Lot 21: Anne Estelle Rice (1877-1959) THE VILLAGE BEYOND

signed and titled on reverse; with provenance details, Anne Estelle Rice exhibition catalogue [The Fosse Gallery, The Square, Stow-on-the-Wold, Gloucestershire, 8-20 December 1986] and ephemera relating to another solo show [The Annexe Gallery, 45 Wimbledon High Street, London, 11 April to 6 May 1980] affixed on reverse

h:12 w:15.50in.

oil on board

As per the note on reverse:
Acquired by George McClelland from the artist's daughter in-law Gill Drey at the Chenil Gallery, 181 Kings Road, London 1987

Born to Irish-American parents in Conshohocken, Pennsylvania in 1877 Rice studied at the School of Industrial Art and at the Academy of Fine Arts, both in her native city. During these early years she contributed illustrations to a number of magazines, including Collier's, Harper's and the Saturday Evening Post.

In 1905 Rice travelled to Paris to illustrate the latest fashions for Philadelphia's North American magazine. Two years later she met the Scottish artist John Duncan Fergusson who encouraged her to become a painter. Her exposure in Paris to Post-Impressionism and Fauvism influenced her vivid palette and from 1910 she began to use pure primary and secondary colours.

In 1909, Rice garnered an important commission from American merchant John Wannamaker to provide decorative murals for a new store in Philadelphia. Together with Fergusson and other members of his circle - she exhibited at the Ashnur Gallery in Paris, the Salon d'Automne (1908-1913) and the Salon des Independents (1911-1912). London's progressive Baillie Gallery gave Rice major exhibitions (1911 & 1913) and her work was also included in salons of the Allied Artists Association in England.

In 1912 Rice met English art and theatre critic Raymond Drey and they were married in 1913 settling in England. During WWI her American patronage dwindled but by the 1920s she was painting still lifes and exhibiting at the Leicester Galleries and the Wildenstein Gallery in England. Rice continued to travel during this period to France, and sold paintings to collectors there and in the Netherlands, Denmark and Germany. In the 1930s her interest in theatre lead to work with London operatic and dramatic productions for whom she designed sets and costumes.

Rice's work is represented in numerous private collections in the United States and the United Kingdom, as well as in University of Hull Art Collection; Te Papa, Wellington, New Zealand; and the Government Art Collection, England.
[TRADITIONAL]

Please note condition of this lot:

Further to your recent inquiry, we are pleased to provide you with the condition report(s) as requested. This report has been prepared by Whyte's specialists and is in no way a substitute for physical examination by you and/or your advisors. Our specialists are not trained restorers and the report set forth below is not a comprehensive condition report prepared by a professional conservator. While we make certain observations on the work which we trust are helpful, we recommend you consult your own restorer for a more in depth report. Prospective buyers should note that this report will not disclose any imperfections which may only be revealed during the course of subsequent restoration. Buyers are reminded that Whyte's warranties with respect to property are limited as set forth in our conditions of sale and do not extend to condition. If you would like to receive a glossary of terms used in our condition reports, please contact the fine art department.

Minor surface dirt visible throughout. Paint loss evident in cactus leaf lower centre. Chips of paint loss also visible tight to frame centre, right and in foreground lower left. Minor cracks visible in strip of green lower centre. Board is in stable condition. The work is presented unglazed in a contemporary gilt frame.