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Robert Young Antiques
John Bradley
Significant Documentary Portrait of Martha Engle Banier Fisher
Oils on Canvas
40” high x 33” wide (framed)
description
John Bradley, (Fl. 1831-1847, New York, USA)
Significant Documentary Portrait of Martha Engle Banier Fisher
Oils on Canvas
American, NYC, Signed LL and Inscribed "J. Bradley, 128 Spring Street, New York"
Handwritten Label to Verso "Property of Francis Sweeny. Inherited from Margaret M. Tracy, 1921. Portrait of Martha Engle Banier (second marriage Fisher). My great grandmother……"
40” high x 33” wide (framed)
Related Literature: Rumford; American Folk Portraits: Paintings and Drawings from the Abby Aldrich Rockefeller Folk Art Centre, (Boston 1981). Pages 61-64.
Provenance: The Albert K. Davidson Collection of American Portraits. With Hirschl and Adler NYC.
John Bradley (active 1827-1847) was a British-born artist who worked primarily in the New York area during the 1830s and 1840s. Evidence of his English origins comes from inscriptions on the backs of five portraits of the Totten family, reading "Drawn by I. Bradley from Great Britton." These markings confirm his roots before immigrating to the United States. Bradley lived and worked at several addresses in New York City, with paintings dated between 1837 and 1844 often inscribed with "128 Spring Street."
His distinctive style is characterized by the use of white outlines-rather than dark lines-to create depth, along with luminous highlights on faces and hands. Common motifs in his work include Hitchcock-style chairs, red curtains, and detailed still-life elements.
While the exact dates of his birth and death remain unknown, Bradley's legacy lives on through his art. His portraits provide insight into the fashion, culture, and individuals of his time and are celebrated for their rich detail and expressive quality. Today, his work is part of several museum collections across North America (Including The Phillips Collection , Washington; National Gallery of Art, Washington; Metropolitan Museum of Art, New York; American Folk Art Museum, New York) with only 16 known pieces attributed to him, securing his place in the canon of American folk art.
It is presented in gallery condition, professionally restored, cleaned and revarnished and in a bespoke made ebonised and parcel gilt frame.
Significant Documentary Portrait of Martha Engle Banier Fisher
Oils on Canvas
American, NYC, Signed LL and Inscribed "J. Bradley, 128 Spring Street, New York"
Handwritten Label to Verso "Property of Francis Sweeny. Inherited from Margaret M. Tracy, 1921. Portrait of Martha Engle Banier (second marriage Fisher). My great grandmother……"
40” high x 33” wide (framed)
Related Literature: Rumford; American Folk Portraits: Paintings and Drawings from the Abby Aldrich Rockefeller Folk Art Centre, (Boston 1981). Pages 61-64.
Provenance: The Albert K. Davidson Collection of American Portraits. With Hirschl and Adler NYC.
John Bradley (active 1827-1847) was a British-born artist who worked primarily in the New York area during the 1830s and 1840s. Evidence of his English origins comes from inscriptions on the backs of five portraits of the Totten family, reading "Drawn by I. Bradley from Great Britton." These markings confirm his roots before immigrating to the United States. Bradley lived and worked at several addresses in New York City, with paintings dated between 1837 and 1844 often inscribed with "128 Spring Street."
His distinctive style is characterized by the use of white outlines-rather than dark lines-to create depth, along with luminous highlights on faces and hands. Common motifs in his work include Hitchcock-style chairs, red curtains, and detailed still-life elements.
While the exact dates of his birth and death remain unknown, Bradley's legacy lives on through his art. His portraits provide insight into the fashion, culture, and individuals of his time and are celebrated for their rich detail and expressive quality. Today, his work is part of several museum collections across North America (Including The Phillips Collection , Washington; National Gallery of Art, Washington; Metropolitan Museum of Art, New York; American Folk Art Museum, New York) with only 16 known pieces attributed to him, securing his place in the canon of American folk art.
It is presented in gallery condition, professionally restored, cleaned and revarnished and in a bespoke made ebonised and parcel gilt frame.
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