Skip to main contentProvenanceThe artist
Kraushaar Galleries, New York, New York
Edward B. Greene, 1931
Kraushaar Galleries, New York, New York
Mrs. Spencer Penrose, 1944
Sotheby's, New York, New York, May 30, 1984, lot 46
Private collection, 1984
Alexander, 1985
Berry-Hill Galleries, Inc., New York, New York, 1985
Daniel J. Terra Collection, Chicago, Illinois, 1985
Terra Foundation for the Arts Collection, Chicago, Illinois, 1999
Exhibition HistoryPublished References
Maurice Brazil Prendergast
(American, 1858–1924)
Franklin Park, Boston
1895–97
Watercolor over black chalk, on ivory, wove, watercolor paper
Image: 17 1/2 x 13 1/8 in. (44.5 x 33.3 cm)
Frame: 30 1/4 x 25 1/4 in. (76.8 x 64.1 cm)
Frame: 30 1/4 x 25 1/4 in. (76.8 x 64.1 cm)
Credit LineTerra Foundation for American Art, Daniel J. Terra Collection
Object number1999.111
SignedLower left: Prendergast
InterpretationThe bright colors, park setting, and theme of pleasurable recreation of Maurice Prendergast's Franklin Park, Boston characterize much of his early work, as does the watercolor medium, the artist's favorite before around 1909. In this painting, well-dressed families gather on the lawn before a distant building topped by a pole from which the American flag flutters. The crowd includes men, suggesting that the scene is one of Sunday leisure; slightly separated from them by a line of shrubbery, two women stroll amidst several children. The parasols held by these and more distant figures are bright spots of color echoed in the clothing of the children in the foreground.
Franklin Park, designed by Frederick Law Olmsted, was the crowning achievement of the master landscape architect's so-called Emerald Necklace, a series of parks, parkways, and waterways created in Boston and nearby Brookline, Massachusetts, in the late nineteenth century. In 1895–96, Prendergast, with his brother Charles and their father, lived close to Franklin Park in Boston's Roxbury neighborhood. Near the entrance to the park, several private homes that had been turned into park offices and concessions were demolished in 1890; thus the artist's inclusion of one of them in this view must have been based on memory or photographs.
Franklin Park, Boston is one of at least six watercolors, along with one monotype (TF 1992.106) and one oil painting (TF 1999.112), that Prendergast made of Franklin Park. One of these watercolors (TF 1999.113) renders virtually the same topography from the same viewpoint but presents it in a horizontal format. In both images, Prendergast's characteristic nervous line, rapidly applied watercolor, and keen sense for decorative effect underscore his use of scenes of urban places of public resort as vehicles for composing abstracting "tapestries" of glittering color. The group of Franklin Park images demonstrates Prendergast's experimental approach to composition early in his career. Within a couple of years, while in Italy, he would repeat this experimentation with one subject across media, as in the watercolor Monte Pincio, Rome (TF 1999.117) and the related monotype Monte Pincio (TF 1992.94).
Franklin Park, designed by Frederick Law Olmsted, was the crowning achievement of the master landscape architect's so-called Emerald Necklace, a series of parks, parkways, and waterways created in Boston and nearby Brookline, Massachusetts, in the late nineteenth century. In 1895–96, Prendergast, with his brother Charles and their father, lived close to Franklin Park in Boston's Roxbury neighborhood. Near the entrance to the park, several private homes that had been turned into park offices and concessions were demolished in 1890; thus the artist's inclusion of one of them in this view must have been based on memory or photographs.
Franklin Park, Boston is one of at least six watercolors, along with one monotype (TF 1992.106) and one oil painting (TF 1999.112), that Prendergast made of Franklin Park. One of these watercolors (TF 1999.113) renders virtually the same topography from the same viewpoint but presents it in a horizontal format. In both images, Prendergast's characteristic nervous line, rapidly applied watercolor, and keen sense for decorative effect underscore his use of scenes of urban places of public resort as vehicles for composing abstracting "tapestries" of glittering color. The group of Franklin Park images demonstrates Prendergast's experimental approach to composition early in his career. Within a couple of years, while in Italy, he would repeat this experimentation with one subject across media, as in the watercolor Monte Pincio, Rome (TF 1999.117) and the related monotype Monte Pincio (TF 1992.94).
Kraushaar Galleries, New York, New York
Edward B. Greene, 1931
Kraushaar Galleries, New York, New York
Mrs. Spencer Penrose, 1944
Sotheby's, New York, New York, May 30, 1984, lot 46
Private collection, 1984
Alexander, 1985
Berry-Hill Galleries, Inc., New York, New York, 1985
Daniel J. Terra Collection, Chicago, Illinois, 1985
Terra Foundation for the Arts Collection, Chicago, Illinois, 1999
Exhibition History
Exhibition of Paintings and Watercolors by Maurice Prendergast, C. W. Kraushaar Art Galleries, New York, New York, October 30–November 17, 1930, no. 16.
