George Armfield
(British, 1808–1893)
Dignity and Impudence
, 1854
Sale 1132 - Palm Beach Fine Art, Including Outsider Art from the Collection of Edith S. Peiser, Boca Raton, Florida
Feb 22, 2023
10:00AM ET
Live / Palm Beach
Estimate
$2,500 -
$3,500
Sold for $3,150
Sold prices are inclusive of Buyer’s Premium
Lot Description
George Armfield
(British, 1808–1893)
Dignity and Impudence
, 1854oil on canvas
signed G. Armfield and dated (lower right)
24 1/4 x 24 inches.
Property from the Collection of Frances G. Scaife
Provenance:
Connoisseur Gallery, Carmel-by-the-Sea, California (label verso)
George Armfield’s Dignity and Impudence is the purest example of nineteenth-century sentimentality in the Scaife collection. It quotes the eponymous painting by Sir Edwin Henry Landseer, which is arguably the most famous dog painting of the nineteenth century. In Dignity and Impudence, Armfield draws attention to the dogs’ human characteristics, with the reserved attitude of the King Charles spaniel contrasting with the snarl of the bull terrier. Thus, the two dissimilar dogs and their diverging personalities conjure a moral allegory.
Connoisseur Gallery, Carmel-by-the-Sea, California (label verso)
George Armfield’s Dignity and Impudence is the purest example of nineteenth-century sentimentality in the Scaife collection. It quotes the eponymous painting by Sir Edwin Henry Landseer, which is arguably the most famous dog painting of the nineteenth century. In Dignity and Impudence, Armfield draws attention to the dogs’ human characteristics, with the reserved attitude of the King Charles spaniel contrasting with the snarl of the bull terrier. Thus, the two dissimilar dogs and their diverging personalities conjure a moral allegory.
Condition Report
Framed: 33 x 32 3/4 inches.
Moderate deposits of surface dirt and dust; canvas is lined; network of stable craquelures throughout surface; pinpoint paint losses scattered through upper background and one pinpoint paint loss in lower center; one minor abrasion in lower center, above the pillow, and one additional minor abrasion in the spaniel's ear; two spots of inpainting visible under normal viewing conditions in upper background. Under UV light, small areas of inpainting scattered throughout background and along the upper edge; two small spots of inpainting in terrier's face; inpainting throughout the edge's of the spaniel's ears; the majority of the space between the two dog's faces is inpainted; areas of inpainting along the lower edge. Additional images available upon request.
Moderate deposits of surface dirt and dust; canvas is lined; network of stable craquelures throughout surface; pinpoint paint losses scattered through upper background and one pinpoint paint loss in lower center; one minor abrasion in lower center, above the pillow, and one additional minor abrasion in the spaniel's ear; two spots of inpainting visible under normal viewing conditions in upper background. Under UV light, small areas of inpainting scattered throughout background and along the upper edge; two small spots of inpainting in terrier's face; inpainting throughout the edge's of the spaniel's ears; the majority of the space between the two dog's faces is inpainted; areas of inpainting along the lower edge. Additional images available upon request.
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