"The First Lesson on the Drum" | H. Rivers (19th Century)

H. RIVERS
American School, 19th century

The First Lesson on the Drum

Oil on Canvas | Signed lower left "H. Rivers" | label verso ex. Schwarz Gallery

Item # 109QFP14Z  A vibrant genre painting of a young girl using her pet dog's bones to tap out a rhythm on her toy drum, it is a delightful little piece that is painted with an intricate detailing throughout. The brushwork is particularly interesting for its varied application, with a stippled texture in the young girl and underlying much of the detailed spaces that has been overlayed with a slightly heavier impasto of brushwork; the fine development of hair throughout the dog shows a practiced hand. The work is signed in the lower left "H. Rivers", a presently unknown artist. The reverse of the painting retains the old gallery label from Schwarz of Philadelphia and the tacking edge of the canvas is titled in script "The First Lesson on the Drum".
Measurements: 14 1/4" H x 10 1/4" W [canvas]; 18 5/8" H x 14 1/2" W x 1 1/2" D [frame]
Condition Report:
Very fine original condition. Frame is later, giltwood with surface wear and loss. Surface of painting is bright and clean, probably cleaned in the last thirty years and kept in clean environment. Under UV examination, surface appears to be free of restoration or inpainting; varnish flare around signature and a few other areas throughout the ground, but all appear to be free of inpainting. Stable gesso layer with only minor craquelure, a fine presentation.