RSW's Diary Comments

The Village in Spring Sepia Print
This sepia print is the only real image we have of this
painting. The color image above is April in the Village.

"Painted about 1932. A 27 x 30 cut down from an original 30 x 36 of more sky, painted back of the village of North Hadley showing village church spire, trees, houses etc. with small reflecting stream with a boat on it in middle foreground. Bought from the studio by Mrs. L. K. Thorne of 740 Park Ave. N.Y.C., friends of Dr. and Mrs. Lawrence K. Lunt."

Comments in a notebook by RSW:

"May 20, 1935: In my motor car brought to the studio in Buckland from the Massachusetts Mutual Life Insurance Building in Springfield, Mass., 27 x 30 oil painting Village in Spring."

Editor's Note:

Sorting out all of the information regarding this painting has been nothing short of a comedy of errors worthy of a Monty Python skit. We are not entirely to blame for our bias. Of all the paintings linked to this subject, this is the MOST well known because we have had a sepia print image of it since the start of the website in 2002.

April in North Hadley
This image is April in the Village which we used to
illustrate how April in North Hadley later became
The Village in Spring. While there are 4 names con-
nected to this subject. There are only 3 physical
paintings that actually exist and only two images.

So when we recently found a color photo of a painting similar to the scene in the known sepia print from 2006, we automatically assumed it was The Village in Spring.

It was not until we updated this page and per our policy looked to update ALL other paintings linked to it did we discover there are 4 titles related to this subject of the village of North Hadley and there are only 3 physical pieces of work- 2 oils on canvas and 1 pastel painting on board.

To have this many versions that exhibited, all together 10, possibly 11 times tells us how Woodward felt about the subject. The question we have is, what led to it being altered and cut down from its original size? We understand the size, 30" x 27" because that, along with 25" x 30" were both common and standard frame sizes for the time and a 30" x 25 would not have worked. But what didn't work about the original is our curiosity.

Perhaps, because it appears to be a stormy day (there is even rain falling to the right), Woodward wanted to capture the height of the storm clouds but they ultimately made the village appear too small by comparison?

The Church and Meeting Hall... the distinct
steeple can be seen clearly in the painting. Past that
church one can see the bell tower of the other church.

To the right: is the Congregational Church and Town Meeting Hall of the North Hadley Historic District that appeal in the painting behind the two barns.

There are two oils and one chalk drawing with similar names. It was not uncommon for Woodward to do this with subjects he really appreciated. There are the following:
April In the Village, 1932, oil on canvas;
April in North Hadley, oil on canvas; and
The Village in April, 1933, pastel on board.

There is even a description of April In the Village in the New York Post, Dec. 22, 1932

"...Tender color in the budding elms and pale sky of April In the Village, contrasted with the rich notes of the old weathered red barns..."

It is not the most descriptive review but the painting above has both elm trees and three red barns, so we gather that the similarity in name and description suggest that there is more than one version of this subject.