RSW's Diary Comments

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October Pageant, 1923, 30" x 30"

In September of 2006 this 24" x 36" painting came up for auction on E-Bay posted by Apple Tree Auction Center. At the time, we knew only of a 30" x 36" 1923 painting also named October Pageant. An incomplete exhibition record from 1944 complicated matters even more.

In the same year, 2006, another painting also came up for auction through the Vose Galleries in Boston, MA. That painting was given the name "Autumn" which according to our records first appeared at an exhibit at the Myles Standish Gallery in 1931. After sifting through all of the information available we have determined this the painting cited as "Autumn" was really the original 1923 "October Pageant!" Only that painting was reported to be 30" x 30". It is believed it may have been either inaccurately listed as a 30" x 36" size in the exhibition records or it was cut down to its current size.

A scan of Grand Central Art Gallery 1949 yearbook

The incomplete exhibit information was sorted out eventually. An exhibit listed only as, "New York, N.Y." was determined to be the Grand Central Art Galleries (G.C.A.G.). This painting, along with a number of other wonderful paintings from a number of periods in RSW's career all exhibited from 1944 to 1947. Only the G.C.A.G. with its 14,000 sq ft of space could pull something like a three year Woodward exhibition off.

We then later found the clipping to the left from G.C.A.G.'s 1949 Annual Yearbook confirming our suspicions. For more on the G.C.A.G., view the image below to understanding its size. Also, a book has been written about the gallery titled "The Masterpiece" by Fiona Davis and this article from the untapped cities website is a great read with good pictures! Both Links will open in a new tab in your browser.

GCAG Architectual Layout Diagram- Note the gallery had as many as 20 individual galleries.
This was how RSW could hold two to three 12 to 16 painting exhibits every year throughout the 1940s.