich Rockefeller (1874–1948), wife of American businessman John Davidson Rockefeller Jr. (1839–1937), whom she married in 1901. Abby was an avid art collector and the driving force behind the foundation of the Museum of Modern Art, which opened in November 1929. She often lent works anonymously to the Museum of Modern Art under the name Mrs. John D.
[5] See Frick Art Reference Library Archives, New York, Bignou Gallery Albums, MS.024, Album 1: Boudin, Fantin-Latour; and Musée d’Orsay, Paris, Albums BIGNOU ODO 1996-29, Bobine N°20, Boîte 11, Fantin-Latour, Clichés 235–36. For beginning date of ownership, see letter from Étienne Bignou to M. Knoedler and Co., New York, October 15, 1932, Getty Research Institute, Los Angeles, M. Knoedler and Co. records, approximately 1848–1971, Series VI.A. General correspondence, 1879–1971, box 568. The letter includes a list of paintings being sent from Bignou in Paris to Knoedler in New York for the "Flowers" by French Painters exhibition, which opened in November 1932.
[6] The painting appears in Knoedler’s Foreign Consignment Book, which records consignments from foreign firms that were received by the Knoedler office in New York. This seems to indicate that while Knoedler was responsible for the sale to the Nelson-Atkins, the painting was still the property of Bignou. See Getty Research Institute, Los Angeles, M. Knoedler and Co. records, approximately 1848–1971, Series III Commission books, 1879–1973, box 110, Foreign consignment book 2, 1915 November–1936 October, p. 68, stock no. 838, as Fleurs diverses dans un vase; and Series II. Sales books, box 75, Sales book 15, 1928 January–1944 December, p. 159, stock no. F-838, as Fleurs diverses dans un vase; and box 274, Daybook 1932–33, p. 35, which records the sale and shipment of the painting to the museum in January and February 1933. Thank you to Karen Meyer-Roux, Sally McKay, and Mahsa Hatam of the Getty Archives for their research on our behalf.
Eighth Autumn Exhibition, exh. cat. (Manchester: Corporation of Manchester Art Gallery, 1890), 23, as Chrysanthèmes d’été.
The One Hundred and Twenty-Second Exhibition, exh. cat. (London: Royal Academy of Arts, 1890), 5, as Chrysanthèmes d’été.
Henry Blackburn, Academy Notes: With Illustrations of the Principal Pictures at Burlington House (London: Chatto and Windus, 1890), 16:5, as Summer Chrysanthemums.
Harry Quilter, "The Art of England: The Royal Academy," The Universal Review 7, no. 25 (May 1890): 45.
"Fine Arts: The Royal Academy (First Notice)," The Athenaeum, no. 3262 (May 3, 1890): 575, as Chrysanthèmes d’Été.
"Royal Academy," Observer (London) (May 11, 1890): 5.
"Fine Arts: The Royal Academy (Third and Concluding Notice)," The Athenaeum, no. 3265 (May 24, 1890): 680, as Chrysanthèmes d’Été.
Paul Leroi, "Chronique des Expositions: Les trois principales Expositions de Londres," Courrier de l’art 10, no. 27 (July 4, 1890): 214.
M[arion] H[arry] Spielmann, "Current Art: The Royal Academy—II," The Magazine of Art 13 (1890): 260.
The Sixty-Fifth Autumn Exhibition, exh. cat. (Birmingham, United Kingdom: Royal Birmingham Society of Artists, 1891), 26, as Summer Chrysanthemums.
Possibly The One Hundred and Thirtieth Exhibition, exh. cat. (London: The Royal Academy of Arts, 1898), 14, as Chrysanthèmes d’été.
Possibly "The Royal Academy," Times (London), no. 35,516 (May 14, 1898): 16.
Algernon Graves, ed., A Dictionary of Artists who Have Exhibited Works in the Principal London Exhibitions from 1700 to 1893, 3rd ed. (Bath, UK: Kingsmead Reprints, 1901), 95.
[Victoria] Fantin-Latour, Catalogue de l’Œuvre Complet de Fantin-Latour (1849–1904) (Paris: H. Floury, 1911), no. 1373, p. 144, as Chrysanthèmes.