20 American Artists of the 20th Century: A Comparative Study of the Artists' Vision, Des Moines Art Center, Des Moines, Iowa, March 28–April 22, 1951. [exh. cat.]
The Bostonians: Painters of An Elegant Age, 1870–1980, Museum of Fine Arts, Boston, Massachusetts (organizer). Venues: Museum of Fine Arts, Boston, Massachusetts, June 11–September 14, 1986; Denver Art Museum, Denver, Colorado, October 25, 1986–January 18, 1987; Terra Museum of American Art, Evanston, Illinois, March 10–May 10, 1987. [exh. cat.]
A Proud Heritage: Two Centuries of American Art, Terra Museum of American Art, Chicago, Illinois (organizer). Venue: Terra Museum of American Art, Chicago, Illinois, April 21–June 21, 1987. [exh. cat.]
Selections from the Permanent Collection: Americans at Home and Abroad, Terra Museum of American Art, Chicago, Illinois (organizer). Venue: Terra Museum of American Art, Chicago, Illinois, November 6–29, 1987.
The Work of Charles and Maurice Prendergast, Terra Museum of American Art, Chicago, Illinois (organizer). Venue: Terra Museum of American Art, Chicago, Illinois, March 16–April 21, 1991.
Regard sur Maurice Brazil Prendergast (Maurice Brazil Prendergast at a Glance), Musée d'Art Américain, Giverny, France (organizer). Venue: Musée d'Art Américain, Giverny, France, April 1–October 31, 1993.
Collection Cameo, Terra Museum of American Art, Chicago, Illinois, April 1996.
Ville et campagne: les artistes américains, 1870–1920 (The City and the Country: American Perspectives, 1870–1920)), Musée d'Art Américain Giverny, France (organizer). Venues: Musée d'Art Américain Giverny, France, April 1–July 15, 1999; Terra Museum of American Art, Chicago, Illinois, December 10, 1999–May 7, 2000 (in modified form). [exh. cat.]
L'Héroïque et le quotidien: les artistes américains, 1820–1920 (The Extraordinary and the Everyday: American Perspectives, 1820–1920), Musée d'Art Américain Giverny, France (organizer). Venue: Musée d'Art Américain Giverny, France, April 1–November 30, 2001. [exh. cat.]
D'une colonie à une collection: le Musée d'Art Américain Giverny fête ses dix ans (From a Colony to a Collection: Celebrating the Tenth Anniversary of the Musée d'Art Américain Giverny), Musée d'Art Américain Giverny, France (organizer). Venue: Musée d'Art Américain Giverny, France, March 30–June 16, 2002.
Expanded Galleries of American Art with Loans from the Terra Foundation for American Art Collection, [Gallery 163] The Art Institute of Chicago, Chicago, Illinois, April 15–July 2005.
Le Temps des loisirs : peintures américaines (At Leisure: American Paintings), Musée d'Art Américain Giverny, France (organizer). Venue: Musée d'Art Américain Giverny, France, July 15–October 31, 2007.
Prendergast in Italy, Williams College Museum of Art, Williamstown, Massachusetts, July 18–September 20, 2009; The Peggy Guggenheim Collection, Venice, Italy, October 9, 2009–January 3, 2010; Museum of Fine Arts, Houston, Texas, February 14–May 9, 2010. [exh. cat.]
20 American Artists of the 20th Century: A Comparative Study of the Artists' Vision, Des Moines Art Center, Des Moines, Iowa, March 28–April 22, 1951. [exh. cat.]
The Bostonians: Painters of An Elegant Age, 1870–1980, Museum of Fine Arts, Boston, Massachusetts (organizer). Venues: Museum of Fine Arts, Boston, Massachusetts, June 11–September 14, 1986; Denver Art Museum, Denver, Colorado, October 25, 1986–January 18, 1987; Terra Museum of American Art, Evanston, Illinois, March 10–May 10, 1987. [exh. cat.]
A Proud Heritage: Two Centuries of American Art, Terra Museum of American Art, Chicago, Illinois (organizer). Venue: Terra Museum of American Art, Chicago, Illinois, April 21–June 21, 1987. [exh. cat.]
Selections from the Permanent Collection: Americans at Home and Abroad, Terra Museum of American Art, Chicago, Illinois (organizer). Venue: Terra Museum of American Art, Chicago, Illinois, November 6–29, 1987.
