Description
Rosa Bonheur was the first woman artist to receive the Cross of the French Legion of Honor, a French civilian and military decoration. She achieved great official and commercial success, especially for her carefully finished and naturalistic paintings of animals. This watercolor displays Bonheur's technical mastery and her close study of anatomy, as well as her appreciation for the natural beauty of the horses. The animals are arranged in a shallow frieze across the long composition, and their manicured tails, along with the riders' costumes and the finely-wrought iron fence, identify them as stock from the historic national breeding stables.
Provenance
(Christie, Manson & Wood, London, June 28, 1940, no. 3, sold to Gooden and Fox, London) (1940); (Gooden and Fox, London) (1940-?); Estate of Sir Jeremiah Colman [1859-1942], London (?-1955); (Christie, Manson, & Wood, London, Colman estate sale, Mar. 25, 1955, no. 2) (1955); Hentzl, sold to Geraldine Rockefeller Dodge, New York (?-?); Geraldine Rockefeller Dodge [1882-1973], New York (?-1976); (Parke-Bernet, New York, May 14, 1976, no. 22, sold to the Shepherd Gallery) (1976); (Shepherd Gallery, New York, sold to Muriel Butkin, Shaker Heights, OH) (1976-1977); Muriel Butkin [1916-2008], Shaker Heights, OH, by bequest to the Cleveland Museum of Art, Cleveland, OH (1977-2008); The Cleveland Museum of Art, Cleveland, OH (2008-)
Accession Number
2008.410
Medium
watercolor and gouache over graphite
Dimensions
Sheet: 25.9 x 56.7 cm (10 3/16 x 22 5/16 in.)
Classification
Drawing
Credit Line
Bequest of Muriel Butkin