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Frederic Remington Makes
Tracks: Adventures and Artistic Impressions
March 28 - May 20, 2007
The Museum of Wisconsin
Art brings two great masters of sculpture and painting together -- Frederic
Remington (1861-1909) and Wisconsin artist Richard 
Lorenz
(1858-1915) -- when Frederic Remington Makes Tracks: Adventures and Artistic
Impressions, organized by The Frederic Remington Art Museum, Ogdensburg,
New York, opens March 28 and continues through May 20, 2007. (right:
Richard Lorenz (1858-1915), Horse Market Midwinter, oil on canvas)
Frederic Remington (1861-1909) was the most popular artist
in America at the turn of the last century. He had produced over three thousand
signed flat works, eight books, and twenty-two bronzes when he died at the
age of forty-eight. America was introduced to him through his many illustrations
for the popular magazines of the day; Harper's, The Century, Collier's and
many more.
Richard Lorenz was a contemporary of Remington along with
other Wisconsin artists featured at the Museum of Wisconsin Art including
John Fery (1861-1909), Franz Biberstein (1850-1930) and, to a lesser extent,
Henry Vianden (1814-1899). All were born in Europe and worked in Wisconsin
yet were drawn westward by the same elements that inspired Remington: wide
open spaces, a unique landscape, cowboys, cattle, buffalo, Native-Americans.
These were all things that physically realized the lore and stereotypical
images of the American west that they brought with them from Europe. These
pictures are the result of these artists seeking the truth for themselves.
The Remington prints, which date nearly to the beginning
of Remington's illustration career, all fit into the category of reproduction.
Remington, in each case, produced an original work of art, which the various
magazines and publishers would reproduce mechanically. Usually, the publishers
would make them in large, unrecorded, numbers, according to market demand.
By far, the most numerous prints were those published by Collier's
-- both in the number of 
images
made, and the large numbers of each that they printed. Remington had a contract
with Collier's to produce a painting a month beginning in 1902. Each
painting would be featured in color inside the magazine, and offered for
sale through mail order. They were often reprinted in different sizes, and
marketed in different groupings. Remington's diaries show that he burned
numerous paintings. As he evolved from an illustrator to an acclaimed painter,
he did not want to be remembered for his more illustrative work. Sometimes,
the prints are the best record of a painting's existence. (right:
Frederic Remington (1861-1909), The Great Explorers IV - Radisson,
color halftone, 1905. Courtesy of The Frederic Remington Art Museum, Ogdensburg,
New York )
The prints in this exhibition, and almost one hundred more
like them, were the way most people, for the past century, enjoyed Frederic
Remington's work. Frederic Remington's original paintings and drawings are
plentiful (and expensive) but finite. Most people did not have access to
Remington paintings, but the prints were very popular substitutes. They
were commonplace in ordinary homes. When we look at these prints today,
we see Remington's art as most people of his time experienced it.
The showing in West Bend, Wisconsin is part of a nine city
national tour over a two and a half year period containing fifty prints,
three fine silver recast sculptures and one bronze portrait of Remington.
The tour was developed and managed by Smith Kramer Fine Art Services, an
exhibition tour development company in Kansas City, Missouri.
About Smith Kramer Fine Art Services
Founded in 1981 by David Smith, Smith Kramer Fine Art Services
has enjoyed twenty-five years of growth in serving the art community. In
partnership with the institutions and collectors, Smith Kramer Fine Art
Services budgets, markets, crates, insures, transports, and handles all
services of the exhibition from concept to completion. -- edited
text, courtesy Smith Kramer Fine Art Services. Also see
The David Smith Story: Sharing the Arts
(11/14/97).
Introductory text panel from the exhibition
- "No American artist interests the people more
than Remington does, and none is really better worth going to see."
- - Newspaper quote taken directly from Remington's journal,
December 11, 1909
-
- Frederic Remington (1861-1909) was the most popular artist
in America at the turn of the last century. He had produced over three
thousand signed flat works, eight books, and twenty-two bronzes when he
died at the age of forty-eight. America was introduced to him through his
many illustrations for the popular magazines of the day: Harper's,
The Century, Collier's and many more.
-
- The prints, which date nearly to the beginning of Remington's
illustration career, all fit into the category of reproduction. Remington,
in each case, produced an original work of art, which the various magazines
and publishers would reproduce mechanically. Usually, the publishers would
make them in large, unrecorded, numbers, according to market demand. By
far, the most numerous prints were those published by Collier's - both
in the number of images made, and the large numbers of each that they printed.
