19th Century Continental Oil on Board Monk Smoking a Cigarette

This 19th-century oil on mahogany board titled 'The Cut Finger' by William Hemsley, R.B.A., depicts a familial pairing in a cottage home. The girl tends to the eponymous cut with a white cloth pressed on the boy's finger. A dim light is cast from the window to the left, illuminating a cut loaf of bread, a knife, and simple stoneware to set the scene. The girl sits in a wooden chair wearing a salmon-colored blouse, while the young boy is dressed in a golden overshirt. William Hemsley, R.B.A., (1819-1906) was a prolific draughtsman and painter of genre scenes depicting English provincial life. Hemsley’s scenes of everyday reality, which were usually painted on a small scale, follow the gentle tradition of Webster and F. D. Hardy. He was, like them, fond of painting children at play. Many of his works depicted rustic domestic scenes, leading to him being described as "pre-eminently the painter of cottage life". He was also a member of the Society of British Artists. He exhibited frequently in London, particularly at the Royal Academy and the Suffolk Street Gallery. This gentle painting faithfully represents a moment between two people caring for one another. Hemsley painted in a style reminiscent of earlier golden-age Dutch genre painting, using light and color in a vibrant but elegant manner—signature on the lower left-hand corner. In the 19th century, it was common to paint on wood due to its durability, smooth surface, and long-standing tradition. Wood panels were preferred for their sturdiness and versatility, suitable for detailed artworks and various shapes and sizes. While wood was popular, especially for smaller works, canvas started gaining popularity later in the century for its lighter weight and ease of use. This rustic genre scene resides in an ornate Louis XIV Régence style convex frame with foliate shell cartouche corners, strap work, and c-scrolls on a cross-hatched ground with white pigment dispersed throughout. In the early 18th century the Louis XIV styles blended into the Régence frame style (c.1715-1723) which placed greater emphasis on the corners and centers. The full Regency style was both opulent and delicate, with the order and linearity of this period giving way to the swirling delicacy of the Rococo. This painting would be a wonderful addition to a home office, entryway, or library...

This small and exquisite 19th-century oil on cardboard titled “Reading to Mother” by Johann Georg Meyer von Bremen depicts a gentle interior scene with a young boy attentively reading to a woman, presumably his mother. They are both seated at a small table, the woman rests in a chair outfitted with a large pillow and a faraway look. The painting is nested in a statement giltwood frame, with the artist’s signature on the lower right corner. The frame is a neoclassical Louis XVI-style gilt frame with bellflower trim on the top edge, guilloche detailing on the back edge, ribbon trims, and a fluted cove. Oil paintings on cardboard gained popularity in the late 19th century, offering a convenient and affordable alternative to canvas for artists and enabling greater artistic experimentation. Many renowned artists explored this medium. Oil on paper was often prepared with a layer of primer or gesso to create a stable surface for the paint and to prevent the oils from soaking directly into the paper. Johann Georg Meyer von Bremen commonly known as Meyer von Bremen (1813-1886), was a German genre painter specializing in Biblical, peasant, and family scenes. He was a pupil of the Dusseldorf Academy where he largely painted religious and historical subjects. In 1840, after traveling in Bavaria and Switzerland, he began to develop pleasant genre scenes focused on incidents from popular life, especially among the Hessian peasantry, and the portrayal of childhood and family for which he became known. He spent the remainder of his career in Berlin, becoming a Professor at the Academy in 1863. He was also a member of the Amsterdam Academy and the Order of Leopold...

This charming oil on mahogany board depicts a portrait of a young woman in typical early 19th-century fashion surrounded by foliage while she sits on a rock tending to her shoe. Hous...

This late nineteenth-century oil-on-mahogany board by German painter Heinrich Maria Staakmann (1852-1940) depicts two Bedouin men suited for combat on horseback against a trampled de...