JANE PETERSON (American 1876-1965)Gloucester HarborOil on canvas18.4in. x 24in.Signed lower rightJane Peterson was one of the pre-eminent female artists of the late 19th and early 20th centuries. From a modest upbringing her talent brought her among many influential art circles including Joachim Sorolla in Madrid and the modernist group surrounding Gertrude and Leo Stein in Paris. From these influences she developed a bold colorful post-impressionist style that gained her much acclaim and success. Her work was commercially very popular and she was considered among the top painters of the time alongside her companions Childe Hassam John Singer Sargent and Maurice Prendergast. She also caught the attention of Louis Comfort Tiffany and travelled extensively with him. She was commissioned to paint many works for Tiffany including paintings for his home at Laurelton Hall Oyster Bay NY. Among her most famous and desirable images are scenes of Gloucester Massachusetts such as this work. Gloucester Harbor is an example of her trademark style with its bold Fauvist colors lush impasto and foreshortened modernist composition catching the energy of a busy dock with dazzling summer colors. Her Gloucester works inspired generations of painters to follow including Emile Gruppe Anthony Thieme and Aldro Hibbard