The following description for SCHLOSS THALWITZ has been prepared entirely by the current owner,
Roberts S. Fastov, Esq., and, at the collector’s request, has not been edited
by Sloans & Kenyon
Note
1) In addition to the Fuchs’ Gutachten, there are 15 other indicia of the
authenticity and other factors, which unqualifiedly establish the authenticity
of Mr. Fastov's Schindler painting, including the following:
1.
The unqualified Fuchs' Gutachten was rendered by the author of not only the
Fuchs’ catalogue raisonné, but the extremely well-respected, much relied upon
by the art world and auction houses, highly detailed and lengthy standard 4
volume biographical reference work on 19th century Austrian artists, Die
Österreichischen Maler Des 19. Jahrhunderts (The Austrian Painters Or Artists
Of The 19th Century) (Wien [Vienna], 1972-1974).
2. Fastov
found in the Fuchs' catalogue raisonné two paintings listed and illustrated as
No. 898 and No. 899 therein, which were entitled “Schloss (Castle) Thalwitz,”
and which depicted essentially the same landscape view of a castle, river and
city in the distance with a shepherd and sheep on a bluff in the foreground, as
Fastov's painting. No. 898 was a preliminary study for Fastov's painting,
not No. 899, which was painted from a slightly different perspective
further upstream and farther away from Schloss Thalwitz than Fastov's painting
and No. 898. With respect to No. 899, Fastov's painting is a variant on No.
899, painted from a position closer to the river bed and farther upstream and
lower on the (viewer’s) right bluff and disposing the shepherd and sheep in
slightly different positions on the bluff than No. 899. Both No. 1899 and Mr.
Fastov Schindler paintings are on wood panels of virtually the same size (69.2
cm. x 52.7 cm.) for Fastov's painting and (68.5 cm. x 53.5 cm.) for No. 899.
Schindler thought well enough of No. 899 to sell it to certain Moravian
officials to give as a gift to Kaiser Franz Joseph I (1830 –1916), Emperor of Austria, King of Bohemia, King of Croatia, Apostolic King of
Hungary, King
of Galicia and Lodomeria and Grand Duke of Cracow from 1848 until his death in
1916.
3. The Dorotheum auction house in Vienna sold more
Schindler works than all of the other major auction houses combined (46 of the
72 sold post 1970 to c. 1994 or 62%), and had set the record prices for
Schindler’s work, per Art Sales Index.
Hans Fojtl, the Dorotheum’s chief specialist/expert in 19th Century Austrian
paintings, advised Mr. Fastov that he had always relied on Fuchs as his
Schindler expert and had never used or relied upon Dr. Gerbert Frödl (see below)
during his 29 years with the Dorotheum.
4.
The valid Schindler signature that is located in the lower right corner of the Schindler
painting, has been subjected to and passed ultraviolet light tests, which show
that the signature was not added post the execution of the painting. The
signature is in original, unretouched condition.
5.
Sotheby's New York catalogued and offered Mr. Fastov's Schindler painting as an
authentic painting by Emil Jakob Schindler as lot 53 in its catalogue and sale
of European paintings of October 24, 1989.
6.
In a letter of June 15, 1986, Dr Gerbert Frodl, then head of the art department
and subsequently Direktor of the Oësterreichische Galerie in Vienna, to Mr.
Fastov, regarding his Schindler painting in which Frödl stated, in part, that:
“I believe, as you do, that the painting ‘is of Schindler’s hand’ or ‘comes
from’ or ‘originated from’ ‘the hand of Schindler,’ although the foreground
with sheep and the representation of the water seems rather untypical of him...it
seems plausible to me that the painting was created around 1880 (Emphasis
added)."
7.