Remington had a contract with Collier's to produce a painting a month beginning
in 1902. Each painting would be featured in color inside the magazine,
and offered for sale through mail order. They were often reprinted in different
sizes, and marketed in different groupings. Remington's diaries show that
he burned numerous paintings. As he evolved from an illustrator to an acclaimed
painter, he did not want to be remembered for his more illustrative work.
Sometimes, the prints are the best record of a painting's existence.
-
- The prints in this exhibition, and almost one hundred
more like them, were the way most people, for the past century, enjoyed
Frederic Remington's work. Frederic Remington's original paintings and
drawings are plentiful (and expensive) but finite. Most people did not
have access to Remington paintings, but the prints were very popular substitutes.
They were commonplace in ordinary homes. When we look at these prints today,
we see Remington's art as most people of his time experienced it.
Museum panel from the exhibition
- The Frederic Remington Art Museum is in Ogdensburg, New
York, on Remington's beloved St. Lawrence River. Between 1915 and 1918,
Frederic Remington's widow, Eva, lived in the house that became the museum
in 1923. When she died in 1918, she left her collection of Frederic Remington's
paintings, drawings, bronze sculptures and vast archives to the people
of the city of Ogdensburg. Based on the theme of so much of his work, many
assume that Remington was a westerner. However, he spent most of his life
in New York State. In fact, he was born and buried in Canton, New York,
spent part of his boyhood in Ogdensburg, and visited the area every summer.
Situated at the very top of New York, north of the Adirondack Mountains,
this area was Remington's northern wilderness and summer playground. It
is a fitting place for the museum.
-
- The collection has grown since the founding gift, thanks
to many generous donations of Remington art and archival materials. The
facility has grown to meet increased needs, with gallery and collections
space added in 1976 and in 1996. In 2004, the museum opened the Eva Caten
Remington Education Center, adding hands-on children's exhibits and classroom
space. The museum is open year-round.
-
- The mission of the Frederic Remington Art Museum is to
collect, exhibit, preserve and interpret the art and archives of Frederic
Remington. The Museum fosters an appreciation for and an understanding
of the artist by educating its audience in the visual arts and by providing
a context for Remington's life in Northern New York.
-
Wall labels from the exhibition
- A Navajo Sheep-Herder
- 1888
- published 1888 in John Muir's Picturesque California by
- The J. Dewing Company
- black and white photogravure
-
- Fight for the Waterhole
- a.k.a. An Arizona Waterhole
- a.k.a. A Water-hole in the Arizona Desert
- 1903
- copyright 1908 and printed in Collier's Weekly
- color halftone
-
- The Charge
- a.k.a. A Cavalry Scrap
- 1906
- edition printed and published 1910 in Collier's Weekly
- color halftone
-
- The Emigrants
- 1904
- published 1910 in Collier's catalog
- color halftone
-
- The Navajo Raid
- 1907
- published 1910 in Collier's Weekly
- color halftone
-
- The Sioux Chief
- a.k.a. A War Chief
- part of A Bunch of Buckskins series of eight, a portfolio by R. H.
