† Robert Melvin Decker (American/New York, 1847-1921), "Winter Landscape, Adirondacks," oil on cardboard plate, monogrammed "RMD" lower left, presented in a shadow box frame,
Decker, Robert Melvin (American/New York, 1847-1921), Flowering Trees, late 19th century, oil on canvas. Signed lower right. 20 x 34 inches, in composite and gilt frame 28.5 x 42 inches.
Robert Melvin Decker (Am. 1847 - 1921) oil on canvas, a panoramic landscape with lake and mountain scene, signed lower right, R.M. Decker. Canvas 6” x 24”, Overall in a period gilt wood frame, 11.5” x 29.5”.
Approximately 6 1/2" by 9 1/2" unframed and 7 1/2" by 10 1/2" framed. Robert Melvin Decker (1847 - 1921) was active/lived in New York. Robert Decker is known for Landscape. Information for the following biography was submitted by Harry Haberman, and is protected by copyright. "It is the fate of the artist, with an occasional exception, not to receive recognition during his life-time. The fortunes of a few sometimes improve after they die and one or two may achieve recognition and even fame. But it is the height of irony for an artist to be successful and famous during his lifetime and then to be completely forgotten shortly after death. Robert M. Decker has suffered such a fate." -H. Haberman Robert M. Decker was born in Troy, New York on June 8, 1847. He was well known during his career for his Realist paintings of Adirondack scenes, and especially for his winter themes. Unlike many artists, Decker was quite famous and successful during his lifetime, but became almost completely forgotten after his death. When Decker was still a child, his mother died, and his father, a furniture manufacturer, remarried. Decker's stepmother treated him poorly, and the boy had an unhappy childhood and youth. He had little formal education and never graduated from high school. He was, however, a copious reader in every sort of subject. Barbara Decker Wood, Decker's granddaughter, once shared in an interview that he was a direct descendant of Joshua Reynolds. Decker studied painting under R. Swain Gifford and in 1883, when Decker was thirty-six he received his first important recognition at the National Academy of Design for his painting "Morning Among the Rockaway Hills", which was bought by the Peabody family. Later when the Peabody collection was put up for sale at Silo's Gallery in New York, that painting was in the company of such great artists as Corot, D.F. Dubigny, Bierstadt, and Courbet, among others. Also in 1883, in addition to the exhibition at the National Academy of Design, Decker exhibited a painting, 'November Twilight', in the annual exhibition of the Brooklyn Art Association. It was priced at $75, which for those days was a substantial price, considering that the Association at the time was renting a whole floor for its art school at 201-202 Montague Street for $240 for an entire year. Between 1883 and 1885 Decker worked out of a studio at 191 Montague Street in Brooklyn Heights, New York. From 1885 he also owned a studio at Lake George, The Hague, in the Adirondacks, New York. It was a lovely two-story building on a terrace eighty feet above the lake. Verandas surrounded the house and its windows looked out onto wonderful views of the lake, the woods, the hills and the mountains, and it was this beauty that inspired most of his paintings. From this time on Decker seemed to have been considered an artist of some achievement. He worked and exhibited regularly at one studio or another, spending part of the year in Brooklyn Heights, and the rest at Lake George. He was a member of the Brooklyn Art Club, a club open only to professional artists, and first exhibited his paintings at their exhibition in 1889. He enjoyed consistent gratifying sales and critical praise, especially from the Brooklyn newspapers. Among his patrons was Mrs. F.O. French, the mother of Mrs. Alfred Vanderbilt, and she purchased one of his finest works, ' Autumn'. Robert Decker was known to have exhibited at the following: Meyers Fine Art Gallery, University at Plattsburgh; Hyde Collection, Glens Falls, N.Y.; Montauk Club, Long Island; Pittsburgh Athletic Club; Williams and Everett, Boston; Gillespies, Pittsburgh; Helman-Taylor Galleries, Cleveland; Hillside House, Adirondacks. An early article by an art critic from the 'New York Herald' describes Decker's paintings as 'notable examples of art subordinated to nature, as all true art should be...' and goes on to refer to specific winter scenes that he viewed and enjoyed. Another 'N.Y. Herald' critic once stated 'there are few whose love of nature is more intense than Mr. Decker's' and that the way Decker manages with his art to convey nature's movement and moods in his snow scenes leaves 'the observer spellbound'. His winter themes were admired for their simplicity, and for their power to concentrate the viewer's attention, for example as they might when regarding one of his paintings of the rising of a hilly road, buried in deep, soft, dry snow. Decker was particularly talented with small canvases, and found favor with many critics because his works were 'painted