William Mason Brown was born in Troy, New York, where he studied for several years with local artists, including the leading portraitist there, Abel Buell Moore. In 1850, he moved to Newark, New Jersey, and began painting romantic landscapes in a meticulous style reminiscent of the Hudson River School. In 1858, Brown moved to Brooklyn, where he worked for the rest of his career, exhibiting annually at the National Academy of Design, New York, from 1859 to 1890, and at the Brooklyn Art Association from 1865 to 1886.
Brown was undoubtedly exposed to the teachings of John Ruskin, which so greatly affected American artists during the late 1850s and 1860s. The Ruskinian, or Pre-Raphaelite, influence is reflected in Brown’s crisply painted, meticulously detailed still lifes, including Strawberries Strewn on a Forest Floor. William H. Gerdts said of the artist:
[Brown’s] still lifes are the most meticulous and photographic of his generation and during his lifetime his technique was compared to that of the great French academician, Jean-Léon Gérôme. . . . Brown almost never allowed his paint handling to be apparent. He reveled in textural duplication: the “halo” of the fuzziness of a peach, the “map” of the rind of a cantaloupe. In painting humbler fruits — berries and cherries — each particular item in a group had its own color, its own highlight, its own quality of weight (Painters of the Humble Truth [1981], p. 102).
As a former landscape painter, Brown was a staunch practitioner of another Ruskinian tenet — the still life placed in a natural setting — of which Strawberries Strewn on a Forest Floor is a prime example. In contrast to the more formal and traditional tabletop still life (which Brown also painted), Ruskin preached that fruit and flowers ought to be rendered as they exist in nature, relieved by soil or grass and other vegetation, and much like the works of the famous English painter William Henry “Bird’s Nest” Hunt. However, Barbara Dayer Gallati has noted a curious contradiction of Ruskinian theory in a similar work by Brown, Raspberries (oil on canvas, 20 x 16 in.; The J. B. Speed Art Museum, Louisville, Kentucky; see Linda S. Ferber and William H. Gerdts, “The New Path: Ruskin and the American Pre-Raphaelites,” exhib. cat. [New York: The Brooklyn Museum, 1985], p. 148 pl. 20 illus. in color), which depicts a loose bundle of raspberries set within an intimate space on the forest floor:
There is detectable in Strawberries Strewn on a Forest Floor, however, a duality in approach to nature that is antithetical to Ruskinian doctrine. The individual berries, the sheltering bush, the wild flowers, and grassy patch of earth are uniformly executed in a fashion comparable to that of Ruskin’s closest followers. Yet the berries do not appear as they would in nature; the artist’s hand has intervened in order to create a pleasing composition. This feature, along with the stage-like setting and theatrical lighting, introduces an artificial note which suggests that however veristic it all may seem, this is a composition that originated in the studio and not in nature (Gallati, “Raspberries,” in ibid., p. 92).
This apparent contradiction in Ruskinian theory is also seen in Strawberries Strewn on a Forest Floor, which presents a loose group of rich red strawberries scattered about the forest floor. Although he concentrated on landscape painting in the early part of his career, Brown gained wider recognition for his still lifes, particularly of fruit, which were occasionally lithographed by Currier & Ives, or other printing houses, and were thus widely distributed. The characteristically strong color and tightly executed forms of his work lent themselves to the lithographic process.
"Sunset Autumn on the Lake" Cerca 1860'
By William Mason Brown
Located in Jacksonville, FL
Signature: Unsigned Medium/Ground: Oil / Canvas Size Inches: 22" x 34" The oil is one of his largest landscapes known. It was just exhibited in the Quest royal Gallery exhibit...
Oil
"Still Life with Peaches"
By William Mason Brown
Located in Jacksonville, FL
William Mason Brown’s Still Life with Peaches is a sumptuous celebration of nature’s bounty, rendered with exquisite precision and warmth. At the heart of the composition, a grouping...
Oil
Strawberries Strewn on a Forest Floor
By William Mason Brown
Located in New York, NY
William Mason Brown was born in Troy, New York, where he studied for several years with local artists, including the leading portraitist there, Abel Buel Moore. In 1850, he moved to ...