The Work of Charles and Maurice Prendergast, Terra Museum of American Art, Chicago, Illinois (organizer). Venue: Terra Museum of American Art, Chicago, Illinois, March 16–April 21, 1991.
Regard sur Maurice Brazil Prendergast (Maurice Brazil Prendergast at a Glance), Musée d'Art Américain, Giverny, France (organizer). Venue: Musée d'Art Américain, Giverny, France, April 1–October 31, 1993.
Collection Cameo, Terra Museum of American Art, Chicago, Illinois, April 1996.
Ville et campagne: les artistes américains, 1870–1920 (The City and the Country: American Perspectives, 1870–1920)), Musée d'Art Américain Giverny, France (organizer). Venues: Musée d'Art Américain Giverny, France, April 1–July 15, 1999; Terra Museum of American Art, Chicago, Illinois, December 10, 1999–May 7, 2000 (in modified form). [exh. cat.]
L'Héroïque et le quotidien: les artistes américains, 1820–1920 (The Extraordinary and the Everyday: American Perspectives, 1820–1920), Musée d'Art Américain Giverny, France (organizer). Venue: Musée d'Art Américain Giverny, France, April 1–November 30, 2001. [exh. cat.]
D'une colonie à une collection: le Musée d'Art Américain Giverny fête ses dix ans (From a Colony to a Collection: Celebrating the Tenth Anniversary of the Musée d'Art Américain Giverny), Musée d'Art Américain Giverny, France (organizer). Venue: Musée d'Art Américain Giverny, France, March 30–June 16, 2002.
Expanded Galleries of American Art with Loans from the Terra Foundation for American Art Collection, [Gallery 163] The Art Institute of Chicago, Chicago, Illinois, April 15–July 2005.
Le Temps des loisirs : peintures américaines (At Leisure: American Paintings), Musée d'Art Américain Giverny, France (organizer). Venue: Musée d'Art Américain Giverny, France, July 15–October 31, 2007.
Prendergast in Italy, Williams College Museum of Art, Williamstown, Massachusetts, July 18–September 20, 2009; The Peggy Guggenheim Collection, Venice, Italy, October 9, 2009–January 3, 2010; Museum of Fine Arts, Houston, Texas, February 14–May 9, 2010. [exh. cat.]
"American Paintings Will Be Sold at Sotheby's May 30." Antiques & the Arts Weekly (May 18, 1984): 72. Ill. p. 72.
Sotheby's, New York, New York (Sale 5190, May 30, 1984): lot 46. Ill. lot 46.
Fairbrother, Trevor J. et al. The Bostonians: Painters of an Elegant Age, 1870–1930. (exh. cat., Museum of Fine Arts). Boston, Massachusetts: Museum of Fine Arts, 1986. Cat. no. 105, p. 190 (color).
Atkinson, D. Scott et al. A Proud Heritage: Two Centuries of American Art. Edited by Terry A. Neff. (exh. cat., Terra Museum of American Art). Chicago, Illinois: Terra Foundation for the Arts, 1987. Pl. T-110, p. 219 (color).
Von Wilhelm Weber. "Prendergasts Heitere Botschaft." Kunst, Kultur & TV (November 1, 1987): Sektion 5. Ill. and text.
Clark, Carol, Nancy Mowll Mathews and Gwendolyn Owens. Maurice Brazil Prendergast; Charles Prendergast: A Catalogue Raisonné. Munich, Germany and Williamstown, Massachusetts: Prestel-Verlag and The President and Trustees of Williams College, 1990. No. 612, p. 355; ill. no. 612, p. 355 (black & white).
Southgate, M. Therese. "The Cover." The Journal of the American Medical Association 263:17 (May 2, 1990): 2286. Text p. 2286; ill. cover (color).
Gerdts, William H. et al. Lasting Impressions: American Painters in France, 1865–1915. (exh. cat., Musée d'Art Américain Giverny). Chicago, Illinois: Terra Foundation for the Arts, 1992. Text p. 92; fig. 88, p. 93 (black & white).
Gerdts, William H. et al. Impressions de toujours: les peintres américains en France, 1865–1915. (exh. cat., Musée d'Art Américain Giverny). Chicago, Illinois: Terra Foundation for the Arts, 1992. Text p. 92; fig. 88, p. 93 (black & white).
Franklin Park, Boston, Maurice Brazil Prendergast. Collection Cameo sheet, Terra Museum of American Art, Chicago, Illinois, April 1996. Ill. (black & white).
Faragher, John Mack et al. Out of Many: A History of the American People. Upper Saddle River, New Jersey: Prentice Hall, 1997. Ill. p. 605.