Possibly Howard Ashton, "Our Southern Collections;" and possibly Lionel Lindsay, "Fantin," Art in Australia 3, no. 8 (June 1924): unpaginated.
Frank Gibson, The Art of Henri Fantin-Latour: His Life and Work (London: Drane’s ltd, 1924).
Lockett Thomson, Barbizon House: An Illustrated Record (London: Barbizon House, 1932), 11, (repro.), as Coreopsis.
"Flowers" by French Painters (XIX–XX Centuries), exh. cat. (New York: Knoedler Galleries, 1932), unpaginated, (repro.), as Fleurs diverses dans un vase.
Margaretta Salinger, "On View at the New York Galleries," Parnassus 4, no. 6 (November 1932): 9, (repro.), as Fleurs diverses dans un vase.
Edward Alden Jewell, "French Paintings Exhibited at Knoedler’s Ranging From Late in Eighteenth Century to the Present Day," New York Times 82, no. 27, 317 (November 8, 1932): 28.
M[inna] K. P[owell], "In Gallery and Studio," Kansas City Star 53, no. 196 (April 1, 1933): 5, as Fleurs Diverses dans un Vase.
"Nelson Gallery, Kansas City, Acquires Art Covering Wide Range," Art Digest 7, no. 13 (April 1, 1933): 7, as Fleurs Diverses dans un Vase.
"Nelson Gallery of Art Special Number," Art Digest 8, no. 5 (December 1, 1933): 21, as Flower Piece.
"The William Rockhill Nelson Gallery of Art, Kansas City Special Number," Art News 32, no. 10 (December 9, 1933): 28, 30, 46, (repro), as Flower Piece.
Luigi Vaiani, "Art Dream Becomes Reality with Official Gallery Opening at Hand: Critic Views Wide Collection of Beauty as Public Prepares to Pay its First Visit to Museum," Kansas City Journal-Post 80, no. 187 (December 11, 1933): 7, as Flower Piece.
The William Rockhill Nelson Gallery of Art and Mary Atkins Museum of Fine Arts, Handbook of the William Rockhill Nelson Gallery of Art (Kansas City, MO: William Rockhill Nelson Gallery of Art and Mary Atkins Museum of Fine Arts, 1933), 54, 137, (repro.), as Flower Piece.
A. J. Philpott, "Kansas City Now in Art Center Class: Nelson Gallery, Just Opened, Contains Remarkable Collection of Paintings, Both Foreign and American," Boston Sunday Globe 125, no. 14 (January 14, 1934): 16.
Musical Bulletin 23, no. 3 (December 1934).
The Development of Flower Painting, exh. cat. (Saint Louis, MO: City Art Museum of Saint Louis, 1937), 16, 27, (repro.), as Flowers in a Vase.
M[eyric] R. R[ogers], "The Development of Flower Painting: From the Seventeenth Century to the Present," Bulletin of the City Art Museum of St. Louis 22 (May 1937): 16, 27, (repro.), as Flowers in a Vase.
"Museum Directors Have to Play Detective Now and Then," Kansas City Star 58, no. 210 (April 15, 1938): 14, as Flower Piece.
The William Rockhill Nelson Gallery of Art and Mary Atkins Museum of Fine Arts, The William Rockhill Nelson Collection, 2nd ed. (Kansas City, MO: William Rockhill Nelson Gallery of Art and Mary Atkins Museum of Fine Arts, 1941), 168, as Flower Piece.
"Loan Exhibitions: Flower Paintings," Gallery News (The William Rockhill Nelson Gallery of Art and Mary Atkins Museum of Fine Art) 16, no. 8 (May 1950): unpaginated, as Flower Piece.
Fine Arts Festival, exh. cat. (Carbondale, IL: Southern Illinois University, 1956), unpaginated, as Flower Piece.
Ross E. Taggart, ed., Handbook of the Collections in the William Rockhill Nelson Gallery of Art and Mary Atkins Museum of Fine Arts, 4th ed. (Kansas City, MO: William Rockhill Nelson Gallery of Art and Mary Atkins Museum of Fine Arts, 1959), 260, Flower Piece.
