Signed William Draper Painting - "Azaleas" 1990s

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Fauna, Flora, Stones & Bones

By Artemis Gallery

Jul 13, 2021

Set Reminder 2021-07-13 12:00:00 2021-07-13 12:00:00 America/New_York Bidsquare Bidsquare : Fauna, Flora, Stones & Bones https://www.bidsquare.com/auctions/artemis-gallery/fauna-flora-stones-bones-7214
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• Lot Description
  William Franklin Draper (American, 1912-2003). "Azaleas" oil on canvas, ca. 1990s. Signed and dated "Wm. F. Draper" on lower right. A lovely plein-air painting of azaleas by American artist William Draper, with coral pink blossoms and spring green leaves delineated with Draper's loose, almost Impressionist brushstrokes. These flowers, with their rapturous hues and undeniable beauty, traditionally have carried layers of symbolic meaning in various parts of the world. To learn more about this, please see the extended discussion below. Size: 30" L x 36" W (76.2 cm x 91.4 cm)
  
  The various meanings of the Azalea flower originated with Victorian society as well as East Asian cultures and the United States. In Victorian society, the flower was associated with temperance, since British horticulturalists regarded it as an addition to their gardens that was reserved and easily self managed. On the other hand, Chinese and Japanese horticulturalists have traditionally associated azaleas with precious time spent at home. In addition, given that their blossoms easily give way from the plant when blown by the wind, the azalea also has been associated with fragility or love that may or may not fully blossom.
  
  William Draper's career spanned seven decades and his subjects included a portrait of John F. Kennedy that hangs in the National Portrait Gallery in Washington D.C. based upon an oil sketch for which the president sat in 1962. Draper was actually the only artist who painted JFK from life. Draper showed at Knoedler, the Graham Gallery, Portraits, Inc., the Far Gallery, The Findlay Galleries (New York, NY) and the Robert C. Vose Galleries (Boston, MA). His work has been included in shows at the National Portrait Gallery and the Corcoran Gallery of Art (Washington, D.C.), The National Academy of Design (New York, NY), The Boston Museum of Fine Arts, (Boston, MA) the Fogg Art Museum, (one of the Harvard Art Museums, Cambridge, MA), the National Gallery, (London), Salon de la Marine (Paris) and in museums in Australia. He also taught at the Art Students League of New York, and received a lifetime achievement award from the Portrait Society of America in 1999.
  
  More on the artist's background: William Franklin Draper was born in Hopedale, Massachusetts on December 24, 1912. A child prodigy, he studied classical piano at Harvard University. He later changed his focus to fine art and studied with Charles Webster Hawthorne and Henry Hensche in Provincetown, Rhode Island. Draper also attended the National Academy of Design in New York and the Cape Cod School of Art in Massachusetts. Then he traveled to Spain and studied with Harry Zimmerman, moved on to France and attended the Academie de la Grande Chaumiere. In 1937, he moved to Boston to study sculpture with George Demetrius and also studied with Jon Corbino in beautiful Rockport, Massachusetts. In 1942, Draper joined the Navy and served as a combat artist when stationed on the Aleutian Islands and in the South Pacific. He observed and painted battle scenes on Bougainville, Guam, Saipan, and other locations, as well as genre scenes of soldiers who were not engaged in combat but rather at work and at play. National Geographic magazine reproduced 25 of his war images in four issues in 1944. In 1945, the Corcoran Gallery of Art in Washington D.C. organized a group exhibition of works by five official war artists, including Draper. That same year the Metropolitan Museum of Art included Draper in an exhibition entitled, ''The War Against Japan.'' Draper was also featured in a PBS television show about combat artists entitled, "They Drew Fire" in May of 2000. After the war, Draper opened a studio on Park Avenue in New York City and continued to not only paint, but also play classical and jazz piano.
  
  Provenance: The William F. Draper Collection, New York City, USA, acquired via descent from the late William Franklin Draper (1912-2003)
  
  All items legal to buy/sell under U.S. Statute covering cultural patrimony Code 2600, CHAPTER 14, and are guaranteed to be as described or your money back.
  
  A Certificate of Authenticity will accompany all winning bids.
  
  PLEASE NOTE: Due to recent increases of shipments being seized by Australian & German customs (even for items with pre-UNESCO provenance), we will no longer ship most antiquities and ancient Chinese art to Australia & Germany. For categories of items that are acceptable to ship to Australia, please contact us directly or work with your local customs brokerage firm.
  
  #152342

  Condition

  Painting is in excellent condition. Painting is signed and dated "Wm. F. Draper" on lower right. Draper Estate stamp on top edge of canvas.
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