AMERICAN SCHOOL (19TH CENTURY) FOLK ART DRAWING OF A BREWERY / DISTILLERY, watercolor and ink on paper, an oblique birds-eye view of a large brick structure bustling with activity, including horse-drawn wagons loaded with stave-type wooden barrels entering and exiting the property, all flanked by a rectilinear pond, farmhouse, barn, fenced road and pasture, inscribed "H. Keller / N. 257" lower right. Housed under glass in an old frame. Circa 1880. 17 1/2" x 27 1/2" sight, 22" x 32" OA.
Provenance: Property from the estate of Dale Shomper, Germantown, MD.
Catalogue Note: The present drawing of a 19th-century rural business establishment strongly resembles, in both concept and execution, the illustrations adorning the pages of various printed county atlases that were popular in the latter decades of the 19th century. These atlases were particularly prevalent in Ohio, Indiana, and western Pennsylvania, and served, in part, as promotional material designed to encourage additional migration and settlement. In most cases, a newly established farm or business is depicted from a panoramic, birds-eye point of view, allowing the artist room to illustrate, often in minute detail, the workings of what is projected to be a successful enterprise. Oftentimes, a legend, giving the name of the proprietor, the business, or the owner of the farm, was printed in the margin below the printed illustration. Such is likely the case with the present drawing, in which no trade sign is displayed within the visual field, precisely because the artist would have known that the place depicted and its key inhabitants were to be identified in a legend below the image in its final printed form. In this light, it is possible that the "H. Keller" noted at lower right of the work may actually be the proprietor of the business, not the artist who created the drawing, and the "N. 257" in the inscription may refer to the given municipality's designation for the property, or the page / illustration number for the then-upcoming printed atlas itself.

Good overall condition with minor to moderate toning and discoloration, slightly heavier to areas of sky. Some water staining and minor losses to margins. Frame with minor wear.