Artist:
Theobald Michau (Belgian, b.1676, d.1765), painter
Provenance:
James Orrocks, RA, London, until April 17, 1895, sold at Orrocks sale, Christie's, London, April 25-27 (third day), 1895, lot 335, to; Walters [1]. (Dowdeswell & Dowdeswell, London, before ca. 1917 [2]. (Probably John Levy Galleries, New York, or Schneider-Gabriel Galleries, New York, before 1940, probably sold to [3]); Emilie L. Heine, Cincinnati, by at least 1940-1949, given with life interest to [4]; Cincinnati Art Museum, 1949-present.
Notes:
[1] Algernon Graves, Art Sales, Bath: Kingsmead Reprints, 1973, p. 337.
[2] The firm closed ca. 1917.
[3] Albert K. Schneider worked as Emilie L. Heine's dealer for many years. He and Gilbert Gabriel worked with John Levy for approximately twenty-five years before opening their own gallery in 1938. In 1940 Heine gave a collection of paintings to the CAM with life interest reserved. Schneider-Gabriel Galleries was requested by the CAM to send detailed information on the works that Heine acquired through the Schneider-Gabriel Galleries or John Levy Galleries. The provenance information sent by Schneider-Gabriel Galleries does not offer specific dates of sale, nor does it clarify if the paintings were purchased by Heine from them or from John Levy. See: Art Digest, October 1, 1938, p. 11; correspondence, May 25, 1940, and July 5, 1940, Heine collection file; Schneider-Gabriel Galleries booklet, no.12, Heine collection file.
[4] Emilie L. Heine, a collector with a penchant for the Barbizon school, began collecting art around 1912 and continued until the mid-1940s. The majority of the paintings were acquired for her Cincinnati home during the 1920s and 1930s, but specific dates of purchase for most are unknown. Heine gave this painting and numerous others to the CAM with life interest reserved in 1940. The Heine collection came to the CAM after her death in 1949.