“Elizabeth Stearns Davis”, oil on canvas with stretcher 21″ x 27′
“John Davis”, oil on canvas with stretcher 21″ x 27″
The portraits of the Davises by Tarbell are in Foster Brothers frames, a firm in Boston whose designs are characterized by simplified, refined ornament. Recognizing the incongruity of presenting a freehand painting in a machine frame, Foster Brothers emphasized the explicit textural surface of their carved areas and employed water gliding to achieve long-lasting variations in color and tone.
John Davis was a lawyer from Tewksbury who died in Lowell on March 11, 1902. His will provided that after certain bequests were made “all the rest, residue, and remainder of my estate. I give, devise, and bequeath the same to the Trustees of the City Library of Lowell, located in Memorial Hall on Merrimack Street in said Lowell.” From 1905 through 1926, the Trustees used the Davis Fund to purchase paintings and prints.
These portraits were commissioned by the Library Trustees in 1905 to honor these two benefactors. Acquired in 1907.
Edmund C. Tarbell was born in West Groton, MA in April 1862. An American impressionist painter, Tarbell was a leading member of the Boston School of painters and the Ten American painters, who were upset about the conservatism of the American art establishment. His paintings hang in the Boston Museum of Fine Arts, Metropolitan Museum of Art, the Currier Museum, and others. Ned was inspired to further study art in Paris, France in 1883. He returned to Boston and began his career as an instructor, illustrator and portrait painter. Tarbell’s 1891 painting “The Orchard,” established his reputation as an artist. While we only have these two, more of his paintings can be seen at the Groton Public Library as well as the other institutions mentioned.