to the J. William Fosdick (1858–1937) Salon
of his 1905 Portrait Panel of
Queen Elizabeth I

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Queen Elizabeth I By J. William Fosdick, 1905 Pyrography and color on wood panel, 20-1/4 in. wide by 27 in. tall (inside frame) and 35-1/5 in. wide by 42 in. tall (framed) Adapted from photograph by the owner

Queen Elizabeth I, detail of the inscription By J. William Fosdick, 1905 pyrographic inscription, verso: Incised line painting. by J.W.Fosdick. - 1905 - First burned then painted. Adapted from photograph by the owner

Queen Elizabeth I By J. William Fosdick, 1905 Pyrography and color on wood panel, 20-1/4 in. wide by 27 in. tall (inside frame) and 35-1/5 in. wide by 42 in. tall (framed) Adapted from photograph by the owner

Queen Elizabeth I By J. William Fosdick, 1905 Pyrography and color on wood panel, 20-1/4 in. wide by 27 in. tall (inside frame) and 35-1/5 in. wide by 42 in. tall (framed) Adapted from photograph by the owner

American Dawn Gates, who owns this elegant 1905 wood panel by J. William Fosdick entitled "Elizabeth I," is offering it for sale on December 21st through a live auction at the Lawrence Antique Gallery at the link here.

This decorative portrait panel, like his 1903 Catherine Parr, is notable for its lovely subtle coloring that exemplifies J. William Fosdick's change in technique after the turn of the century, at which time he began to add color to his works despite having gone on record prior to 1900 as disapproving of doing that very thing.

It is also interesting that, although no explanation from him for this change in artistic direction has yet been found, he made a point of inscribing on the back of the panel in burning his new term of "incised line painting" to designate his new technique. In articles on his works from the last two decades of the 19th Century, he referred to his technique as either "burnt wood decoration" or "fire etching."

Both this one and the Catherine Parr panel, however, differ from later works in that they represent a transition into his 20th Century technique. This is because they are still very noticeably pyrography techniques. The pyrography is on a par with the color, each very discernible. In his later works, the pyrography became a technique used only to offer texture to the color, and the burnt line work disappeared.

A short exhibit at the link here includes an excerpt of Fosdick's explanation of his 20th Century pyrographic technique of incised line painting with accompanying comments. As noted above, the technique he describes is not exactly what we are seeing here with his Queen Elizabeth.

If you have any questions or any information regarding this decorative portrait panel from 1905, or other works by J. William Fosdick, please e-mail the E-Museum Curator.

You are leaving the J. William Fosdick Salon
Featuring his 1905 Portrait Panel
of Queen Elizabeth I.

where there is a large section
with many exhibits dedicated to J. William Fosdick

or continue on your tour to one of the following

Pyrographic Art Exhibit Halls:

Portraits and Paintings

Decorative and Applied Art

Sculpture

Folk and Traditional Art

Children's Pyrographic Art

Special Pyrographic Art

The Book Store and E-Museum Library

Pyrographic Tools and Techniques

Your questions and comments are welcome and appreciated. Please e-mail Curator.

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