George Inness
American, 1825-1894
Delaware River, circa 1860-63
Signed G Inness (lr)
Oil on canvas
8 1/4 x 10 inches

Provenance:
Possibly Samuel P. Avery, New York, New York
(possibly sale, Henry H. Leeds & Miner Galleries, New York, New York [Samuel P. Avery sale], Feb. 4, 1867, no. 94, as Delaware River)
John F. Kensett, New York, New York until his death in 1872
Miss Elizabeth N. Kellogg, Brooklyn, New York, niece of Mr. Kensett, to 1913
George H. Ainslie, George Ainslie Galleries, New York, acquired from the above, Sep. 1913
Peter Winchester Rouss, Esq., New York, acquired from the above, Dec. 1913
Mrs. Peter Winchester Rouss, New York, by inheritance
Sale, American Art Association, New York, French furniture, French and American Paintings : Including Examples by Henner, Cazin, Dupre, Vibert, Innes [sic], Wyant, Moran, Murphy ... comprising the entire contents of the former residence of Mrs. Peter W. Rouss at 320 Garfield Place, Brooklyn, N.Y, Oct. 22-24, 1936, lot 31
Bartholomew J. Barry, acquired at the above
Mrs. Belle Schwarzmann (Mrs. Adolph Schwarzmann, sister-in-law of the above) , New York, gift of the above
Parke-Bernet Galleries, Inc., New York, Apr. 10 and 11, 1959, Valuable French XVIII Century Furniture and Objects of Art Belonging to the Late Belle Schwarzmann, lot 274
Cora Cavanagh Cushny (Mrs. Theodorus V. W. Cushny), Matinecock, NY and Lexington, KY, acquired at the above
Estate of Cora Cavanagh Cushny

Exhibited:
Brooklyn, NY, Brooklyn Art Association, Catalogue of Pictures Exhibited at Their Fall Exhibition, [Part] I, no. 24, as Delaware River, Dec. 2-14, 1878
Detroit, Detroit Museum of Art, Retrospective and Comparative Exhibition of Paintings by the Late George Inness... and the Late A. H. Wyant from the George H. Ainslie Collection no. 7, as Delaware River, 10 x 8 ½ in., 1866, Nov. 1-30, 1913
New York, George H. Ainslie Galleries, Twenty Five Paintings by George Inness, Mar. 1917, no. 6 [as circa 1866]

Literature:
"Fine Art; The Brooklyn Exhibition - Opening Reception Last Evening," New York Herald, Dec. 3, 1878, p. 8, described as a "charming and early little George Inness Delaware River"
LeRoy Ireland, The Works of George Inness, An Illustrated Catalogue Raisonne, University of Texas Press, 1965, no. 371, pp. 371-2

The present work is accompanied by a letter written by Elizabeth N. Kellogg to George H. Ainslie on September 17 1913, in which she writes, "In reference to the painting Delaware River by George Inness, which you have just purchased - It was in the private collection of John F. Kensett and has been in our family since his death in 1872."

In a letter dated August 18, 2017, Dr. Michael Quick writes, "Having reviewed all of the documents, and having carefully studied the landscape over several days, I would like to state that it is my considered and definite opinion that Delaware River is the work of George Inness (1825-1894). I intend to include Delaware River in the supplement to my catalogue raisonné of the works of George Inness.

The George H. Ainslie Gallery, in 1913, assigned to the painting the date of 1866. However, I cannot see any trace of a date on the painting, and there is no mention of a date in the letter from Elizabeth N. Kellogg. It is my opinion that the landscape contains no trace of the technique of Inness's Eagleswood period (1864-66), and that the traditional date of 1866 therefore is not possible. I would date the painting earlier in the decade, to about 1860-63.

We extend sincere thanks to Dr. Quick for his kind assistance in authenticating the present work. A copy of his letter accompanies this lot.