Granville Redmond Landscape Oil, ca. 1910
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GUEST:
This is a California artist named Granville Redmond. He was born in the 1870s. He, unfortunately, at the age of two, had scarlet fever, and he was deaf for the rest of his life. After he attended some art schools and, and went to Paris, he went to Southern California, to Los Angeles, and he met Charlie Chaplin. And Charlie Chaplin was at the height of his career, and he hired Granville Redmond to act in some of his films. Charlie Chaplin became sort of a patron and he let him open a studio on the lot. But he eventually moved back to Northern California. And that's why I love this painting, is because it's of Mount Tamalpais.
APPRAISER:
This is an early painting by Granville Redmond, probably done, uh, in the early part of the 20th century, maybe 1905, 1910. Obviously, it's signed, uh, lower left here. And it's a nice oil on canvas. It's a painting of Mount Tamalpais, which is just north of San Francisco. So Granville Redmond was one of the earliest of the California Impressionists. He was also one of the first painters here to be painting in the Tonalist style, which was a style that started in the 1880s where they would try to use a similar tone, then use atmospheric effects like mist and fog to give a certain effect.
GUEST:
Okay.
APPRAISER:
And he was one of the first painters here in California to, to paint in that style. So this is from that period. It's in various shades of green.
GUEST:
Yes.
APPRAISER:
It's in pretty good condition. There's a couple of areas where it looks like something may have poked through the painting at some point, and it might benefit from a little cleaning, but otherwise, it's a beautiful example of that period of his work. And it's great that it's Mount Tam here. Where did you acquire this painting?
GUEST:
I bought it in a local shop in the early '80s, mid-'80s.
APPRAISER:
And do you remember what you paid for it?
GUEST:
Yes, it's right on the back of the painting. $250.
APPRAISER:
He's very well-known for doing landscapes that also have fields of poppies...
GUEST:
Right.
APPRAISER:
...or very lush flowers that are very colorful. Those were done a little bit later. Some of those paintings can bring as much as half-a-million dollars. The earlier Tonalist paintings bring less. I think that if this were to be sold at an auction, the estimate would be between $15,000 and $25,000.
GUEST:
Okay, good-- thank you. That's nice to hear.
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