Eugene Higgins NA (1874-1958) - American Early 20th Century Oil Fisherwomen

Description

A fine and expressive painting of two rustic fisherwomen and a child resting by the waterside, a full basket of fish sat at their feet. Presented in a distressed gilt-effect wooden frame with a linen slip. There is a plaque at the lower edge of the frame inscribed with the title and name of the artist. Signed to the lower-right edge. On canvas on stretchers.

Condition

The canvas has been lined. There is some slight discolouration and surface dirt visible in the grooves of the impasto. Inspection under UV light reveals no restoration. There are some small scuffs and scratches to the frame.

Size

44.4 x 34.2cm (17.5" x 13.5")
Framed Size: 63.6 x 53.6cm (25" x 21.1")

Artist Biography

Eugene Higgins NA (1874-1958) was an American painter and engraver, born in Kansas City, Missouri. In the first decade of the twentieth century, Eugene Higgins spent time in Paris, where he studied with Jean-Leon Gerome and Jean-Paul Laurens at the Ecole des Beaux-Arts and also attended the Academie Julian. Higgins painted people from the lower social classes, to which he felt he also belonged, having experienced great poverty. He painted from memory and his figures had a primarily symbolic role in touchingly realist compositions. Higgins exhibited at the Salon des Artistes Francais and the Societe National des Beaux-Arts in Paris and, on his return to New York in 1904, took part in the historic Armory Show exhibition in 1913. He was a member of many artists' associations in New York, the Salmagundi Club, and the American Federation of Arts.