Fantin-Latour, 1836–1904: An Exhibition Organized by the Smith College Museum of Art (Northampton, MA: Smith College of Art, 1966), unpaginated, as A Bouquet of Flowers in a Vase.
Frank Anderson Trapp, "Fantin-Latour at Smith College," Burlington Magazine 108, no. 760 (July 1966): 394, as A Bouquet of Flowers in a Vase.
Ellen Goheen, "From Romanticism to Pop," Apollo 96, no. 130 (December 1972): 544, (repro.), as Flower Piece.
Ross E. Taggart and George L. McKenna, eds., Handbook of the Collections in The William Rockhill Nelson Gallery of Art and Mary Atkins Museum of Fine Arts, Kansas City, Missouri, vol. 1, Art of the Occident, 5th ed. (Kansas City, MO: William Rockhill Nelson Gallery of Art and Mary Atkins Museum of Fine Arts, 1973), 159, (repro.), as Flower Piece.
Edward Lucie-Smith, Fantin-Latour (Oxford: Phaidon, 1977), 150, 159, (repro.), Flower-piece.
Douglas Druick and Michel Hoog, eds., Fantin-Latour, exh. cat. (Paris: Éditions de la Réunion des musées nationaux, 1982), 50, 268–70, (repro.), as Annual Chrysanthemums.
Elisabeth Hardouin-Fugier, "Fantin-Latour, peintre de fleurs," Gazette Des Beaux-Arts 113, no. 1442 (March 1989): 140.
Roger Ward and Patricia J. Fidler, eds., The Nelson-Atkins Museum of Art: A Handbook of the Collection (New York: Hudson Hills Press, in association with Nelson-Atkins Museum of Art, 1993), 211, (repro.), as Chrysanthemums.
Alice Thorson, "Uncover the Painting, Discover the Past: Restoring Artwork Can Be a Touchy Job for This Conservator," Kansas City Star (June 9, 1998): E1, as Chrysanthemums.
Koji Ariki, Fantin-Latour: Retrospective Exhibition, exh. cat. (Utsunomiya-shi, Japan: Utsunomiya Museum of Art, 1998), 278, 280, as Chrysanthèmes d’été.
Kirk Richards and Stephen Gjertson, For Glory and For Beauty: Practical Perspectives on Christianity and the Visual Arts (Minneapolis, MN: Bruce Printing, 2002), 139, (repro.), as Chrysanthemums.
Valérie M. C. Bajou, "Fantin-Latour family," Grove Art Online (2003): https://doi.org/10.1093/gao/9781884446054.article.T027517.
Yves Bourel et al., Fantin-Latour: De la Réalité au Rêve, exh. cat. (Lausanne: Bibliothèque des arts, 2007), 79.
Deborah Emont Scott, ed., The Nelson-Atkins Museum of Art: A Handbook of the Collection, 7th ed. (Kansas City, MO: Nelson-Atkins Museum of Art, 2008), 124, (repro), as Chrysanthemums.
Vincent Pomarède et al., Henri Fantin-Latour (1836–1904), exh. cat. (Madrid: Colección Thyssen-Bornemisza, 2009), 177, 259, as Crisantemos anuales (Chrysanthèmes Annuels).
Laure Dalon, Fantin-Latour: À fleur de peau, exh. cat. (Paris: Réunion des musées nationaux, 2016), 130, 140–41, (repro.), as Chrysanthemums.
Laure Dalon, Henri Fantin-Latour, 1836–1904: Journal de l’Artiste, l’Album de l’Exposition, exh. cat. (Paris: Réunion des musées nationaux, 2016), 34–35, (repro.), as Chrysanthèmes.
Sylvie Brame and François Lorenceau, Henri Fantin-Latour, cat. rais. (Paris: Brame et Lorenceau, forthcoming).
Brigid M. Boyle, “Henri Fantin-Latour, Annual Chrysanthemums, 1889,” catalogue entry and Sophia Boosalis, “Henri Fantin-Latour, Annual Chrysanthemums, 1889,” technical entry in French Paintings and Pastels, 1600–1945: The Collections of the Nelson-Atkins Museum of Art, ed. Aimee Marcereau DeGalan (Kansas City: The Nelson-Atkins Museum of Art, 2024), https://doi.org/10.37764/78973.5.516.