Fastov's detailed Comparative Analysis Of Fastov's Schindler Painting And Other
Authentic Schindler Works and other analysis contained in Fastov’s letter to Frödl
of January 19, 1994 and Enclosure A and the Attachments thereto, specifically
controverted and rendered irrelevant Frödl’s qualified assertion in his such
June 15, 1986 letter, that “the foreground with sheep and the representation of
the water seems rather untypical of him (Emphasis added)." and
makes an extremely compelling case that Mr. Fastov’s Schindler painting is an
unqualifiedly authentic work by Emil Jakob Schindler.
8. The stylistic
and other technical aspects of Mr. Fastov’s Schindler painting are identical to
those characteristics manifested in other comparable authentic Schindler
paintings executed by Schindler circa 1880, see,
e.g., No 898, Schloss Thalwitz (executed 1882) No 899, Schloss Thalwitz (executed
1882-1883) in the Fuchs’ catalogue raisonné.
9.
The age, nature and size of the wooden support, aged original varnish and old
and hard paint surface of Fastov's Schindler painting made clear that the
painting was consistent with an execution date by Schindler of circa 1880, and,
in all events, was clearly not a painting that had been recently executed by
anyone, including a faker or painter of pastiches. Such a person would have had
to possess an almost incredibly high level of artistic, technical skill, which
is highly unlikely to exist. Moreover, the financial incentive for a faker or
painter of pastiches to attempt such a complex, difficult painting did not
exist in the early to mid-20th century, given the relatively low
value of Schindler paintings during this period.
10. Fastov
received a letter of March 18, 1993 from Phdr. Krízová, an expert on Czech
castles, indicating that the city depicted in the distance of Mr. Fastov's
Schindler painting was Karlsbad (or Karlovy Vary in Czech). The Fuchs'
catalogue raisonné indicates that Schindler had lived and painted in Karlsbad
in 1881, and that date is consistent with the views expressed by Fastov and
Frödl in 1986 that Fastov's Schindler painting was possibly executed circa 1880
and the dates of execution that Fuchs assigned to No. 898 (circa 1882) and No.
899 (circa 1882-1883) in Fuchs' catalogue raisonné.
11.
Auction officials advised Mr. Fastov that circa March 15, 1993, Frödl had
orally promised them he would provide a written letter/certificate “positive”
opinion of authenticity on Mr. Fastov’s Schindler painting to them, for which the auction officials had agreed to pay and absorb Frödl a
fee estimated at £200-£250.
12.
In a letter to Mr. Fastov of March 11, 1994. Frödl admitted that he had orally
repeated to auction officials in March 1993 his written non-binding “positive”
opinion of authenticity contained in Frödl's letter/opinion to Mr. Fastov of
June 15, 1986; denied explicitly that he had ever provided such auction
officials a non-binding or binding negative opinion on the authenticity of Mr.
Fastov’s Schindler painting; and implicitly acknowledged to them, that he had
provided a non-binding positive opinion on the authenticity of Mr. Fastov’s
Schindler painting to Mr. Fastov.
13. In the lead paragraph
No. 1 of Frödl's letter to Mr. Fastov of March 11, 1994, Frödl admitted that he
was barred from providing “Gutachten (expertise or expert opinions) which
serve commercial purposes that is benefit art dealers, auctioneers
or private collectors when they sell or buy works of art (Emphasis
added)" by Osterreichische Galerie quasi-legal policies and procedures.
Such paragraph No. 1, in English translation, provides:
1. The Osterreichische Galerie in its capacity as a federal museum, as a matter of principle does not provide Gutachten (expertise or expert opinions), which serve commercial purposes, that is benefit art dealers, auctioneers or private collectors when they sell or buy works of art. This would not even be allowed. And I respect this rule. Of course, one of the tasks of the museum is to give non-binding answers to scientific requests, workload and time permitting, provided, however, that these requests not be based on commercial intentions. (Emphasis added.)
14. Nonetheless,
it was claimed that Frödl was unable to provide Mr. Fastov with a binding
opinion on authenticity, as Frödl never inspected the Schindler painting
itself, and, an actual physical inspection by Frödl was a sine qua non and condition precedent to Frödl’s providing a binding
opinion on authenticity. There is no credible evidence whatsoever that Mr.
