**Originally Listed At $1000**

Carducius Plantagen Ream (also referred to as Cadurcis, American, 1837-1917), untitled oil on canvas. Signed on lower right (upon the lower edge of the newspaper that the elderly man is reading). Ca. 1870s to 1880s. A very special painting by one of America's leading still-life artists, who specialized in naturalistic images of fruit, luxury goods, and delectable treats in a traditional Dutch-influenced style. This painting, however, stands out in Ream's oeuvre for its unusual subject matter. Instead of Ream's customary dessert still life, he has painted an endearing, white-haired, elderly man dressed in a fine suit, who is lowering his spectacles in order to discern a passage that he is reading in a newspaper or ledger. Size: 9.125" L x 6.25" W (23.2 cm x 15.9 cm); 11.625" L x 9.125" W (29.5 cm x 23.2 cm) framed

Carducius Ream was recognized both nationally and internationally for his still life paintings in the latter half of the nineteenth century. His sumptuous paintings - usually of fruit and dessert still lifes - were praised for their rich colors, sensuous textures, and dramatic lighting. Quite successful during his lifetime, Ream's works were so popular that Prang and Company reproduced many of them as chromolithographs. Ream spent the majority of his life in Chicago, Illinois where he was a regular exhibitor at the Art Institute of Chicago. In addition, he exhibited at the National Academy of the Design, the Brooklyn Art Association, and the Royal Academy of London. Today, Ream's work may be viewed at the Wadsworth Athenaeum Museum of Art, the Art Institute of Chicago, and the Sheldon Memorial Art Gallery, among other institutions.

Ream's still life paintings were not simply beautiful renderings of decadent treats. Their subtext also resonated with the US's state of affairs following the devastation of the Civil War. According to the Illinois Historical Art Project, "Echoing the elaborate pronk still-life of seventeenth-century Dutch painters such as Abraham van Beyeren and Pieter Claesz, Ream’s work of the 1870s also suggests vanitas themes in its focus on the fleeting nature of worldly delights. Like his Dutch predecessors, Ream filled his paintings with overtly transient objects: freshly-picked grapes, chilled ice cream and flowers in full bloom. In a country still reeling from the disaster of civil war, Ream’s compositions spoke subtly of loss and of a nation’s youth cut down in its prime." (http://www.illinoisart.org/cadurcis-plantagenet-ream)

Carducius Planatagen Ream's "Still Life with Peaches" ca. 1880 sold for $3,750 at Brunk Auctions, United States, 22 July 2017. Though slightly larger and depicting a different subject matter, this comparison should help to appreciate the value of Ream's work. In fact, one may argue that this portrait of an elderly man, being of a much rarer subject for Ream, is especially valuable.

Provenance: private Los Angeles County, California, USA collection, acquired by descent from the owner's father, collection amassed between 1950-1990

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#136499

Painting is in good condition with slight losses to edges and two old repair patches visible on verso. Signed by the artist on the lower right. Nice craquelure across the painting's surface. Behind the painting is a board with old auction listings for Ream that are as high as $10,500. Note that this board is not attached to the painting.