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Detail
Signature
Lewis Henry Meakin (1850-1917)
“Mountain Landscape”
Date unknown (circa 1895)
Oil on canvas
21” H x 33” W (image size)
30” H x 42” W (frame size)
Signed lower left: L.H. Meakin
Estimated value: $4,500 - $6,500
Additional Information
This painting by historic American landscape artist Lewis Henry Meakin (1850-1917) is the first example of 19th-century Impressionism to be made available in the Museum’s annual art auction. With his earliest works, Meakin embraced the softness and subtlety of Tonalism, but he came to apply a greater emphasis on impressionistic techniques in his later years.
American Impressionism followed closely behind French Impressionism, of which Claude Monet (1840-1926) is generally considered the exemplar. It’s unclear whether Meakin had the opportunity to meet his contemporary Monet during his trips to France in the 1880s and 1890s, but Meakin almost certainly saw Monet’s work. Meakin’s auction artwork is incredibly similar in composition and style to Monet’s “View of Vétheuil” (pictured below). Monet resided in the French village of Vétheuil along the Seine River from 1878 to 1881 and painted the town numerous times. Meakin’s “Mountain Landscape” is much more likely a turn-of-the-century view of his own hometown of Cincinnati along the Ohio River, but with a distinct nod to Monet’s work.
“View of Vétheuil” by Claude Monet, 1880, Oil on canvas, 24” x 40”, Collection of Alte Nationalgalerie, Berlin.
Artist Biography
Born in Newcastle, England in 1850, Lewis Henry Meakin eventually landed in Ohio and enrolled in the McMicken School of Design at the University of Cincinnati. Encouraged by his Cincinnati peers to study in Europe, Meakin traveled to Munich in 1880. There Meakin painted in the plein air method and executed works in a variety of media, including etching.
After further independent study in Paris and other parts of Europe, the artist returned to Cincinnati where in 1887 he accepted a teaching position at his alma mater, which became known as the Art Academy of Cincinnati. From 1893 to 1894, Meakin was on sabbatical in France (Paris, Normandy, and Southern France).
In 1896, when the Society of Western Artists was founded in Chicago, Meakin was a co-organizer and charter member. His travels to and paintings of the American West inspired some to title Meakin the “Father of Western Art.” Meakin also served as curator of painting at the Cincinnati Art Museum from 1911 to 1917.
Among Meakin's other notable credentials were membership in the National Academy; a silver medal at the 1904 St. Louis Universal Exposition; and his inclusion in the famous Panama-Pacific International Exposition in San Francisco in 1915.
Auction Information
The 13th Annual Fine Art Auction Fundraiser
Saturday, August 19, 2023
The silent auction starts at 3:00 PM.
The live auction starts at 4:00 PM.
Auction admission: $15.00 SPAM members, $20.00 Non-members
All proceeds benefit the Santa Paula Art Museum, a 501(c)(3) charitable organization #2478728.
All major credit cards, check, and cash are accepted.
Sales tax will be applied to all hammer prices. There is no buyer’s premium.