Fastov precluded Frödl from so inspecting the painting by refusing to make
arrangements to ship his Schindler painting to Vienna for Frödl’s inspection.
Rather, 3 letters written by Mr. Fastov during 1993-1994 make crystal clear
that he was prepared to ship his Schindler painting to Vienna for inspection by
Frödl or by Fuchs, if he so requested, and that Mr. Fastov was willing to
accommodate Frödl’s inspection requirement by arranging for Frödl to come to
London to inspect the painting, where the painting was in storage, and to make
arrangements for the auction officials to pay for Frödl’s trip to London. Fuchs
did not request Mr. Fastov to ship the painting to Vienna for his inspection,
but provided to Mr. Fastov his Gutachten attesting to the unqualified
authenticity of Mr. Fastov’s Schindler painting, based on several museum
quality photographs and color transparencies of the painting taken by an
experienced, former U. S. National Gallery of Art staff photographer, that Mr.
Fastov had supplied to Fuchs, when he requested Fuchs to provide him an opinion
on the authenticity of his Schindler painting. In 1993-1994, almost all experts
in 19th century art were willing to provide opinions on the
authenticity of a work of art, based on such kinds of photographs and did not
insist on inspection of the work of art as a sine qua non or condition precedent to rendering such an opinion.
15. Most
importantly, the auction officials with whom Mr. Fastov dealt in 1993-1994 maintained
a list of outside experts with regard to 19th century
Continental/European artists, in which Fuchs, not Frödl, was listed as their
expert regarding Schindler works of art, not Frödl. Frödl, however, was listed
as their expert regarding the works of art by Hans Makart, another Austrian 19th
century artist.
16. Mr. Fastov's
detailed Comparative Analysis Of Fastov's Schindler Painting And Other
Authentic Schindler Works and other analysis contained in Fastov’s letter to Frödl
of January 19, 1994 and Enclosure A and the Attachments thereto, make an
extremely compelling case that Fastov's Schindler painting is an unqualifiedly
authentic work by Emil Jakob Schindler. The contents of this letter, taken
together with the Fuchs’ Gutachten and the 54 other indicia of authenticity and
other factors set forth above make an iron clad case for the fact that Fastov's
Schindler painting was an unqualifiedly authentic work by Emil Jakob Schindler.
Note 2) This painting has been the subject of a controversy with another
auction house that occurred in 1993-1994 that was predicated on unfounded, factually
unwarranted and readily controverted improper and irrelevant facts, issues and
questions concerning the authenticity of Mr. Fastov’s Schindler painting.
Sloans & Kenyon and Mr. Fastov assert with 100% certainty that this
painting by Emil Jakob Schindler is authentic, with no mental reservations of
any kind whatsoever, supported by the Fuchs’ Gutachten and the above 16 indicia
of the authenticity and other factors, as well as extensive research and
analysis. Sloan’s and Kenyon and Mr. Fastov unequivocally guarantee the
authenticity of this painting and will make a full refund of the purchase
price, if the purchaser were to produce evidence to the contrary, that is
deemed credible and acceptable by Sloans & Kenyon and Mr. Fastov. If the
reader wishes additional information concerning this controversy, please refer
to the department.
Note 3) Per Askart.com, a very brief biographical sketch of Schindler:
“Emil Jacob
Schindler, notable Austrian Impressionist painter born in 1842, was arguably
the most important Austrian landscape painter of the second half of the 19th
century. He studied at the Vienna Academy
of Fine Arts under Albert Zimmermann, who also taught famed artists Eugen
Jettel, Rudolf Ribarz and Robert Russ.
Categorized as both an early
Expressionist or late Impressionist, he painted and designed decorative arts.