Regard sur cinq années d'expositions (Five years of Exhibitions at a Glance). Chicago, Illinois: Terra Foundation for the Arts, 1997. Ill. p. 62 (color).
Cartwright, Derrick R. The City and the Country: American Perspectives, 1870–1920. (exh. cat., Musée d'Art Américain Giverny). Chicago, Illinois: Terra Foundation for the Arts, 1999. Text p. 26 (checklist); ill. p. 37 (color).
Cartwright, Derrick R. Ville et campagne: les artistes américains, 1870–1920. (exh. cat., Musée d'Art Américain Giverny). Chicago, Illinois: Terra Foundation for the Arts, 1999. Text p. 26 (checklist); ill. p. 37 (color).
Cartwright, Derrick. "The City and Country: American Perspectives 1870–1920." American Art Review 7:1 (January–February 2000): 100–11. Ill. p. 107 (color).
Mathews, Nancy Mowll with Elizabeth Kennedy. Prendergast in Italy. (exh. cat. also translated into Italian as Prendergast in Italia; all pages are identical) London: Merrell in association with Williams College Museum of Art and the Terra Foundation for American Art, 2009. Text p. 23; fig. 14, p. 24 (color).
Sotheby's, New York, New York (Sale 5190, May 30, 1984): lot 46. Ill. lot 46.
Fairbrother, Trevor J. et al. The Bostonians: Painters of an Elegant Age, 1870–1930. (exh. cat., Museum of Fine Arts). Boston, Massachusetts: Museum of Fine Arts, 1986. Cat. no. 105, p. 190 (color).
Atkinson, D. Scott et al. A Proud Heritage: Two Centuries of American Art. Edited by Terry A. Neff. (exh. cat., Terra Museum of American Art). Chicago, Illinois: Terra Foundation for the Arts, 1987. Pl. T-110, p. 219 (color).
Von Wilhelm Weber. "Prendergasts Heitere Botschaft." Kunst, Kultur & TV (November 1, 1987): Sektion 5. Ill. and text.
Clark, Carol, Nancy Mowll Mathews and Gwendolyn Owens. Maurice Brazil Prendergast; Charles Prendergast: A Catalogue Raisonné. Munich, Germany and Williamstown, Massachusetts: Prestel-Verlag and The President and Trustees of Williams College, 1990. No. 612, p. 355; ill. no. 612, p. 355 (black & white).
Southgate, M. Therese. "The Cover." The Journal of the American Medical Association 263:17 (May 2, 1990): 2286. Text p. 2286; ill. cover (color).
Gerdts, William H. et al. Lasting Impressions: American Painters in France, 1865–1915. (exh. cat., Musée d'Art Américain Giverny). Chicago, Illinois: Terra Foundation for the Arts, 1992. Text p. 92; fig. 88, p. 93 (black & white).
Gerdts, William H. et al. Impressions de toujours: les peintres américains en France, 1865–1915. (exh. cat., Musée d'Art Américain Giverny). Chicago, Illinois: Terra Foundation for the Arts, 1992. Text p. 92; fig. 88, p. 93 (black & white).
Franklin Park, Boston, Maurice Brazil Prendergast. Collection Cameo sheet, Terra Museum of American Art, Chicago, Illinois, April 1996. Ill. (black & white).
Faragher, John Mack et al. Out of Many: A History of the American People. Upper Saddle River, New Jersey: Prentice Hall, 1997. Ill. p. 605.
Regard sur cinq années d'expositions (Five years of Exhibitions at a Glance). Chicago, Illinois: Terra Foundation for the Arts, 1997. Ill. p. 62 (color).
Cartwright, Derrick R. The City and the Country: American Perspectives, 1870–1920. (exh. cat., Musée d'Art Américain Giverny). Chicago, Illinois: Terra Foundation for the Arts, 1999. Text p. 26 (checklist); ill. p. 37 (color).
Cartwright, Derrick R. Ville et campagne: les artistes américains, 1870–1920. (exh. cat., Musée d'Art Américain Giverny). Chicago, Illinois: Terra Foundation for the Arts, 1999. Text p. 26 (checklist); ill. p. 37 (color).
Cartwright, Derrick. "The City and Country: American Perspectives 1870–1920." American Art Review 7:1 (January–February 2000): 100–11. Ill. p. 107 (color).
Mathews, Nancy Mowll with Elizabeth Kennedy. Prendergast in Italy. (exh. cat. also translated into Italian as Prendergast in Italia; all pages are identical) London: Merrell in association with Williams College Museum of Art and the Terra Foundation for American Art, 2009. Text p. 23; fig. 14, p. 24 (color).