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Frederick Ferdinand Schafer
"Upper Sacramento River, California" (Large Antique Landscape, Renowned Artist)
c. 1880

$11,212.50List Price

About the Item

This very large, superb California landscape was painted by an artist celebrated for his California and Pacific Northwest scenes, and well-known among collectors of these works. Frederick Schafer (bio below) emigrated from Germany to the U.S. in 1876 at the age of 37. He traveled widely through the west and captured dramatic nature scenes such as this one, depicting the Upper Sacramento river with its towering trees. His paintings are in many superb institutional and private collections around the world. Paintings by Schafer in this size range have brought from $15,000 to $26,000 recently at auction, which is wholesale pricing (see photos) so we feel ours is a fair price. The painting measures an impressive 65" x 44.5" in its ornate gold wooden frame; the canvas size is 50" x 30". It has some professional and unobtrusive inpainting, not unusual for a painting of its age. Proudly presented by Guy Lyman Fine Art, New Orleans. Bio as featured in AskArt: The following biography is from the artist's web site and reprinted with the permission of Jerome H. Saltzer. "Frederick Ferdinand Schafer was born in Braunschweig, Germany, on August 16, 839. He emigrated to the United States in 1876, at the age of 37, where he created some 500 paintings of western American landscapes, and he died in Oakland, California, on July 18, 1927. He is well known within a community of collectors of and dealers in western art, mostly in California and the Pacific Northwest. Schafer's training in Germany is unknown. His work resembles that of the Düsseldorf school and contemporary newspaper writers sometimes suggested a connection. He had studios in San Francisco from 1880 through 1886 and in his homes in Alameda and Oakland from 1887 until his death. He apparently spent summers sketching in Oregon, Washington, Idaho, Montana, Wyoming, Utah, British Columbia, and Alaska and many of his paintings bear verso titles with locations in those states and provinces. Most Schafer landscapes are summer scenes, probably because the majestic scenes he frequently painted were difficult to visit in the winter. A member of the San Francisco Art Association for many years, he regularly exhibited his paintings at the Mechanics Institute exhibitions in that city. Schafer's overall style is that of the nineteenth-century American realist landscape tradition, taking maximum advantage of the dramatic western American landscape and with a strong element of naturalism--a preference to capture the impression of an object such as a tree rather than to provide photographic detail of it. Many of Schafer's canvases have a dramatic appearance, arising from use of large areas of intense, saturated color and contrasting light, but stopping well short of the awesome and melodramatic (sometimes called "sublime'') effects found in canvases of Thomas Cole, Albert Bierstadt, and Frederic Edwin Church. In mountain, forest, and river landscapes, foreground deadwood in the form of a leaning or fallen tree, or a river snag, appears so frequently that one can almost depend on finding it. Small midground figures, usually of Indians but occasionally of trappers, hunters, prospectors, or even bear or deer, often appear as part of the natural landscape, providing an iconic, rather than explicit, genre touch. By their small size these figures provide the eye with a measure of, and emphasize, the large scale of the scene. Another frequent feature in Schafer paintings is small spots of bright color, representing wildflowers, a campfire, lights from a ship, or dappled spots of sun in the shade of a tree. Schafer usually varies the level of control of the brush greatly within a single picture. Background mountains, especially foothills and intermediate ranges, may be shapes developed with only a few wide brushstrokes, middle and foreground components are substantially more controlled, and features that draw the attention of the eye, such as a campfire, tepee, or person's face, are often more controlled than their surroundings. Schafer's work is held in these public collections: Alameda (California) Free Library, Art Museum of Greater Victoria (British Columbia), Bancroft Library (Honeyman collection), British Columbia Archives, California Historical Society, Craigdarroch Castle (British Columbia), Crocker Art Museum, Hoover Institution, Monterey Peninsula Museum of Art, Monterey State Historic Park, Museum of Church History and Art (Salt Lake City), The Oakland Museum of California, Seattle Art Museum, Shasta (California) State Historic Park, Society of California Pioneers, Sonoma County (California) Museum (Hart collection), and the Yosemite National Park Museum." October 27, 1998 Note from Jerome Saltzer: Schafer's death certificate indicates that he arrived (in California) sometime in 1876, and the October 3, 1876 edition of the San Francisco Evening Bulletin carried an advertisement of an auction sale on October 5 by R. D. W. Davis Company in which Schafer is one of the featured artists. From the archives of AskArt: "Born in Braunschweig, Germany on Aug. 16, 1839. Schafer may have studied art in Düsseldorf since his paintings resemble those of other Düsseldorf-trained artists; however, he is believed to have been self-taught. He came to the U.S. in 1876 and arrived in San Francisco in 1880. After establishing a studio, he began exhibiting regularly with the local art association and the Mechanics' Institute Fairs. A peripatetic painter, he made regular sketching trips throughout the Northwest including Montana, Wyoming, Colorado, Idaho, Oregon, Washington, British Columbia, and Alaska. During his last years he painted theatrical scenery in San Francisco and Oakland theaters. Schafer had a home in Oakland from 1880 until his death on July 18, 1927. His landscapes, which often include Indians, were mostly done before 1890 and number about 500. Due to alcoholism, his works are often uneven in quality. Exh: Mechanics' Inst. (SF), 1879-84; Calif. State Fair, 1880, 1894. In: Oakland Museum; Seattle Museum; Monterey Peninsula Museum; Shasta State Historical Monument; Bancroft Library (UC Berkeley); CHS; Crocker Museum; Hoover Inst. (Palo Alto); Museum of Church History Art (Salt Lake City); Society of Calif. Pioneers; Sonoma Co. Museum (Santa Rosa); Yosemite Museum; Alameda Public Library; Craigdarroch Castle (Victoria, B.C.) ." Edan Hughes, "Artists in California, 1786-1940" Oakland Museum;Views of Yosemite; Death record. "He is well known within a community of collectors of and dealers in western art, mostly in California and the Pacific Northwest. Schafer's training in Germany is unknown. His work resembles that of the Düsseldorf school and contemporary newspaper writers sometimes suggested a connection. He had studios in San Francisco from 1880 through 1886 and in his homes in Alameda and Oakland from 1887 until his death." Frederick Ferdinand Schafer Painting Catalog A brief biographical sketch of the artist 1996, 1998 by Jerome H. Saltzer. All rights reserved. ----------------------------------------------------------------------

Creator:
Frederick Ferdinand Schafer (1839 - 1927, German)
Creation Year:
c. 1880
Dimensions:
Height: 65 in (165.1 cm)Width: 44.5 in (113.03 cm)
Medium:
Oil
Period:
1880-1889
Condition:
Professional restoration of a few areas of missing paint.
Gallery Location:
New Orleans, LA
Reference Number:
1stDibs: LU994314758632

Category

21st Century and Contemporary Realist Landscape Paintings

Materials

Canvas, Oil

Oleksandr Khrapachov
"At sea. Odessa", 2025

$2,000

Free Shipping

H 19.69 in W 27.56 in D 0.79 in

$4,720 Sale Price

32% Off

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Frederick Ferdinand Schafer"Upper Sacramento River, California" (Large Antique Landscape, Renowned Artist)c. 1880

About the Item

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