This golden age of illustration work was most likely done for an interior story illustration for the Saturday Evening Post. Joe Bowler paints it in a loose but academically correct post-nabis style, The children are depicted having a great time and enjoying the innocence of youth while balancing on a fallen tree. Each figure is deftly rendered in a pose that captures their bodies in a moment of high drama. The prostrated tree acts as a balancing beam as five participants contort themselves to stand upright. In the background, two men on a bench engaged in a chat. A woman stands on an ornate porch. Presumably, they are related to the frolicking kids. Bowler is ingenious in the way he directs a simple but complex narrative in a fluid and expressive way. He infuses his luscious palette with a desaturated robins egg blue sky and unexpected mustard yellows and warm dreamy grays. Unframed. The original color of the painting may vary slightly from monitor to monitor.
A few nicks, scuffs, and dents are only visible on close inspection. Otherwise presents well
Joe Bowler, American, 1928–2017
Casein on Gesso Panel
19.5 - 28.5 inches
US$16,000 Plus Shipping
