Joseph Ryan Woodwell (American, 1843-1911) Magnolia, Massachusetts, Coastline with Two Figures, oil on canvas, signed lower left, framed.

Dimensions: 30 x 40 in. canvas size, 38 x 47 in. as framed.

Provenance: From a Pittsburgh, PA estate

Note:Joseph Ryan Woodwell ( American, 1842-1911) was a native of Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania and was associated with the group of artists informally gathered under the artist George Hetzel (1826-1899) as a part of the group called the Scalp Level School, named for the area of Pennsylvania in which they gathered to paint. The Scalp Level area provided in its natural beauty all of the elements that a 19th century painter needed. In 1859, at the age of 17, Woodwell traveled to France where he studied in the atelier of Charles Gleyre (1806-1874). Other artists in this group included Claude Monet, Auguste Renoir, Camille Pissarro and Alfred Sisley. Woodwell also interacted with Barbizon artists Jean Francois Millet and Charles Jacque. Woodwell returned to Pittsburgh in 1865-67 where he continued to paint in the Barbizon manner. In 1888 he was introduced by the Frick family of Pittsburgh to the small village of Magnolia, Massachusetts. He purchased a cottage there and proceeded to spend summers painting the coastline. It was during this time that his painting became brighter and more painterly than the earlier Pennsylvania landscapes. In 1893 four of Woodwells Magnolia landscapes were exhibited at the Worlds Columbian Exposition in Chicago, IL, and three at the St.Louis Universal Exposition in 1904. The four paintings have previously been unlocated. It is highly likely due to the dramatic composition and large size of the present work that this painting is one of the four missing works. As shown in the Official Catalogue of Exhibits listing all of the artists and paintings shown at the Columbian Exposition 1893, the missing works are identified as:

White Rocks, Magnolia, Mass.

A Rocky Coast, Magnolia Mass.

Cobblestone Beach, Magnolia, Mass.

Rocks at Low Tide, Magnolia Mass.

Craquelure and aging cracks throughout. Small old patch repair verso, lower right corner (viewing from recto). Accumulated surface grime. A few small paint losses in upper right corner and upper left corner with old re-touch. Small paint losses at left canvas edge at top of rock. Area of lifting paint and bloom in lower left bottom edge of canvas directly below figures in location. Visible stretcher marks.