Schindler was ahead of his time, and used his brush loose and unafraid. While
other local artists like Jettel and Ribarz spent years in France and had been
exposed to the “plein air” style, Emil Schindler was more influenced by his
travel and study of 17th century Dutch painters. He moved away from the
predominant Austrian “atmospheric realism” as it was taught at the Vienna
Academy, and, through his study of Corot and Daubigny, developed a sketch-like
style of painting he called “poetic realism.
Before his death in 1892, Schindler
moved to the picturesque mansion in the Vienna Woods called Schloss
Plankenberg. His talent was recognized early in his life, and he received an
increasing number of honors throughout his career (Emphasis and bold face added).”
Note 4) Based on his extensive investigation of Schindler's
works, including all of them in the Fuchs' catalogue raisonné, Mr. Fastov
believes that “Schloss Thalwitz” is one of Schindler's most complex, creative
and difficult compositions, and he succeeded extremely well. It is a beautiful
and dramatic vista starting with the shepherd and sheep on a bluff in the right
foreground, leading the eyes of the viewer from the shepherd and sheep, down
the bluff; over the translucent quality of the low water level in the river,
passing below Schloss Thalwitz, a 19th century castle, on the left
bluff over the river in the upper left midground; Schloss Thalwiz itself; and
passing over the river's waterfall cliff, leading to the distant view of the
city, Carlsbad (Karlovy Vary) and mountains in the distance. In response to a
letter written by Fastov, he received a letter, dated March 18, 1993, from
PhDr. Krízová, a specialist in the history of Czech castles, who confirmed to
Fastov that the castle or schloss in Fastov's Schindler painting was called
Dallwitz (German) or Dalovice (Czech) and the city in the distance was Karlsbad
(German) or Karlovy Vary (Czech) in West Bohemia. Dallwitz is a variant
spelling of Thalwitz, used by Fuchs in his catalogue raisonné. Approximately ½
the paint surface is devoted to the sun's strong impact on the light and
shadows in the painting, as it seeps through the very white multitudinous
billowing clouds in the sky in the best tradition of Impressionist painting.
Such sunlight renders the water in the river, which is at a low-level,
translucent, and Schindler does an excellent job in showing the translucency of
the water reflecting, in part, the sandy riverbed that underlies the low level
river water. The reader must appreciate the perfect handling of perspective by
Schindler in painting this vista from a high bluff hanging over the river and
leading the viewer's eye over the different components of the subject matter to
the vanishing point of Karlsbad and the distant rolling hills. What makes this
painting so desirable for knowledgeable Schindler collectors is because it is
one of the few times that Schindler painted such a complex composition and did
so, from an elevated perspective and extremely beautifully, almost
breathtakingly so. Almost all of Schindler's paintings in the Fuchs' catalogue
raisonné on Schindler are painted from a perspective of eye level or slightly
above eye-level and not from the highly elevated perspective on the bluff in
this painting. Thus, this painting is not only of the highest quality and
beauty in Schindler's oeuvre, but it is painted from a far more difficult
perspective and is very rare in this respect and the nature of its composition.
