Easily one of the greatest French Impressionist paintings ever to be sold at David Killen Gallery.David Killen Gallery thanks the family of Charles Haar and Suzanne Infeld Keller(husband and wife) and their descendants for consigning this work and the other works in the November 21st sale.This painting is oil on canvas laid down on board and measures 14.25 inches by 8.25 inches in a frame 20.25 inches by 14.50 inches

Park Knitters, Paris-circa 1875,shows Morisot at the height of her skills and the extent of her greatness at taking a mundane subject,the knitting or fabric mending circle of several women in a Paris park with children, and turning it into a masterpiece of extraordinary Impressionistic timeless power. The brushstrokes on the dresses of the women are no longer just depictions of color, in Morisots hand they become alive; writhing whipping bursts of fabric, screaming in the sunlight. The height and depth of the brushstrokes are extraordinary too, what appears to be large snakes of missing paint in the mending skirt fabric of the knitters are actually huge walls of paint that wrap around flatter strokes of paint, and create levels of impasto only seen in the greatest of her contemporaries, Van Gogh and Manet. It is no accident that Edouard Manet was her brother in law, they share a lot of stylistic similarities, but here Morisot is her own genius, capturing a sun drenched moment in the park with just a few strokes of paint, and giving birth to a work that 150 years after it was painted is as fresh and exciting as the day she created it.

(From the Wall Street Journal Feb 6,2013):Impressionist painter Berthe Morisot became the most expensive female artist at auction on Wednesday when Christie's in London sold her feathery portrait of a young redhead in a straw hat and purple dress for $10.9 million

Provenance: Charles Haar was a professor of law at Harvard University, but was also an art collector. He developed a reputation as a connoisseur of drawings and would advise the Fogg Museum on acquisitions. Many of the 15th, 16th and 17th century drawings in the Fogg Museum collection were gifts from Charles Haar and Suzanne Infeld Keller.

(Obituary from the Crimson.com):Charles February 2, 2012 Harvard Law School professor emeritus Charles M. Haar, known for his ability to identify innovative solutions to issues of land use and environmental policy, died of congestive heart failure last month in Miami. He was 91.In the classroom, Haar taught on legal matters related to urban planning, environmental law, corporate finance, housing law, and other fields. He put that expertise to work as an adviser to three presidents and a multitude of projects worldwide. He was a real polymath; said University of Florida law professor Michael A. Wolf, who worked as a research assistant to Haar as a graduate student and continued to collaborate with him for thirty years. Colleagues said that Haars career had a lasting impact on others in the field he helped pioneer. He had a long, productive life; said Thompson Potter, who worked as Haars assistant at the Law School for 15 years.He was a very self-made person. He created a field of law and had a big impact on what people feel about city planning; Before receiving his degree from the Law School in 1948, Haar served under General Douglas MacArthurs command in Naval intelligence. He began teaching at the Law School in 1952 and was appointed as professor emeritus in 1991.In the 1960s,Haar began working in government, serving as an adviser on urban development and the environment in the Kennedy, Johnson, and Carter administrations.

Haar also served as a fellow for the American Academy of Arts and Sciences in Cambridge for half a century. His passion for art, he was a connoisseur of drawings, which led him to advise the Fogg Museums Department of Drawings and even donate pieces.

Note David Killen Gallery removes hundreds of works of art from NYC homes every year. Statements made by the gallery regarding authenticity are opinions only and should not be construed as fact. Anyone unsure of the authenticity of a work of art should consult an expert.

Good condition overall. There is some abrasion and missing canvas to the lower left corner(extremely minor, less than 1% of the surface).Restoration over less than 5% of the surface. Signed by the artist lower right.This work is oil on canvas laid down on board. Davids note: One viewer during the exhibit suggested that the women were not knitting, but mending garments.That possibility exists.It was also suggested that the white material in the center of the painting is not the dress the woman is wearing but a piece of white material she is mending.It is possible.It was also suggested by a viewer that the figure to the far left is Marisot herself, that she placed herself in the painting, with her back to the audience, painting the scene in front of her.One additional note:according to representatives of the family, Suzanne Infeld Keller,when she was alive,held lot 109 in such high regard,she 'kept it in a safe'.