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Summer
Gustave Doré (French, 1832–1883)
about 1860–70
Medium/Technique
Oil on canvas
Dimensions
266.4 x 200.1 cm (104 7/8 x 78 3/4 in.)
Credit Line
Gift of Richard Baker
Accession Number73.8
NOT ON VIEW
CollectionsEurope
ClassificationsPaintings
Doré, best known for illustrations of the Bible and Dante's Divine Comedy, painted many landscapes of Switzerland, Scotland, and France, but this work is unique. A slice of nature from a bug's-eye view, it seems to be an allegory of rejuvenation and the transience of life. Hollyhocks, morning-glories, dandelions, daisies, thistles, and other weeds battle for survival, and butterflies and dragonflies feed on them. The scythe, a traditional symbol of death, lies rusting in the foreground, and in contrast to the luxuriance of nature, a ruined building is moldering in the background.
InscriptionsLower left: Gve Dore
ProvenanceBy 1867, De Vries Art Gallery (De Vries, Ibarra, and Co.), Boston [see note 1]; between about 1869 and 1871, sold by De Vries to Richard Baker (b. 1819 - d. 1875), Boston [see note 1]; 1873, gift of Richard Baker to the MFA. (Accession Date: January 24, 1873)
NOTES:
[1] De Vries, which probably imported the painting, exhibited it in 1867, 1868, and 1869 as "Fleurs de Champs (Un coin de Jardin): Midsummer."
[2] A letter from George W. Wales to Henry P. Kidder (September 21, 1876), indicates that "Mrs. Baker says her husband purchased this said Painting of Mr. de Vries and gave it to the Museum -- she said she thought the purchase was made at your suggestion." Kidder was among the founding trustees of the MFA and served as treasurer from 1870 until his death in 1886. According to notes in the curatorial file, Baker lent the painting to the Boston Atheneum as early as 1871; it was exhibited at the MFA in 1874.
NOTES:
[1] De Vries, which probably imported the painting, exhibited it in 1867, 1868, and 1869 as "Fleurs de Champs (Un coin de Jardin): Midsummer."
[2] A letter from George W. Wales to Henry P. Kidder (September 21, 1876), indicates that "Mrs. Baker says her husband purchased this said Painting of Mr. de Vries and gave it to the Museum -- she said she thought the purchase was made at your suggestion." Kidder was among the founding trustees of the MFA and served as treasurer from 1870 until his death in 1886. According to notes in the curatorial file, Baker lent the painting to the Boston Atheneum as early as 1871; it was exhibited at the MFA in 1874.