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Frederick Ferdinand Schafer Painting Catalog

Painting record FFSd0225

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[photo] [Mountain sunrise (Lassen Peak)]
Photo credit: William K. Dick, 1971
Date: 1884
Medium: oil on canvas
Size: 22.5 x 36 in (57.1 x 91.4 cm)
Inscription: Signed l/r "F. Schafer/84", in the artist's characteristic block-letter hand, underlined.
Verso: None reported.
Provenance: In private collection, San Francisco, by 1971; consigned to Carlson Gallery, San Francisco, in 1983; sold to collection of the Los Angeles Athletic Club (unknown date). Offered in 1987 by Maxwell Galleries, Ltd., San Francisco.
Reproductions: William K. Dick photo #21 (color, 1971); Early California and Western Art Research/Schafer slide #84 (color, 1987)
Site: Looking North toward Lassen Peak, California, before that volcano erupted in 1914/1915.
Description: A hazy, flat-topped, snow-covered peak stands high in the center with two low ranges before it, against a light blue sky with wisps of pink clouds. A low, snow-capped peak stands at the right edge on the horizon. To the left, nearby, is a grove of trees; the sun, off the canvas to the left, strikes the tops of the trees. In the center is a small, flat, valley floor, with two wisps of smoke rising from unseen campfires at the edge of the forest beyond. To the right there are several nearby trees and a rock wall climbs steeply above a small stream. A snag lies on the left of stream, near a rock; there is much clutter on that bank. (From a color photograph.)
Note: (1) The composition is very similar to Evening on Lassen Peak, Sierra Nevada Mountains. (2) The "sunrise" of the title is problematic. The illumination and shadows consistently place the sun to the West, which would make this an evening scene.
Identification: Descriptive title of unknown origin, as found in the Early California and Western Art Research index. The 1971 and 1987 photographs are of the same painting.
In index(es): Title list, Lassen Peak, California, dated paintings

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Mar 10, 2024, 11:47 MDT Accessibility