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Saturday, February 10, 2024

A "New" Beauford Delaney Urban Landscape Revealed

I was absolutely delighted to read an article entitled "A painting’s long and personal journey" about the Portland Art Museum's recent acquisition of a Beauford Delaney work.

An image of a magnificent urban landscape is the first thing you see after reading the article's lengthy subtitle: "How Beauford Delaney’s Twilight Street got from 119 Waverly Place in New York’s Greenwich Village to the studio of art conservator Nina Olsson to the Portland Art Museum's walls."

Twilight Street
(1946) Oil and mixed media on masonite
© Estate of Beauford Delaney
by permission of Derek L. Spratley, Esquire,
Court Appointed Administrator

Can Fire in the Park, which is arguably Beauford's most famous urban landscape, was also created in 1946.

Can Fire in the Park
(1946) Oil on canvas
© Estate of Beauford Delaney
by permission of Derek L. Spratley, Esquire,
Court Appointed Administrator

He created one of his Greene Street paintings that year as well.

Greene Street
(1946) Oil on canvas
Virginia Museum of Fine Arts
© Estate of Beauford Delaney
by permission of Derek L. Spratley, Esquire,
Court Appointed Administrator

Martha Ullman West, daughter of painter Allen Ullman, penned this personal piece about how her father and Beauford were friends and how she knew Beauford as a child. She recounts a story about how Beauford, who was always virtually penniless, gave her a quarter to purchase a book she wanted.

West goes on to talk relay additional personal anecdotes about her father and Beauford before launching into the topic of how Twilight Street made its way into the collection of the Portland Art Museum. This part of the article presents intricate detail about the restoration of the painting and the woman who restored it.

It also presents several images that illustrate this work.

Finally, the article indicates that Twilight Street will be on display in the Throughlines exhibition at the museum from February 8 through November 1, 2024.

Read "A painting’s long and personal journey" HERE.

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