Franklin Watkins 1931 Oil Painting "Clown with Bouquet"
Item Details
Franklin Chenault “Watty” Watkins (Pennsylvania, 1894 – 1972)
Clown with Bouquet, 1931
Oil painting on canvas
Initialed “F.W.” to the lower right
Inscribed to the verso “Watkins – 31”
Presented in a carved wood frame
Descriptive gallery labels from Juddy Goffman Fine Art are affixed to the verso
An oil painting on canvas titled Clown with Bouquet by well-listed American artist Franklin Chenault ‘Watty’ Watkins (1894 – 1972), created in 1931. The work depicts the gestural portrait of a seated clown portrayed with a disquieted expression while holding a voluminous bouquet of flowers. The piece is initialed ‘F.W.’ to the lower right and inscribed with date and artist’s last name to the verso. The composition is presented in a carved wood frame with a distressed painted finish.
Nicknamed ‘Watty’, Franklin Watkins was especially known for his style that emerged in the 1920s, described as ‘dramatic realism’ that often featured expressionistic handling, distorted figures, and dramatic diagonals. The artist attended the Pennsylvania Academy of the Fine Arts, and studied under Cecilia Beaux; however his studies were put on hold when he enlisted in the Navy for World War I. After the war, he traveled throughout Europe studying the Old Masters, all the while developing his signature style, creating paintings that often featured introspective portraits and symbolic still lifes. Watkins was the recipient of several awards including a Bronze medals at the 1937 Paris International Exposition, a Bronze medal and the Musée Jeu de Paume in 1938, and the Carnegie International Exhibition First Award for his controversial work Suicide in Costume. A retrospective of his work was held at the Museum of Modern Art in 1950. Other institutions that have exhibited and collected his work include the Smithsonian American Art Museum, the Philadelphia Museum of Art, the Corcoran Gallery of Art, and the Vatican Museum, among others.
Condition
- wear, scratches, areas of discoloration and finish loss throughout the frame; minor areas of paint loss throughout the edges of canvas; overall craquelure and negligible toning throughout the painting; under UV light examination minimal areas of inpainting area revealed throughout the composition, especially throughout the edges; this canvas has been relined.
Dimensions
- measures the frame; sight size 30" W x 25" H.
Item #
ITMG178758
