1934 Pennsylvania Impressionist oil on canvas by PAFA artist Frederick J. Gill (Am., 1906-1974) depicting the PA canal with swimmers. Authenticity guaranteed.
Standard size 20 x 24 inch oil painting in hand carved PA Impressionist wooden picture frame. Painting signed and dated lower right “FJ Gill 34”.
In the collection of the Philadelphia Museum of Art (PMA), you can see Frederick Gill’s painting, “House At New Hope”.
That New Hope painting by Frederick Gill is pictured on the PMA’s site. There’s no better gauge of New Hope art than what’s appreciated by the actual art establishment here in the region. See my other listing, but the Gill paintings I’m offering are collection worthy. They’re period Impressionist school, so they’re unlike New Group (Charles Evans, Louis Stone) or contemporary art (Anthony Autorino, Joseph Barrett) paintings.
Period PA Impressionist art is a top tier collecting area. What’s most prized / sought after are high quality, prime period, Pennsylvania Impressionism landscape oil paintings by well-listed PAFA artists who are documented to have painted New Hope, Bucks County scenes.
Frederick Gill won three awards at the PAFA, studied w/ CH Woodbury at Ogunquit in Maine, has a big bio in the Who Was Who in American Art, and was also a Jersey Shore Impressionist w/ a studio in Avalon + teaching in Ocean City, New Jersey.
According to Cornell M. Dowlin, Ph.D, University of Pennsylvania, in the 1940 book, ‘The University of Pennsylvania Today’: In 1925, the scope of the Department of Fine Arts at the University of Pennsylvania was extended to include a coordinated course with the Pennsylvania Academy of the Fine Arts (PAFA) so that BFA degrees could be earned by painters, sculptors, illustrators and muralists. Frederick Gill earned his in 1929. He was a PAFA artist. He earned a degree, not just a certificate.
In the 1930’s, Gill exhibited with organizations such as the Chester County Art Association, in the company of N.C. Wyeth, Horace Pippin, etc. He won Prizes there in 1938 and 1939. He taught at Central High in Philly, where Dr. Barnes and the Ashcan School painters like Glackens went.
Unrestored painting here. Will need cleaning, flattening out the canvas to resolve a gouge, patch or epoxy seal, then a small amount of touch-in. The frame isn’t perfect either, so repair or replace per your requirements.
In 1953, Frederick Gill served with John Lear on the Jury of the PAFA Fellowship Annual Exhibition and gave one of the Gallery Talks sponsored by the Fellowship for the Annual. He resided at 164 W. Hortter St. in Mount Airy, Philadelphia, just a half hour drive from Bucks County, PA.
Gill was younger than the old guard like Roy Nuse, so he had shows with people closer to his age, such as Oliver Nuse. Gill was a PA Impressionist for around 20 years until his work became modernist and abstract per inspiration from seeing his kids playing around with paint and also his love of jazz music.
For many years, Gill was painting Instructor at today’s University of the Arts and also at the Philadelphia Museum of Art.