Louis Agassiz Fuertes (1874-1924), Six Songbirds

Lot 333

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65 Sharp Street
Hingham, MA 02043
United States

Copley Fine Art Auctions is the world's leading American sporting art auction company. Located in Hingham, MA, Copley specializes in antique decoys and 19th- and 20th-century American, sporting, and wildlife paintings. Principal Stephen O'Brien Jr., a fourth-generation sportsman with a refined colle...Read more

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About Auction

The Winter Sale 2024, Day 2 by Copley Fine Art Auctions

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The Winter Sale 2024, Day 2

By Copley Fine Art Auctions

Feb 24, 2024

Set Reminder 2024-02-24 10:00:00 2024-02-24 10:00:00 America/New_York Bidsquare Bidsquare : The Winter Sale 2024, Day 2 https://www.bidsquare.com/auctions/copley/the-winter-sale-2024-day-2-14614 Lots 239-480 Copley Fine Art Auctions cinnie@copleyart.com

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Lot Description

Louis Agassiz Fuertes (1874-1924)
Six Songbirds
signed "Louis Agassiz Fuertes" lower left
watercolor, 11 1/2 by 9 3/4 in.
From the top, two depictions of the pine siskin (Spinus pinus) in summer (1) and fall (2) plumage, followed by four depictions of the goldfinch (Spinus tristus): summer adult male (3), female (4), winter adult male (5), young male (6)

Louis Agassiz Fuertes was named after the famous Harvard professor Louis Agassiz by his father, himself a professor at Cornell. Though he studied architecture at Cornell, the words of his namesake “Study nature, not books” prevailed and Fuertes went on to become one of the preeminent American bird artists of all time. The artist was noted for his early talent and eye for detail, joining the American Ornithologists’ Union at the age of seventeen. Through this important group, he met ornithologist Elliott Coues, who promoted his work and commissioned the artist to illustrate his 1903 book, "Key to North American Birds." Along with Frank W. Benson, Fuertes provided illustrations for John C. Phillips’ "A Natural History of the Ducks," published from 1922-1926. He also painted his stunning bird portraits for Edward Howe Forbush’s "Birds of Massachusetts and Other New England States," published between 1925-1929. His works can be found in the collections of Cornell University and Chicago’s Field Museum, among others, and he has two species of birds named after him: Icterus fuertesi and Hapalopsittaca fuertesi.

Provenance: Private Collection

Condition

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