Lot 51 : John Frederick Peto (1854-1907)

John Frederick Peto - 1854-1907

Auction Location: United States of America - 2008
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Title:

John Frederick Peto (1854-1907)

Description:

John Frederick Peto (1854-1907)
Still Life with Pipe
signed 'J.F. Peto' (lower right)--signed again and dated '86' (on the reverse)
oil on canvas
10 x 14 in. (25.4 x 35.6 cm.)

Provenance:

Private collection, Connecticut.
Acquired by the present owner from the above.

Notes:

John Frederick Peto's Still Life with Pipe of 1886 is a superb example of the tabletop compositions that the artist created throughout his career. In the present work, Peto depicts a library still life, filling a table with books for reading and writing as well as pleasure, all seeming to have been used recently and often: worn edges of books, a melted candle and a quill sitting in its inkwell. "His interest in books for their own sake was also intellectual. A shelf of worn volumes bespoke the pleasures of constant reading--the old masters made familiar. Within these broken bindings and frayed pages reposed the muse of literature. Peto's books stand as embodiments of culture as diverse as the shapes and colors of the volumes themselves. For him books were more than inert things lying around on tables or shelves; they were unexpected but accessible incarnations of art." (J. Wilmerding, Important Information Inside: The Art of John F. Peto and the Idea of Still-Life Painting in the Nineteenth Century, Washington, D.C., 1983, p. 106) This exemplary work can be identified with other works by the artist for, while they depict "Items and utensils in everyday use, they breathe an air of quiet temporality." (Important Information Inside: The Art of John F. Peto and the Idea of Still-Life Painting in the Nineteenth Century, p. 58)

Peto's talent for simplifying a composition without losing the viewer's attention is adeptly demonstrated in Still Life with Pipe. At first glance, the placement seems simple; however, careful consideration shows that it is in fact carefully arranged in a quest for an interesting composition as he has created diagonals where none might naturally exist. For instance, these objects might normally be found stacked on a table, but Peto has orchestrated a scene where the items lean against one another or, as seen with the candlestick, hang off the edge, creating a variety of different angles and shapes to enliven the arrangement. Peto balances the geometrical shapes by juxtaposing the hard lines of the books and table as well as the straight line of the quill with the smooth, curving lines of the bell, inkwell, candle and pipe bowl. The artist also takes care to render textural details, manipulating the surface to reveal the worn leather bound books, the soft wood of the pipe and the melted wax on the candle stick. The color scheme too is consciously conceived as the dark background provides a dramatic backdrop for the objects, which resonate with color. The rich greens of the candlestick and table, the gleaming bell, and the warm browns of the books and pipe are all effectively set off against the unlit background.

Many writers have discussed the manner in which Peto followed William Michael Harnett's subject matter and conceptions for still life and trompe l'oeil as Harnett was the older and more experienced painter. John Wilmerding has described their interaction: "Peto and Harnett soon became friends and genial competitors, undertaking common subjects and compositions over the next couple of decades. But even from Peto's first dated works of about 1878, he practiced a looser style with greater attention to expressive textures and colors...Peto's style was personal and subjective." ("Notes of Change," William M. Harnett, New York, 1992, p. 155) Peto's still lifes are warmer and more familiar as the objects seem lovingly used, disparate to the detachment of Harnett's trompe l'oeils. In Still Life with Pipe Peto follows pictorial conventions, but his more painterly technique, with its expressive paint handling, belies the intention of deceiving the eye. His technique also serves to enhance the metaphoric nature of these works.

John Wilmerding has written, "In contrast to Harnett's objectivity, Peto became increasingly subjective, if not autobiographical. As he did, his paintings gained in confidence and expressiveness; at their best they possess qualities altogether different for those of Harnett but nonetheless comparable in their beauty. What is important to recognize are the ways in which Peto modifies the traditional trompe l'oeil mode. While his paintings do not spell out a literal story, their elements often evoke narrative or anecdotal associations. While he works with effects of illusionistic render of forms in space, visual trickery is seldom an aim in itself. Most of all, while he is capable of totally convincing effects of deception, Peto prefers to exploit, rather than suppress, the mark of his brushwork. Finally, his vision of the genre is more than decorative; instead of a neutral; and self-effacing stance, he makes forms express deeply felt emotion." (Important Information Inside: The Art of John F. Peto and the Idea of Still-Life Painting in the Nineteenth Century, p. 217)