RARE EVELINA BARDWELL (WILLIAMSTOWN, MASSACHUSETTS, D.1892) FOLK ART HOLLOW-CUT SILHOUETTE SAMPLE / ARTIST BOOK, small leather-bound pocket-sized booklet with taped spine marked "BARDWELL", containing five bust portraits (four men and one woman), each bearing unusual ink-stamped bodies and penciled detail, three additional stamped bodies (without silhouettes) at end papers. Circa 1825. 5 1/4" x 4 1/8" OA.
Literature: See Jeffrey S. Evans & Associates, 6/18/2016, lot 618, for another example by the artist bearing printed label attached verso.
Provenance: From the collection of Kathy and Dr. Joseph Arvay, Mendham, NJ.
Douglas Auctioneers, 11/8/1996, lot 206.
Catalogue Note: Evelina E. Bardwell (d. 1892) appears to have been an active silhouette portraitist working in the second decade of the 19th century in the area around Williamstown, Massachusetts. The appearance of the present sample / artist book on the market, along with another example by the artist sold by Jeffrey S. Evans & Associates in 2016, begins to establish a body of work attributable to a distinct folk silhouette artist. The single example sold by us in 2016 is a hollow-cut depiction of a lady sporting elaborate coiffure with tall comb (all cut details), the body, in unusual frontal pose, delineated in bright watercolor. In contrast, the profiles contained in the present book include pre-designed, ink-stamped bodies and less elaborate cutting; the hair, for instance, is now outlined in pencil instead of cut out as a part of the actual silhouette, as is the case with the single example we sold in 2016. Given these differences in technique, it seems clear that Evelina Bardwell was experimenting with varying modes of composition related to her craft precisely at a time when demand for her skills was likely increasing on the one hand while market competition was following suit on the other. We anticipate more information on this newly discovered 19th-century folk artist to be forthcoming. Research is ongoing.
Good overall original condition. Pages with minor to moderate toning and discoloration, minor edge wear and losses. Cover with moderate wear and losses.