See below the photos of works by Schindler from the auction records of
Artprice.com and other auction records, which make clear that all of these works
of art, all of which sold for in excess of $100,000, and some which exceeded
$150,000, all but one of which, were painted from a perspective of eye level or
slightly above eye-level (See, e.g., “Landschaft Bei Hacking (Landscape At
Hacking),” 39.38 in. x 29.25 in., (sold: $191,910) on 06/26/2007) and not from the highly
elevated perspective on the right bluff in “Schloss Thalwitz.” While some of
these paintings combine one or more human figures in a landscape/treescape
setting, they are painted from Schindler's usual and less demanding eye-level
perspective, and some are quite attractive, some are not that attractive, and
arguably relatively boring Barbizon- style pure landscapes painted from an eye
level perspective, See, e.g., “Sonnenuntergangsstimmung am Bachufer zur Herbstzeit mit Krähen“ (sold: $158,568) on 2/24/2005, “Bauernhof bei Haslau“ (sold: $112,140) on 6/6/1998, “In der Praterauen“ (sold: $111,000) on 5/4/1993 and “An der Tulln bei Plankenberg” (sold: $120,200) on 11/18/1992. While most of the paintings are
larger than the Schindler painting being offered, three are smaller, two
considerably smaller: “In der Praterauen,” 16 1/2 in. x 27 1/6 in. (sold:$111,000) on 5/4/1993; “Bauernhof bei
Haslau,” 19 7/8 in. x 15 in. (sold: $112,140) on 6/6/1998; and “Gäßchen In Ragusa (1883),” 15 3/8 in. x
9 1/2 in. (sold: $104,212) on 11-21-1991. However, with the exception of “Blick Auf
Ragusa (c.1890),”. 55 1/8 in. x
70 7/8 in., (sold: $448,410) on 10/16/2012, which is considerably larger
than Schloss Thalwitz, this auction painting, and certainly matches, and
may well exceed the beautiful, dramatic long distance vista painted from an
elevated position looking down on the vista, none of these paintings presents
the dramatic, complex, beautiful sweeping vista of “Schloss Thalwitz,” painted
from an elevated position looking down on the vista and do not display the kind
of complex artistic composition or artistic virtuosity manifested by “Schloss
Thalwitz.” For all of the foregoing considerations and the Artprice.com
Schindler auction records and other auction records (below), warrant the
conclusion that the above presale estimate of $125,000-$175,000 for “Schloss
Thalwitz” is reasonable and justified, given that “Blick Auf Ragusa (c.1890),”
very recently brought, $448,410 on 10/16/2012 and was considerably larger
than Schloss Thalwitz, which is a far more complex, sophisticated composition
than Blick Auf Ragusa
(c.1890),” which is a pure landscape/seascape and which lacks the compositional
complexity and the superb demonstration of artistic skills, as is found in
“Schloss Thalwitz.” In Schindler’s complex, sophisticated composition, in
“Schloss Thalwitz,” he guides and leads the viewer’s eye over a shepherd
and sheep in the rocky foreground on the right side bluff overhanging the
stream with its translucent water and a subtle depiction of the underlying
stream bed, across the stream
to the tree-covered bluff on the other side of the stream and on to Schloss
Thalwitz, perched on the top of the left bluff, on through to the waterfall at
the end of the stream’s downhill run and the city of Karlsbad in the
mid-distance framed by the tree-lined left bluff, ending with the rolling hills
in the far distance, all of which are depicted under a canopy of rolling fluffy
clouds on a sunny day that fills the top half of the painting.
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Title/Subject:
Blick Auf Ragusa (c.1890) Signed. Oil on canvas. 55 1/8 in. x 70 7/8 in. sold
for $448,410 on 10/16/2012 at Dorotheum,
Vienna, Austria |
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Title/Subject: Sonnenuntergangsstimmung
Am Bachufer Zur Herbstzeit Mit Krähen Signed. Oil on canvas. 39
3/8 in. x 29 1/3 in. sold for $158,568 on
2/24/2005 at Neumeister, Munich, Germany
Title/Subject: Bauernhof bei Haslau Signed. Oil on canvas.
19 7/8 in. x 15 in. sold for $112,140 on 6/6/1998 at Wiener Kunstauktionen,
Vienna, Austria
Title/Subject:
In der Praterauen Signed. Oil on panel. 16 1/2 in. x 27 1/6 in. sold
for $111,000 on 5/4/1993 at Dorotheum, Vienna, Austria
Title/Subject: An der Tulln bei
Plankenberg (1890) Signed. Oil on panel. 30 1/3 in. x 40 1/2 in. sold for
$120,200 on 11/18/1992 at Dorotheum Vienna, Austria
Title/Subject:
Gäßchen In Ragusa (1883) Signed. Oil on wood panel. 15 3/8 in. x 9 1/2 in. sold
for $104,212 on 11-21-1991 at Dorotheum,Vienna, Austria