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At Henri’s urging in the summer of 1919, Sloan drove to Santa Fe, New Mexico. The Southwest provided new inspiration for Sloan, who found inspiration exploring the intense colors and forms of the landscape as well as the people who lived in the area. He continued to visit up until 1950. Well in the Garden exemplifies his new approach to color after 1913. The artist built his palette around the oranges and yellows of the desert landscape contrasted with deep green and bright blue, which effectively evokes the intense light and heat of the setting. Instead of purely focusing on the landscape, this painting is a glimpse into domestic life in the area. The walled garden and adobe-style buildings frame the central figure standing at the titular well, although the artist still conveys the vastness of nature around him.
Exhibition History“Landscapes by John Sloan,” C. W. Kraushaar Galleries, New York, April 10 – May 6, 1939, no. 17
Garelick’s Gallery, Scottsdale, AZ, October 1976
“The World of John Sloan,” The Mennello Museum of American Art, Orlando, FL, November 7, 2008 – February 24, 2009, p. 8, illus.
ProvenanceThe artist
John Sloan Trust
[Kraushaar Galleries, Inc., New York]
Private collection, Florida
Private collection, Chicago and Florida, acquired directly from the above, by 2008
Artist
John Sloan
(American, 1871 - 1951)
Well in the Garden
Date1925
MediumOil on canvas
DimensionsSight: 19 5/8 × 15 5/8 in. (49.8 × 39.7 cm)
Object numberN0013.2024(02)
Credit LineCollection of the Fenimore Art Museum. Gift of the Eugene V. and Clare E. Thaw Charitable Trust.
Photograph by Richard Walker
Label TextSloan studied at the Pennsylvania Academy of the Fine Arts before finding work as an illustrator at the Philadelphia Inquirer in 1892, where he befriended Robert Henri, George Luks, Everett Shinn and William Glackens, his friend from high school. Henri, Sloan, Glackens, and Shinn were among a group of artists recognized as The Eight or The Ashcan School, deriving their name from their choice of subjects and color palette.At Henri’s urging in the summer of 1919, Sloan drove to Santa Fe, New Mexico. The Southwest provided new inspiration for Sloan, who found inspiration exploring the intense colors and forms of the landscape as well as the people who lived in the area. He continued to visit up until 1950. Well in the Garden exemplifies his new approach to color after 1913. The artist built his palette around the oranges and yellows of the desert landscape contrasted with deep green and bright blue, which effectively evokes the intense light and heat of the setting. Instead of purely focusing on the landscape, this painting is a glimpse into domestic life in the area. The walled garden and adobe-style buildings frame the central figure standing at the titular well, although the artist still conveys the vastness of nature around him.
Exhibition History“Landscapes by John Sloan,” C. W. Kraushaar Galleries, New York, April 10 – May 6, 1939, no. 17
Garelick’s Gallery, Scottsdale, AZ, October 1976
“The World of John Sloan,” The Mennello Museum of American Art, Orlando, FL, November 7, 2008 – February 24, 2009, p. 8, illus.
ProvenanceThe artist
John Sloan Trust
[Kraushaar Galleries, Inc., New York]
Private collection, Florida
Private collection, Chicago and Florida, acquired directly from the above, by 2008
On View
On view
c. 1954
c. 1890-1910
