Frederick Arthur Bridgman

Frederic Arthur Bridgman (1847-1928) Description: Black stallion and two Bedouin men in a wind storm, signed and dated lower left: F.A. Bridgman 1881, oil on canvas, 12'' H x 18'' W, est: $20,000/30,000. Condition Report: Visual: Generally good condition. Blacklight: Two spots of touch-up in the upper center, a speck and a spot of touch-up on the horse and a spot of touch-up along the right center edge. Private Collection, Norwalk, CT, circa 1880s; by descent in the family to the present owner 12'' H x 18'' W Frederic Arthur Bridgman (1847-1928 New York, NY / Paris, France) oil on canvas

Frederick Arthur Bridgman Tuskegee (Alabama), 1847 - Paris, 1928 Vue de Bellaggio sur les rives du lac de Côme, Italie Huile sur toile (Toile d'origine) Signée, localisée et datée 'F.A. Bridgman / Bellagio / 1885' en bas à doite Sans cadre 'VIEW OF BELLAGGIO', OIL ON CANVAS, SIGNED, LOCATED AND DATED, BY F. A. BRIDGMAN h: 26 w: 35 cm Estimation 2 000 - 3 000 €

Frederick Arthur Bridgman (American, 1847-1928) The meeting place signed and dated 'F A Bridgman 1872' (lower left) oil on canvas 37 x 47cm (14 9/16 x 18 1/2in). Frederick Arthur Bridgman (1847–1928) was born in Tuskegee, Alabama. A pupil of the Brooklyn Art Association and the National Academy of Design, he went to Paris in 1866, and in 1867 he entered the studio of the noted academic painter Jean-Léon Gérôme (1824–1904). He was deeply influenced by Gérôme's precise draftsmanship, smooth glazes, and interest in Orientalist themes. Although he spent most of his time either travelling in the Middle East or in France he became one of the most popular painters in his home country and this has not waned.

Lot 92 FREDERICK ARTHUR BRIDGMAN (american 1847-1928) TEA TIME Signed, inscribed and dated 'F.A. Bridgman/a l'Exposition 1900/Paris' bottom right; also with an 'A l'Arc-en Ciel, H. Canville, Paris' label attached verso, pastel on paper laid to board Sight size: 18 1/8 x 11 3/4 in. (46 x 29.8cm) provenance: Samuel T. Freeman and Company sale of December 1975. Private Collection, Pennsylvania. Estimate $3,000-5,000 Matted and framed; the mat is cloth covered, has a beveled edge and is laid down to thick cardboard. Behind the heavy cardboard are three additional backed layers: two pieces of illustration board centering (apparently) a piece of foamcore board. The manner in which this work is (professionally) framed renders the safe removal of the work itself very difficult, without causing possible damage to the work. As such, we have not examined this work out of its matting. Of the visible area, the work appears to be in overall excellent condition with fresh, bright colors and no evidence of restoration. There appear to be some very slight, unobtrusive scuff or thin abrasion lines: top edge at left and right edge at top. Descriptions provided in both printed and on-line catalogue formats do not include condition reports. The absence of a condition statement does not imply that the lot is in perfect condition or completely free from wear and tear, imperfections or the effects of aging. Interested bidders are strongly encouraged to request a condition report on any lots upon which they intend to bid, prior to placing a bid. All transactions are governed by Freeman's Conditions of Sale.

Frederick Arthur Bridgman (American, 1847-1928) The Procession of the Sacred Bull Apis signed 'F. A. Bridgman' (lower left) oil on canvas 23 7/8 x 41¾ in. (60.6 x 106 cm.) VARIOUS PROPERTIES (possibly) New York, Mr. Avery's Gallery, March 1880. (possibly) New York, American Art Gallery, Frederick Arthur Bridgman, 1881, no. 217. (possibly) London, Fine Art Society, Frederick Arthur Bridgman, 1887, no. 103. (possibly) Chicago, Art Institute of Chicago, Frederick Arthur Bridgman, 1890, no. 276. As a careful archaeological reconstruction of the past, this painting was executed under the strong influence of Bridgman's teacher, Jean-Léon Gérôme. It is one of several pictures based on ancient Egyptian themes painted by the artist after his first trip to Egypt in the winter of 1873-74, where he made extensive sketches of the people, architecture and hieroglyphic art of the country. Others included The Funeral of a Mummy, exhibited at the Salon of 1877, The Diversion of an Assyrian King, shown at the Salon of 1878, and finally, in 1879, a version of the present work, which was immediately recognized as a high point of the Gérôme school (see G. Ackerman, American Orientalists, Paris, 1994, p. 48-9). The painting is characterised by meticulous attention to detail, an emphasis on line, and by a narrative and frieze-like composition that lend the work an almost cinematographic quality. It is a style quite different to the more realist interpretations of North African subjects, executed in an almost Impressionist technique, that denote Bridgman's later oeuvre. The painting depicts the sacred Apis bull with the sun disc and the uraeus between its horns, attended by an entourage of priests carrying the god's barge. Pharaoh leads the procession in his capacity as high priest, accompanied by his wife, and followed immediately behind by the temple priest. The Apis bull in ancient Egyptian religion was considered to be the embodiment of the god Ptah, and was worshipped as a god at Ptah's temple in Memphis. A particular bull-calf was identified as the god incarnate by 27 specific physical characteristics including a white triangular mark on its forehead. The bull lived in splendour in a specially designed temple until he reached the age of 25, when he was usually sacrificed. In death the bull became assimilated to the god Osiris and was embalmed and mummified with the all the ceremony accorded to a pharaoh. This subject appears with great frequency in the catalogues of the many Bridgman exhibitions organised during the artist's lifetime, and is closest to the 1879 Salon painting. Another variant was sold at Christie's in 2001 (see fig. 1). This picture will be included by Ilene Susan Fort in her forthcoming catalogue raisonné on Bridgman.