for all time', not following a whim or school of art, but with truthful semblance of nature. At the age of thirty-seven, Decker married Emma Haner, a wealthy woman, who was then twenty-eight. Theirs was not a happy marriage, although they remained together. Emma died at the age of 84, having survived Robert by nineteen years. After her husband's death, Emma Decker organized two exhibitions of his works, the first being at their home at 44 Downing Street in the prestigious Clinton Hill section of Brooklyn. The house, their last Brooklyn residence, is an attractive two story brownstone with an angled-bay front, which still stands in a section of Downing Street included in the Clinton Hill Historic District established by the New York City Landmarks Preservation Commission in 1981. Before Mrs. Decker left Brooklyn to live with her daughter's family in Schaghticoke N.Y., she stored her husband's unsold paintings at a church. After her death in 1940, the family could find neither the church nor the paintings. Apparently the church had merged with another, and then moved to a different location, presumably taking the paintings to the new location. They might have eventually been found, had it not been for the unfortunate accident of the new church burning down in 1951. Decker was known to have been a prolific painter, but the location of only about fifty of his works is known. He was a Realist and leaned away from the Impressionist movement that became so much in vogue. An example of their differences can be seen in his treatment of tree trunks, where the Impressionist might use but a few strokes, Decker would use a myriad of touches and tones, worked and blended until the trunk stands out from the picture, a living semblance of the real. Days after Decker's death, the art editor of the 'Brooklyn Daily Eagle', Hamilton Easter Field, wrote that he was 'Brooklyn's most distinguished artist and that 'nothing is more incomprehensible to me than the fact that fashion has so much to do with taste in art. Here was a man who knew his technique as none of the younger men do, whose work was drawn with the skill and knowledge which none but the masters have.' Decker died of heart failure in Melrose, New York, on October 27, 1921. Curiously, for a man so well known during his lifetime, his grave is uncelebrated, and marked only with his name and years of birth and death.
Robert Melvin Decker (American, 1847-1921), Red barn in country landscape, signed lower left, previous owners' names written on verso of canvas, 22.5"h x 19.5"w (sight), 27.5"h x 24.5"w (frame)
Robert Melvin Decker (American, 1847-1921) Country Lane Through the Trees Oil on canvas 7 x 9 inches (17.8 x 22.9 cm) Signed lower right: R.M. Decker PROVENANCE: Private collection, Seattle, Washington. HID01801242017
ROBERT MELVIN DECKER New York, 1847-1921 Realist-style Adirondack lake scene with distant mountains. Probably the Lake George area. Signed lower right "R.M. Decker".
DECKER, Robert Melvin, (American, 1847-1921): Wooded landscape with stream, Oil/Canvas, signed lower left, 12" x 26", framed 18.5" x 33". Condition: Three patch repairs verso, inpaint.
Robert Melvin Decker (American 1847-1921) Winter Landscape Signed RM. Decker l.l. Oil on board; apparently in good condition. Framed.* Sight size: 5-1/2 x 7-1/2 in (14 x 19.1 cm)Property of Various Owners
Oil on paperboard, signed 'R. M. Decker' lower right.10 1/4 x 14 in., 15 1/2 x 19 1/4 in. (frame). The Estate of Philip and Kathleen Seibel, Catskill, NY
Robert Melvin Decker (American, 1847-1921) Old Pasture, Evening Oil on canvas 24 x 30 inches (61.0 x 76.2 cm) Signed lower left: R.M. Decker Signed and titled on the stretcher: Old Pasture, Evening / R.M. Decker PROVENANCE: Private collection, Hague, New York. HID04901242017
Robert Melvin Decker (American, 1847-1921) Winter Pine Oil on canvas 10 x 14 inches (25.4 x 35.6 cm) Signed lower right: R.M. Decker PROVENANCE: Private collection, Hague, on Lake George, New York. HID04901242017
Robert Melvin Decker (American, 1847-1921) Old Pasture, Evening Oil on canvas 24 x 30 inches (61.0 x 76.2 cm) Signed lower left: R.M. Decker Signed and titled on the stretcher: Old Pasture, Evening / R.M. Decker PROVENANCE: Private collection, Hague, on Lake George, New York. HID04901242017
Robert Melvin Decker (American, 1847-1921) Adirondack Foliage Oil on canvas 16 x 20 inches (40.6 x 50.8 cm) Signed lower right: R.M. Decker PROVENANCE: Private collection, Hague, on Lake George, New York. Please note these three paintings by Robert Melvin Decker (lots 68093-88095) are scenes from the Adirondack Mountains painted at Decker's summer cottage/studio, 'Woodbine,' in Hague, New York, which overlooked Lake George. HID04901242017
A June Day oil on canvas h. 20 w. 36 in. overall: 28 x 44 in. signed lower right, titled on plaque, framed [IN SITU] This item available to preview by appointment only as is it stored externally to the saleroom
Robert M. Decker (American, 18471912); Oil on Canvas, "Adirondack Sunset," Framed. Signed lower left. Frame with small damages. Height of canvas 10 inches X width 14 inches.
