The McCleery Crowell Canvasback Hen Decoy by A. Elmer Crowell (1862-1952)

Lot 110

About Seller

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

Bid Increments

Price	Bid Increment
$0	$50
$1,000	$100
$2,500	$250
$5,000	$500
$10,000	$1,000
$25,000	$2,500
$50,000	$5,000

About Auction

The Winter Sale 2024, Day 1 by Copley Fine Art Auctions

Live

The Winter Sale 2024, Day 1

By Copley Fine Art Auctions

Feb 23, 2024

Set Reminder 2024-02-23 10:00:00 2024-02-23 10:00:00 America/New_York Bidsquare Bidsquare : The Winter Sale 2024, Day 1 https://www.bidsquare.com/auctions/copley/the-winter-sale-2024-day-1-14595 Lots 1-238 Copley Fine Art Auctions cinnie@copleyart.com

View Full Catalog (238)

Lot Description

The McCleery Crowell Canvasback Hen
A. Elmer Crowell (1862-1952)
East Harwich, MA, c. 1905
16 in. long

“Crowell...created the most spectacular group of painted carvings the hunting world had ever seen. His working decoys from this period (1900–1915) also show a degree of love, labor and art that is unparalleled in the decoy world.” - Brian Cullity, “The Songless Aviary"

The McCleery Crowell canvasback hen is a singular gunning decoy that showcases the maker's finest work produced during his best artistic period. This decoy's mate is a preening canvasback drake held in the Paul Tudor Jones II Collection. While a number of Crowell’s canvasbacks over the following decades are notable for the special attention to carved feather groups, this McCleery hen and the Jones drake are early pre-brand models and show grand bodies with especially strong carving seen in the special commissions for patrons Harry V. Long and John C. Phillips.

In addition to carved primaries and tail feathers, this hen has a very full body, slightly pinched breast, wing separation down the back, and deeply carved scapulars and flanks. This high level of detail was achieved with an efficient sequence of knife and chisel cuts, resulting in a lively decoy with a powerful sense of motion. The head is highly refined and turned to the right with the maker's rasped technique on the nape. The surface was finished with blended feathering from breast to tail.

The underside retains its lead weight, an old collector’s label, and the “MCCLEERY” auction ink stamp and lot tag. While in the McCleery collection, this decoy was shown in his “Call to the Sky” exhibition at the Houston Museum of Natural History and it was published in the trio of McCleery publications. Most recently, it was included in “Elmer Crowell: Father of American Bird Carving.” This is the single best Crowell canvasback hen decoy acquired by two decoy collecting legends, Dr. McCleery and Dr. Griffith.
Outstanding overall condition with original paint and very light gunning wear.

Provenance: Robert Cleaves Collection
Dr. James M. McCleery Collection
Dr. Lloyd Griffith Collection
Private Collection

Literature: Stephen B. O'Brien Jr. and Chelsie W. Olney, "Elmer Crowell: Father of American Bird Carving," Hingham, MA, 2018, p. 151, Jones collection preening drake illustrated, p. 3, exact hen illustrated.
Sotheby's and Guyette & Schmidt, "American Waterfowl Decoys: The Distinguished Collection of Dr. James M. McCleery," New York, NY, 2000, lot 72, exact decoy illustrated.
Robert Shaw, "Call to the Sky: The Decoy Collection of James M. McCleery, M.D.," Houston, TX, 1992, pp. 20-21, exact decoy illustrated.
Ronald J. Gard and Robert Shaw, eds., "The McCleery Auction," Dallas, TX, 2001, p. 53, exact decoy illustrated.
Brian Cullity, “The Songless Aviary: The World of A. E. Crowell & Son,” Sandwich, MA, Heritage Plantation, 1992, p. 36, early works discussed.

Exhibited: Houston, Texas, "Call to the Sky: The Decoy Collection of James M. McCleery, M.D.," Houston Museum of Natural History, 1992-1993.

Condition

Please email condition report requests to colin@copleyart.com. Any condition statement given is a courtesy to customers, Copley will not be held responsible for any errors or omissions. The absence of a condition statement does not imply that the lot is in perfect condition.
Shipping Info
- Shipping info
  
  Copley does not offer in-house packing or shipping. For clients who require shipping, please complete the Shipping Release Form and return it with your payment. The form includes a list of shippers we frequently work with.