James Bolivar Needham
1850-1931
Chicago Harbor
1914
oil on canvas-wrapped cradled panel
9-1/2 x 14-1/2 inches
signed; dated and with artist's diamond-shaped insignia verso, inscribed November 26
Provenance: private collection, Dallas, TX

Needham's work is very rare, and this is an excellent example.

REF: Chicago Modern 1893-1945, Pursuit of the New, Greenhouse and Schulman, Terra Museum. This exhibition from 2004 highlighted the work of Needham, and presented 8 oils of the Chicago River/Harbor. Needham was described as a shy and humble man who painted strictly for his own pleasure. He was born in Chatham, Ontario, a stop on the Underground Railroad. He worked on lumber ships that sailed the Great Lakes. He arrived in Chicago in 1867 and earned his living painting houses and other decorative projects. In his free time, he painted all along the Chicago River. At that time, the river was the bustling maritime heart of the city. The real life environment of this area was noisy, dirty, and generally unpleasant, but Needham recorded the views to be something beautiful. He wrapped boards in linen and cradled the boards to prevent warping (this was a common technique among old master painters). Daniel Schulman writes, "the small paintings have the freshness and immediacy of French impressionist painting." p. 134.

Robert Henry Adams Fine Art (Chicago) produced an exhibition and catalog of the artist's work in the 1980s. The catalog includes a transcript written in the Chicago Daily News in 1931, shortly after Needham's death. BAA has a copy of the Adams catalog in its library and could scan and email that article to interested parties on request. The buyer of this lot would also receive a complete photocopy file related to the artist (as the information is not that easy to come by).

generally good condition; framed