Creative Commons License
Creative Commons License
A Perch of Birds
(18th and 19th Centuries )
Twenty-four finches, varying in pose and color, are perched in a row. This watercolor is a variant of one of the artist's most popular subjects, "Un bâton de cage." Another variation of this composition in the Lucas Collection of The Baltimore Museum of Art is inscribed: "Giacomelli a Mr. Lucas affecteux souvenir d'une aquarelle." Henri Beraldi wrote of this artist, "Giacomelli is the Van Huysum [Jan Van Huysum, 1682-1749, Dutch flower-painter] of tiny birds, tender and ravishing, which give the impression of being pensive. The bird is to Giacomelli what the cat is to Lambert [Louis-Eugène Lambert, 1825-1900, French painter who specialized in cat subjects]. A respectable bird must be a Giacomelli bird; A non-Giacomelli bird is a false bird," (H. Beraldi, "Les Graveurs du XIXE siècle," Paris, 1885-92, 7:105).
Inscription
Provenance
Provenance (from the French provenir, 'to come from/forth') is the chronology of the ownership, custody, or location of a historical object. Learn more about provenance at the Walters.
Purchased by William T. Walters (through George A. Lucas as agent), Baltimore, March 21, 1884 [1]; inherited by Henry Walters, Baltimore, 1894; by bequest to Walters Art Museum, 1931.
[1] The Diary of George A. Lucas, p. 583.
Exhibitions
| 2012 | Public Property. |
| 2005-2006 | The Essence of Line: French Drawings from Ingres to Degas. The Walters Art Museum, Baltimore; Baltimore Museum of Art, Baltimore; Birmingham Museum of Art, Birmingham; Tacoma Art Museum, Tacoma. |
| 1998-1999 | A Discerning Eye: Nineteenth-century Drawings and Watercolors. Academy Art Museum, Easton. |
| 1998-1999 | Botanical Delights: Floral Motifs in 19th-Century Art. Government House, Annapolis; Strathmore Hall Art Center, North Bethesda; Academy Art Museum, Easton. |
| 1997-1998 | French Master Drawings. The Walters Art Gallery, Baltimore. |
| 1983 | A Connoisseur's Portfolio: Nineteenth-century Drawings and Watercolors in the Walters Art Gallery. The Walters Art Gallery, Baltimore. |
| 1979 | A Supple Brush: The Flowering of Continental Watercolors. The Walters Art Gallery, Baltimore. |
Conservation
| Date | Description | Narrative |
|---|---|---|
| 1/1/2002 | Treatment | examined for exhibition; cleaned; other |
Geographies
France (Place of Origin)
Measurements
H: 7 x W: 19 1/16 in. (17.8 x 48.4 cm)
Credit Line
Acquired by William T. Walters, 1884
Location in Museum
Not on view
Accession Number
In libraries, galleries, museums, and archives, an accession number is a unique identifier assigned to each object in the collection.
In libraries, galleries, museums, and archives, an accession number is a unique identifier assigned to each object in the collection.
37.963