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Artist or Maker: Joseph Decker (1853-1924)
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Provenance: Berry-Hill Galleries, Inc., New York.
Acquired by the present owner from the above, 1987.
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Exhibited: New York, Coe Kerr Gallery, Inc., Joseph Decker (1853-1924): Still Lifes, Landscapes and Images of Youth , May 17-June 11, 1988.
St. Petersburg, Florida, Museum of Fine Arts, In The American Spirit: Realism and Impressionism from the Lawrence Collection , March 21-June 13, 1999, no. 8 (as Strawberries in Upright Box ).
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Notes: Property from the Samuel B. and Marion W. Lawrence Collection
On occasion, Christie's has a direct financial interest in lots consigned for sale which may include guaranteeing a minimum price or making an advance to the consignor that is secured solely by consigned property. This is such a lot. This indicates both in cases where Christie's holds the financial interest on its own, and in cases where Christie's has financed all or a part of such interest through a third party. Such third parties generally benefit financially if a guaranteed lot is sold successfully and may incur a loss if the sale is not successful.
Joseph Decker, whose work ranks among the finest American still-lifes of the late nineteenth and early twentieth century, captured the simplest objects with sincerity and profoundness.
According to William H. Gerdts, "[A] characteristic in Decker's late still lifes is his preference for small and humble subjects. While a few of these late pictures continue his investigation of the peach, and even melons occasionally appear, for the most part the fruit he chose to display are small: grapes, cherries, plums, gooseberries and especially strawberries, which he investigated numerous times, obviously enjoying the pulpy forms as well as the bright, ripe red color." (Coe Kerr Gallery, Joseph Decker (1853-1924): Still Lifes, Landscapes and Images of Youth , New York, 1988, n.p.)
