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Lot 433
Description:
William Henry Buck (Norwegian/New Orleans, 1840-1888), "The Hotel at Spanish Fort on Bayou St. John", oil on canvas, signed and dated "'79" lower right, 12 in. x 20 1/4 in., in a period giltwood frame.
- Provenance: Provenance: Descended in the family of John Lang and Henrietta Darling Lang, Scottish émigrés to New Orleans in the 19th century. An image of this painting to be included in an upcoming publication by the Louisiana State University Press.
- Notes: Note: Bayou St. John, the passage used to transport goods from Lake Ponchartrain to New Orleans, was a crucial waterway for bringing commodities to the city from other trade areas such as Mobile, Biloxi, and the Mississippi River. As an easy route to the city, it also posed a threat; a fort was erected near Lake Ponchartrain to protect the area from invasion. The first fort was built in 1701 by the French colonists who recognized the importance of the trade route before New Orleans was even built. After the New Orleans area passed into Spanish control in 1763, plans for a new and more protective fort were created; this fort was built in 1770 by Francisco Luis Hector, Baron de Carondelet and it was named Fort San Juan del Bayou. Although the fort was decommissioned in 1823, its site has since been used over the years for various purposes. Harvey Elkins, who purchased the land in 1823, built a hotel on the land in 1824-25. John Slidell, upon purchasing the land and the hotel, renamed it the Spanish Fort Hotel. The building was restored in 1874 and in 1878-79, passed into the hands of Moses Schwartz, who developed the land further. An amusement park, several restaurants, a casino, dancing pavilions, and an alligator pond were added to the fort's grounds, making it a popular tourist destination. Many of the images of the fort from this time period were captured by photographer George Francois Mugnier. The hotel existed until 1906, when a fire destroyed many of the buildings. Today the brick walls of the fort's ruins can still be seen along the West bank of Bayou St. John. William Henry Buck's romantic and atmospheric depictions of the Louisiana landscape are noted for their moss-laden live oak trees and views of rustic cabins by the water. He accomplished a recognizable compositional style which makes his work discernable from that of his contemporaries. Interestingly, despite his subjects being unmistakably of southeast Louisiana and the Gulf Coast of Mississippi, very few are of specific, identifiable locations. The work offered, "The Hotel at Spanish Fort on Bayou St. John," belongs to a very small important group of paintings whose buildings and physical locations can be identified. Among the others is a view of Bay St. Louis, formerly in the collection of A. Hays Town, which depicts a Greek Revival house and the shore of the bay. "The Hotel at Spanish Fort on Bayou St. John" is an ambitiously complex work which depicts the building, grounds, brick wall, bridge, embankment and boats in exquisite detail.
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May 22, 2010 10:00 AM CDT
New Orleans, LA, US
Neal Auction Company
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