Canvas, Oil
Metallurgy, Pop Art Oil Painting on Canvas by Jack Brusca
By Jack Brusca
Located in Long Island City, NY
Artist: Jack Brusca, American (1939 - 1993) Title: Metallurgy Year: 1968 Medium: Oil on Canvas, signed, dated and titled verso Size: 20 x 20 in. (50.8 x 50.8 cm)
Canvas, Oil
$18,000
H 54.5 in W 72 in
Abstract with Blue and Taupe, Large Oil Painting by Catherine Warren
By Catherine Warren
Located in Long Island City, NY
Artist: Catherine Warren Title: Untitled Year: 1978 Medium: Acrylic and Japanese Paper on Canvas Size: 54.5 x 72 in. (138.43 x 182.88 cm) An abstract expressionist painting on a l...
Canvas, Oil
$5,510Sale Price|20% Off
H 30.32 in W 25.6 in
Lamentation Christ Van Dyck Paint 17/18th Century Oil on canvas Old master Art
Located in Riva del Garda, IT
Lamentation of Christ Follower of Anthony van Dyck (Antwerp 1599 - London 1641) Late 17th-early 18th century Oil on canvas (64 x 51 cm. - Framed 77 x 65 cm.) This is a very...
Oil
$9,673Sale Price|20% Off
H 33.08 in W 38.98 in
Myth Apollo Issa De Lairesse Paint 17/18th Century Oil on canvas Old master Art
Located in Riva del Garda, IT
Gérard de Lairesse (Liège 1641 - Amsterdam 1711) workshop The Myth of Apollo and Issa (from Ovid, Metamorphoses, book VI, 122-124) Oil on canvas 65 x 82 cm. - Framed 84 x 99 cm...
Oil
$2,756
H 10 in W 14 in D 2 in
George Boyle Impressionist oil painting, Barbizon School, figure by the woods
Located in Harkstead, GB
A superb example of a Barbizon inspired landscape painted by George Boyle, "the Catford Corot" from the late 19th Century. This very striking image shows the artist at the absolute ...
Oil, Panel
Ocean Beach, 2023
By Willard Dixon
Located in Burlingame, CA
Oil painting by Willard Dixon featuring figures enjoying a day at Ocean Beach in San Francisco. Willard Dixon, who is one of the finest American contempora...
Canvas, Oil
Evening Beach, 2023
By Willard Dixon
Located in Burlingame, CA
Oil painting by Willard Dixon featuring figures enjoying an evening at a beach. Willard Dixon, who is one of the finest American contemporary realist painters today, has painted coas...
Canvas, Oil
$4,000
H 24 in W 18 in D 1 in
"Winter River" 2018 contemporary realist plein air oil painting, snowy landscape
By Rachel Personett
Located in Sag Harbor, NY
An oil painting of a winter scene. White snow covers trees and rocks alongside a river. Soft short brushstrokes create a sense of movement in the icy water. White snow is painted thickly to accentuate the heavy snowfall. Painting dimensions: 24 x 18 inches Framed dimensions: 30.5 x 24.5 x 1 inches Framed in a traditional-style frame (see pictures). Artist Bio Rachel Personett was born in Hawaii, but raised in Colorado. Being the daughter of a pilot she has always traveled extensively. She has studied part time at the Savannah College of Art and Design, The Angel Academy of Art, and finally settled on the Florence Academy of Art, graduating in 2015. In January 2016 she apprenticed the painter Odd Nerdrum...
