Fairfield Porter watercolor/paper, 20 x 17 inches. Provenance: private owner. Biography: 1907 - 1975. Fairfield Porter was born in Winnetka, Illinois. A realistic artist, he is best known for his landscapes and sunlit views of interiors, although he also did portraits and still lifes. His work is often described as modernized American impressionist.In addition to receiving a degree from Harvard University, he took formal arttraining from 1928 to 1930, and studied with Boardman Robinson and ThomasHart Benton at the Art Students League in New York City. Later, in 1949, he moved to Southampton, Long Island, where he painted images that reflected his comfortable life as a country dweller, and his appreciation of the effects of nature.Porter combined a soft, pastel palette with a broad brushstroke. Subjects were suburban and without obvious problems, similar to the content of other realists of his time, such as Larry Rivers and Alex Katz.Porter makes no attempt at perfect representation and will insert objects such as lopsided bottles and awkward figures, which are clearly planned to contribute to the overall structure of the painting. His works of portraiture included many famous subjects, such as Larry Rivers, Andy Warhol and the poet John Ashbery.In addition to his work as an artist, Porter was also a writer, publishing artcritiques in major art journals throughout the 1940s and 1950s, as well as amonograph about Thomas Eakins in 1959. All authorship of items in this catalog are described according to the following terms: Signed [Artist Name] : In cases in which the signature is legible in the lot, this work is described as-is with no attributions given. By [Artist Name] : The work is by the artist. Attributed to [Artist Name] : The work may be ascribed to the artist on the basis of style, but there may be some question as to actual authorship. In the manner of [Artist Name] : The work was executed by an unknown hand, but was designed deliberately to emulate the style of the artist. After [Artist Name] : The work was executed by an unknown hand, but is a deliberate copy of a known work by the artist. Circle of [Artist Name] : A work of the period of the artist showing his influence, closely associated with the artist but not necessarily his pupil. Follower of [Artist Name]: A work by a pupil or a follower of the artist (not necessarily a pupil). American, 19th century: This work was executed by an unknown hand, and can only be identified by origin (i.e., region, period).