Russell
- 1901
- edition printed 1901
- color lithograph
-
- The Half-Breed
- 1902
- one of four published 1902 by Charles Scribner's Sons and sold boxed
as
- Western Types
- color halftone
-
- The Scout
- 1902
- third of four published by Charles Scribner's Sons 1902 and sold boxed
- as Western Types
- color halftone
-
- Goose Shooting
- a.k.a. Canada Goose Shooting
- a.k.a. Pheasant Shooting
- 1889
- from portfolio edited by A.C. Gould
- titled Sport: or Shooting and Fishing
- Bradless, Whidden Publishing Co. 1889
- chromolithograph
-
- The Great Explorers IV-Radisson
- a.k.a. Pierre Radisson
- a.k.a. Exploring the Lakes
- a.k.a. Radisson and Groseillers
- 1905
- published 1906 in Collier's Weekly
- color halftone
-
- The Great Explorers IX-Zebulon Pike
- a.k.a. Zebulon Pike Entering Santa Fe
- a.k.a. A Spanish Escort
- 1905
- printed 1906 in Collier's Weekly
- color halftone
-
- The Great Explorers X-Jedediah Smith
- 1905
- published 1906 in Collier's Weekly
- color halftone
-
- Bringing Home the New Cook
- 1907
- edition published 1907 in Collier's Weekly
- color halftone
-
- Shotgun Hospitality
- a.k.a. Shot Gun Hospitality
- 1908
- published 1910 in Collier's Weekly
- color halftone
-
- The Stampede by Lightning
- a.k.a. The Stampede
- 1908
- published 1911 in Collier's Weekly
- color halftone
-
- The End of the Day
- 1904
- printed and offered as full-color "artist's proof" in Collier's
catalog
- in 1906
- color halftone
-
- Dash for the Timber
- 1889
- published in 1890 by The Gravure Etching Company
- black-and-white photoengraving
-
- A "Sun Fisher"
- a.k.a. A "Sunfisher"
- 1895
- published 1895 by Davis & Sanford Co
- black-and-white lithograph
-
- Soldiers Opening Their Veins for Want of Water
- a.k.a. After the Skirmish
- 1896
- published 1898 by The Werner Co., Akron, Ohio,
- black-and-white rotogravure
-
- Missing
- a.k.a. The Captive
- 1899
- printed 1899 by R. H. Russell
- black-and-white platinum print
-
- A Monte Game at Southern Ute Agency
- a.k.a. Mexican Monte
- a.k.a. Card Game at Ignacio
- 1900
- published in 1906 as black-and-white "artist's proof" on
pebbled art
- paper by Collier's Weekly
- color halftone
-
- Indians Simulating Buffalo
- a.k.a. Indians Disguised as Buffalo
- 1908
- published 1909 in Collier's Weekly
- color halftone
-
- The Scouts
- 1908
- published 1908 in Collier's Weekly
- color halftone
-
- With the Eye of the Mind
- 1908
- published 1909 in Collier's Weekly
- color halftone
-
- An Arizona Cowboy
- part of A Bunch of Buckskins series of eight, a portfolio by R. H.
Russell
- 1901
- edition printed 1901
- color lithograph
-
- Coming to the Call
- 1905
- edition printed and offered as full-color "artist's proofs"
in Collier's
- catalogs in 1906/1907
- color halftone
-
- Evening on a Canadian Lake
- 1905
- published 1905 in Collier's Weekly
- color halftone
-
- The Howl of the Weather
- a.k.a. The Squall
- 1905/1906
- published 1907 in Collier's Weekly
- color halftone
-
- Drifting Before the Storm
- 1904
- published 1904 in Collier's Weekly
- color halftone
-
- The Bell Mare
- a.k.a. In the Enemy's Country
- a.k.a. Pack Train in Moonlight
- 1903
- edition printed as part of portfolio of Six Remington Paintings in
Color
- in 1906
- color halftone
-
- A Halt in the Wilderness
- a.k.a. Halt of a Cavalry Patrol to Warm
- 1905
- offered 1906 in Collier's catalog as a two-color "artist's proof"
- color halftone
- Benighted for a Dry Camp
- a.k.a. Benighted- and a Dry Camp
- a.k.a. The Dry Camp
- 1907
- addition printed and published 1911 in Collier's Weekly
- color halftone
-
- The Shadows at the Water Hole
- a.k.a. Apaches at a Water Hole
- 1907
- published 1907 in Collier's Weekly
- color halftone
-
- The Grass Fire
- a.k.a. Backfiring
- 1908
- published 1909 in Collier's Weekly
- color halftone
-
- Calling the Moose
- a.k.a. Calling to the Moose
- a.k.a. Calling to Death
- 1901
- published in Collier's Weekly
- halftone
-
- Fighting over a Stolen Herd
- a.k.a. Fighting over the Captured Herd
- a.k.a. Protecting the Herd
- 1896
- published 1898 by The Werner Co., Akron, Ohio
- rotogravure
-
- Trailing Texas Cattle
- 1904
- published in 1904 in Collier's Weekly
- color halftone
-
- Pony Tracks in the Buffalo Trail
- 1904
- published in 1904 in Collier's Weekly
- color halftone
-
- The Warrior's Last Ride
- 1907
- published in 1908 in Collier's Weekly
- color halftone
-
- The Sentinel
- 1907
- published as a print in 1909 in Collier's Weekly
- color halftone
-
- The Pioneers
- 1903
- published in 1904 in Collier's Weekly
- color halftone
-
- The Cow-Boy
- 1902
- published by Charles Scribner's Sons
- color halftone
-
- An Argument with the Town Marshal