ROBERT MELVIN DECKER (AMERICAN 1847-1921) Country Path With Blossoming Apple Trees, oil on board 36.7 x 46.7 cm (14 1/2 x 18 3/8 in.) signed lower left
ROBERT M. DECKER (American, 1847-1921), small landscape with tree near shoreline, oil on canvas board, monogrammed lower right. Sight 6-3/4''h, 4-1/2''w. (Fine Art)
ROBERT M. DECKER (American, 1847-1921), panoramic winter forest landscape, oil on board, monogrammed lower left. Minor losses along left edge, surface accretion right side. Sight 2-1/4''h, 11-1/4''w. (Fine Art)
ROBERT M. DECKER (American, 1847-1921), Sag Harbor, oil on canvas, signed lower right. Wax relined, minor losses with inpaint. Canvas 7''h, 14''w. (Fine Art)
Robert Melvin Decker Antique Landscape Painting. Wooded landscape with snow. Period gilt wood frame. Signed. Robert M. Decker American, 1847-1921. Measures 21 x 24 inches.
Robert Melvin Decker Antique Landscape Painting. Wooded landscape with snow. Period gilt wood frame. Signed. Robert M. Decker American, 1847-1921. Measures 21 x 24 inches.
ROBERT MELVIN DECKER OIL ON CANVAS (New York, 1847-1921) Path under old trees with barn in the background. Signed "R.M. Decker" lower left, signed again and titled verso, possibly "Through the Land." Image measures 9" x 11". In a period gilt wood frame, 16.75" x 18.75" overall. Decker was a prolific and successful Realist artist during a time when Impressionism was popular yet, as reported on Askart, only about fifty of his paintings are known to still exist, largely due to a fire that destroyed much of his work.
Robert Decker American (1847-1921) Clearing through the woods, oil on canvas, signed lower left, in period frame. 12 x 20 inches Provenance: Deaccessioned property from the collection of the Metamora Museum, Metamora, Indiana
Framed oil on board painting, Winter Landscape, signed lower left R.M. Decker (Robert Melvin Decker, New York, 1847-1921), label on verso for Koltnow Gallery, sight: approx 4.5"h, 11.5"w, overall: approx 12.25"h, 19.25"w, 2.5lbs Start Price: $300.00
ROBERT M. DECKER (American, 1847-1921), panoramic landscape with shoreline, oil on canvas, signed lower left. Craquelure. Canvas 10''h, 28-1/4''w. (Fine Art)
ROBERT M. DECKER (American, 1847-1921), autumn forest landscape, oil on canvas, signed lower left. Minor inpaint, light craquelure. Canvas 20-1/4''h, 23''w. (Fine Art)
ROBERT M. DECKER American (1847-1921) Landscape oil on canvas, signed "R.M. Decker" lower left. 10 x 13 3/8 inches Provenance: Private Collection, New York. Other Notes: Tags: American, 19th Century, Landscape, Hudson River School, Painting
DECKER, Robert, (American, 1847-1921): "Under the Old Apple Tree, a glimpse of Lake George at Hague", Oil/Canvas, 15" x 26", signed lower left, signed and titled on stretcher verso, framed, 22.5" x 33.5". Robert Decker was known for his landscape paintings.
ROBERT M. DECKER (American, 1847-1921), autumn trees on hillside, oil on canvas, signed lower left. Craquelure, scattered inpaint. Canvas 25-3/4''h, 32. (Fine Art)
ROBERT MELVIN DECKER OIL ON CANVAS (New York, 1847-1921) Path under old trees with barn in the background. Signed "R.M. Decker" lower left, signed again and illegibly titled verso. Image measures 9" x 11". In a period gilt wood frame, 16.75" x 18.75" overall.
oil on canvas, signed at lower left, presented in a later period appropriate gilt composition frame with brass gallery plaque. SS 11.75 x 27.75 in.; DOA 18.75 x 34 5/8 in. Affixed to the stretcher is an old hand-written label on the artist's card reading "Sunset over the Clearing" / (illegible) Studio / Hague / Lake George." The Lenz Gallery, Milwaukee, WI Private Collection, Williamsburg, VA
Robert M. Decker, American., 1847-1921, "Deep in the Snow covered Woods", c. 1900, O/C, signed. Title derived from frame plaque, almost certainly an Adirondacks scene. NOTE: label on stretcher from Miller Frame Galleries 401 Madison Ave New York(GANG1000)(TC) Measurements: 22 x 30, framed 30 x 38 Condition: canvas stapled to the stretcher to reinforce edges and original nails; old tide mark visible verso, but does not appear to affect surface Property Title: From a Litchfield home
ROBERT MELVIN DECKER (1847-1912), AMERICANWINTER TRAIL THROUGH PINE TREES AT NIGHTOil on canvas; signed lower left10" x 14" — 25.4 x 35.6 cm.Estimate: $700—900
Oil on canvas . Housed in a modern gilt molded wood frame. Signed lower left "R M Decker" SIZE: 10" x 7". Overall: 14-3/4" x 11-1/2" CONDITION: Some surface dirt, otherwise very good 49933-5
