Lot 54: Sophie Anderson (British, 1823-1903) At the well 50 x 40 1/4in (127 x 102.2cm)

Sophie Anderson (British, 1823-1903)
At the well signed 'S. Anderson' (lower right)oil on canvas50 x 40 1/4in (127 x 102.2cm)

Provenance: Private collection, Oklahoma City;By descent to the present owner.Born in Paris, Sophie Gengembre Anderson was the daughter of Charles Antoine Colomb Gengembre, a French architect and his English wife. Her father fostered an artistic environment by his association with a number of artists and intellectuals, and young Sophie developed an interest in the arts from early on. In 1843 she studied briefly with the portrait painter Baron Charles Auguste Steuben, but he soon left for Russia and she continued her studies largely by herself. As the revolution of 1848 broke out, the family left France for the United States and settled in Cincinnati, Ohio. Sophie quickly immersed herself in the local artistic community and by 1849 she exhibited her first portraits at the Western Art Union Gallery. She also worked as an illustrator for different publishers and collaborated with her future husband, the British artist Walter Anderson, on an album of portraits of Protestant Episcopal bishops.The newlywed Andersons moved to London in 1853, where Sophie continued to gain new ground as a successful artist. Her works were shown at the Society of British Artists and the Royal Academy, where she submitted works until 1896. By 1871, the couple moved to the Isle of Capri for the mild climate that was beneficial to Sophie's health. At that time, Capri was a flourishing artists colony where other British artists resided, such as Frederic Leighton and John Singer Sargent, and the couple remained there for the next twenty years. In their later years, the Andersons moved back to England and lived in Cornwall until their deaths two months apart in 1903.Sophie Anderson was mainly known for her depictions of children and genre subjects and by the mid-1850s her paintings were already commanding high prices. She was considered one of the most successful female artists of her generation, with several works acquired by English museums during her lifetime.