Canvas, Oil
Angel Island, 2023
By Willard Dixon
Located in Burlingame, CA
Oil painting by Willard Dixon featuring a figure enjoying the view of Angel Island from San Francisco. Willard Dixon, who is one of the finest American contemporary realist painters today, has painted coastal landscapes for 35 years, capturing the undeniable beauty of the West with its grand and humble spirit. The painting, with its atmospheric light and calm palette is contemporary and serene. Dixon’s work can be found in numerous distinctive private and public collections, as well as the San Francisco Museum of Art, and the Metropolitan Museum of Art and his work is collected Internationally. Artist signed and dated. A classic Dixon that will sure to bring those who view it a life time of pleasure. Angel Island, painted in 2023. the canvas is 30 X 30 inches. Oil on canvas, and traditionally framed in contemporary, minimal hardwood floater frame.Condition is new and excellent. Artist signed and dated. Ready to ship. Proudly presented by Andra Norris Gallery in California. Selected Collections The San Francisco Museum of Modern Art The Metropolitan Museum of Art The Oakland Museum The Utah Museum of Fine Art San Francisco Art Commission Shaklee Corporation Pacific Gas and Electric Company, San Francisco, CA Kemper Insurance Company, Long Grove, Il Morrison and Foerester, San Francisco, CA SSI Container Corporation, San Francisco, CA San Francisco International Airport Oxford Petroleum Company, Houston,TX California First Bank, San Francisco, CA United Pipeline, Houston, TX Security Pacific National Bank, S.F., CA Crocker Bank, Los Angeles, CA Visa Corporation, San Francisco, CA Atlantic Richfield Corporation Shell Oil, Houston, TX First National Bank of Seattle RREEF Corporation, San Francisco, CA Texas Heritage Society Genstar Corporation, San Francisco, CA Sohio Corporation Skidmore Owings and Merrill, N.Y.C., NY Chemical Bank...
Canvas, Oil
$4,120
H 36.23 in W 42.13 in D 1.58 in
Paisaje - Impressionist Oil Painting on Canvas, Framed, Circa 1978
Located in Sant Celoni, ES
RAMÓN SANVISENS MARFULL (Barcelona, 1917–1987). Landscape. Hand-signed and dated 1978. Oil on canvas. Dimensions: Canvas: 25.2 × 31.5 in. (64 × 80 cm) Framed: 36.2 × 42.1 in. (92 × 1...
Oil
'Beach at Crissy Field' (San Francisco, California)
By Willard Dixon
Located in Burlingame, CA
Oil painting by Willard Dixon featuring the Golden Gate Bridge from Crissy Field in San Francisco. Willard Dixon, who is one of the finest American contemporary realist painters today, has painted coastal landscapes for 35 years, capturing the undeniable beauty of the West with its grand and humble spirit. The painting, with its atmospheric light and calm palette is contemporary and serene. Dixon’s work can be found in numerous distinctive private and public collections, as well as the San Francisco Museum of Art, and the Metropolitan Museum of Art and his work is collected Internationally. Artist signed and dated. A classic Dixon that will sure to bring those who view it a life time of pleasure. Beach at Crissy Field, painted in 2022. the canvas is 26 x 45 inches. Oil on canvas, and traditionally framed in contemporary, minimal hardwood floater frame.Condition is new and excellent. Artist signed and dated. Ready to ship. Proudly presented by Andra Norris Gallery in California. Selected Collections The San Francisco Museum of Modern Art The Metropolitan Museum of Art The Oakland Museum The Utah Museum of Fine Art San Francisco Art Commission Shaklee Corporation Pacific Gas and Electric Company, San Francisco, CA Kemper Insurance Company, Long Grove, Il Morrison and Foerester, San Francisco, CA SSI Container Corporation...
Canvas, Oil
$658
H 15.75 in W 15.75 in D 0.79 in
Cat Oil Painting on Canvas, Contemporary, 40x40 cm, 2024
By Elena Mardashova
Located in Roma, IT
'Cat' - Original oil painting on canvas 40 x 40 cm, 2024.
Oil, Canvas
Sold
H 12 in W 14 in D 3 in
Antique American Fruit Still Life Oil Painting by William Mason Brown
By William Mason Brown
Located in Buffalo, NY
Antique American fruit still life by William Mason Brown (1828 - 1898). Oil on canvas, circa 1860. Signed in monogram "WMB". Displayed in a giltwood frame. Image, 10"L x 8"H, ov...
Canvas, Oil