Louis Oscar Griffith (American/Indiana, 1875-1956, active New Orleans 1916-1917), "Unloading the Banana Boats, New Orleans Dock", oil on canvas, signed lower center, 43 1/2 in. x 48 1/4 in. E75000-125000 Provenance: Acquired from the Estate of the artist, Nashville, Indiana Exhibited "Brown County Artists Show" at the Brown County Art Gallery in 2004. Note: The picturesque sights of New Orleans appealed to the midwestern painter and printmaker Louis Oscar Griffith. Like many artists who wintered in the city, Griffith turned his attention to the historic St. Louis Cathedral, French Market, facades and patios of the Vieux Carre. However, Griffith was particularly fascinated by the waterways surrounding the city and painted the New Basin Canal, Bayou St. John and, in this splendid painting, the busy docks along the Mississippi River. Instead of giving an overview of the port, he focused on the industrious and muscular dockworkers as they carry the large bunches of bananas off the recently arrived ships that transited between Cuban and Central American ports and New Orleans. Already accomplished American Impressionist artists, "Griff" as friends knew him, and his fellow Midwesterner Robert Grafton spent the winter of 1916 and 1917 in the city. They were readily accepted into the active and thriving artistic community and exhibited with the Art Association of New Orleans at the Isaac Delgado Museum of Art (today New Orleans Museum of Art) and St. Charles Hotel. Although Griffith made only one extended trip, the city left a lasting impression on him and he continued to exhibit his New Orleans paintings throughout his career.