Quick Reference

Time Period:
Painted prior to 1930.

Location:
Redgate Studio

Medium:
Oil on Canvas

Type:
Landscape

Category:
Brooks, Ponds, Rivers

Size:
36" x 42"

Exhibited:
"Largely exhibited about
the country..." RSW

Purchased:
Mrs. Ada Small Moore

Provenance:
N/A

Noteworthy:

"A large early canvas of a theme I painted several times with slight variations and different compo-sitions, tho the only one I made of it in this larger size, 36 x 42." RSW


Related Links

Featured Artwork: Winter Pool

RSW's Diary Comments


"Painted prior to 1930. A large early canvas of a theme I painted several times with slight variations and different compositions, tho the only one I made of it in this larger size, 36 x 42. A black turbulent pool of a stream flowing thru dark winter evening woods, curving about a large clump of flesh colored winter beeches in leaf on the snow-drifted bank. (Mr. and Mrs. Robert T Lee of Manchester, Vt., Mrs. Roger Smith of Gardner, etc, own other canvases of the similar theme). Largely exhibited about the country, given a very large rotogravure illustration by the Sunday Boston Herald (see my clipping book) and finally bought by Mrs. Wm. H. Moore to give to her sister, Mrs. Smith of Chicago. Mrs. Smith died around 1940 and the picture was taken and is now owned by her daughter, Mrs. Seller [sic] Bullard of 'Far Horizons' Stow Canyon Rd, Galeta, [sic] California."



Mrs. Sellar Bullard with her Garden Club friends
Mrs. Sellar Bullard with her Garden Club friends

Editor's Note:

There is a lot to say about Woodward's dairy comments. Let's start with the remark that this painting exhibited "largely... about the country." We have no record of it exhibiting anywhere. Furthermore, we have established that the Roto-gravure image is in fact, Winter Silence (above), and the two paintings are different sizes as the artist stated, "the only one I made of it in this larger size, 36 x 42." It is actually, Winter Silence, that we have record of exhibiting. It even won a prize at the Springfield Art League's special fall show in 1926 and was favorably reviewed a few times and we have no record of of Winter Pool ever being mentioned in print.

So what is going on here? How could there be so many mistakes by Woodward regarding his own work. First, we need to remind you that he did not begin to assemble the Painting Diary until the 1940s. Second, we believe he was recalling the information correctly and as far as we can tell... he did not double check himself by going to his old scrapbooks and collection of exhibit programs. This is where he makes the most errors.



⮝ Still, there is one thing he rarely ever gets wrong and that is who bought the painting. Also, note where he says Mrs. Moore's sister, Mrs. Smith dies in 1940. It is much more recent and fresh in his mind near the time he is writing the diary. He also knows where the painting goes after her passing, to her daughter Sellar Bullard, of Goleta, CA. Sellar's ranch is "Far Horizons" and she is a Board Member Garden Club of Santa Barbara, and served as their President for much of the 1940s. Above you can see a picture of Sellar from the Journal of the Santa Barbara Historical Museum's Noticias publication for the Garden Club of Santa Barbara's Centennial Anniversary (1916-2016) celebration.


Additional Notes


An illustration of the differences
An illustration of the differences between Pool
and Silence... we lined up the two paintings using the
central snow covered stone and lowered the opacity of
Silence over the larger and squarer Pool so you can
see through it. It is really remarkable just how close
the two paintings are! The image looks just a little
blurry. All of the center trees in the distance line
up, except the two on the right. The real difference be-
tween the two are the top and sides. There is simply
more painting to Pool than Silence. Six inches in
height and six in width. It is remarkable...

⮞ To the right is an illustration showing the differences between the two sibling paintings, Winter Pool and Winter Silence. Silence is the original painting. It was shown at Woodward's first One-man Show in Boston at the Lyman Home on Beacon Street. We know that Mrs. Moore did not attend this show, however, she did request to see another painting from the same show, Road Guardians. The artist states in that diary entry that Road Guardians was the first painting she bought.

There are not a similar remarks for Winter Silence or Pool, however, that fact that she did buy Pool indicates that perhaps she saw Winter Silence and liked it but it had already been promised to another... or she saw Winter Silence and liked everything put the size and asked the artist to make her one bigger. This is all speculation. We simply are demonstrating the number of ways this painting, Winter Pool, came to be.


⮟ Below is the Rotogravure page from the December 28, 1930, Boston Herald. You will see the damage it incurred by being glued over two pages of his Scrapbook, yet still, you can clearly see the caption that says "Winter Silence" , below it.



On December 28, 1930, just after Christmas and before New Year's Day this
painting appears in the Sunday Edition of the Boston Herald's special Rotogravure
Print insert. This clipping was found in Woodward's first early scrapbook of articles
he kept between 1920 and 1930. Click on the link below another version...