Charles Bartlett

  Taj-Mahal From The East (3/75)

Hand-Colored Etching
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  Afghani Mother & Child, Kyber Pass, 1920

Watercolor on paper
Watercolor painting of an Afghani mother and child at the Kyber Pass. Painted in Hawaii in 1920. Excellent condition with restored scratches and surface abrasions. Mounted on acid free paper.
 

  Taj Mahal from the Rose Garden

Watercolor on paper
An original watercolor painting on paper of the Taj Mahal seen from the Rose Garden. Signature and date (1916) in bottom left corner; titled and numbered, No. 55 on old backing board. Bartlett lived in India for two years, from 1914 to 1915. This painting dates to 1916 which is when he moved to Japan and began his collaboration with Watanabe Shozaburo, the publisher of his many woodblock prints. Interestingly, most of his known Indian paintings were done even later, after he settled in Hawaii. Although the Taj Mahal was one of his favorite subjects, this viewpoint from the Rose Garden is unique and differs from his other documented prints and paintings of this historic site. Provenance: An important Hawaiian family (to be disclosed after purchase).
 

  Mother and Child, Volendam

Watercolor and pastel.
A rare early original watercolor and pastel painting of a Dutch mother and child. A wonderful example of his early painting style which won him praise and awards across Europe at an early age. In its original hand-carved frame. Bartlett traveled to Holland often during his younger years, creating works in oil paint, watercolor and some of his earliest etchings (inspired by Rembrandt, who proved that a fine painter can also be a fine printmaker, and neither talent diminished the other.) An etching of the same title, illustrated in A Printmaker in Paradise, page 49, shows these same figures in a slightly altered pose. Bartlett tragically lost his first wife during childbirth and his child soon after. The mother and child subject was a compelling and deeply personal theme which he painted throughout his career, in numerous forms and in virtually every culture he encountered.

 

  Mother and Child, Kashmir

Oil on canvas.
Original oil on canvas painting of a mother and child with lotus plants and flowers blooming behind, Dal Lake and its surrounding mountains rising in the background. In its original frame. Bartlett traveled to Kashmir in 1913 as part of his 18-month trip around the world which brought him ultimately to live in Hawaii. Filling his sketchbooks and journals with observations and notes of his travels, these were the basis for later paintings such as this one which were realized after he and his wife Kate settled down in Honolulu. Bartlett tragically lost his first wife during childbirth and his child soon after. The mother and child subject was a compelling and deeply personal theme which he painted throughout his career, in numerous forms and in virtually every culture he encountered. Detailed condition report: Painting has been conserved by a professional and back of canvas relined. Natural grazing and crackling of the oil paints has been stabilized and in excellent condition. The deep, rich colors are difficult to replicate in digital form and are far more beautiful in person. Provenance: Of impeccable provenance, to be disclosed at time of sale.
 

  Evening, Java (Rice Fields) #136

Watercolor and pastel.
A very rare original watercolor and pastel painting on board of villagers planting rice. Bartlett traveled to Java in 1921, filling his sketchbooks with observations to fuel later prints and paintings such as this piece. A Honolulu Star-Bulletin article commented that after his trip, "It is evident that in Bartlett's long visits in the Orient he had learned the secret of the contemplative calm of those great creative peoples . . . an atmosphere of mystery, of subtlety, of poetic feeling." Another point of interest is his loose, rubbed and scratched style of watercolor painting which Bartlett developed in the later part of his life. Personally prefering watercolors to oil paints, he would smudge the edges of his brushstrokes and scratch the surface of the paintings to create a more atmospheric effect as well as the implied texture of aged silk which he so loved. Provenance: This original, along with item #12165, were pruchased from The Treasure House, Merchant Street, Honolulu by Herbert C. Shipman of Ha'ene, Kea'au, Hawaii. "1937" is written on the reverse side along with the title: "#136 Evening, Java". Also on the back: "Painted by C. W. Bartlett". The pair hung for many years in the living room of the W.H. Shipman ranch manager's house at Kea'au, where Herbert Shipman resided. Herbert Shipman is credited with bringing the first orchid plants (vanda) to the Island of Hawai'i, now nicknamed the Orchid Isle, and he is also responsible for saving the nene, the endangered Hawaiian goose, from extinction. Roy Shipman Blackshear purchased them from the estate of Herbert C. Shipman, his uncle.
 

  Evening, Java (Mother & Child) #135 (1937) and Java (1933)

Watercolor and pastel.
A very rare original watercolor and pastel painting on board of a Javanese couple with baby in a rice paddy. This painting is extremely similar to the etching, "Java" which was printed in 1933 and was the Honolulu Printmakers' annual gift print. (Illustrated in A Printmaker in Paradise, Miles/Saville, page 159.) A signed copy of this etching accompanies the painting. Bartlett traveled to Java in 1921, filling his sketchbooks with observations to fuel later prints and paintings such as this piece. A Honolulu Star-Bulletin article commented that after his trip, "It is evident that in Bartlett's long visits in the Orient he had learned the secret of the contemplative calm of those great creative peoples . . . an atmosphere of mystery, of subtlety, of poetic feeling." Another point of interest is his loose, rubbed and scratched style of watercolor painting which Bartlett developed in the later part of his life. Personally prefering watercolors to oil paints, he would smudge the edges of his brushstrokes and scratch the surface of the paintings to create a more atmospheric effect as well as the implied texture of aged silk which he so loved. Provenance: This original, along with item #12166, were pruchased from The Treasure House, Merchant Street, Honolulu by Herbert C. Shipman of Ha'ene, Kea'au, Hawaii. "1937" is written on the reverse side along with the title: "#135 Evening, Java". Also on the back: "Painted by C. W. Bartlett". The pair hung for many years in the living room of the W.H. Shipman ranch manager's house at Kea'au, where Herbert Shipman resided. Herbert Shipman is credited with bringing the first orchid plants (vanda) to the Island of Hawai'i, now nicknamed the Orchid Isle, and he is also responsible for saving the nene, the endangered Hawaiian goose, from extinction. Roy Shipman Blackshear purchased them from the estate of Herbert C. Shipman, his uncle.
 




  Holsteins, Edam (2/75)

Drypoint etching hand-colored with watercolor.
A charming scene of a Dutch farmer among a group of cows in a pasture. On the horizon we see a number of other farms and homes, including the distinctive silhouette of a Dutch windmill. An excellent example of Bartlett's early European work and in a larger size than most etchings he produced later in life. Richly colored with deep green, blue, and yellow ochre. The print is signed CWB 1912 in the bottom left plate, pencil signed in bottom left margin, and numbered "N. 2 / 75" in bottom right margin. As noted in the catalog raisonne, A Printmaker in Paradise, many times Bartlett did not produce the entire edition of 75 prints for his self-printed etchings and the true number of prints produced of this image may be less than 75. The original copper plate for this print is in the collection of the Honolulu Academy of Arts.