Description
An eccentric and cantankerous man, John Quidor achieved fame in his lifetime for paintings of banners and fire engines, none of which survive. Today he is remembered for a series of fantastic, grotesque paintings based on the stories of Washington Irving (1783-1859)-a series whose exuberant style differs from the general run of American genre paintings, which tend to be more understated in mood and realistic in style. The Devil and Tom Walker belongs to this curious group of works. It portrays a scene from Irving's Tales of a Traveler (1824), in which Tom Walker, who was "not a man to be troubled with any fears," encounters the Devil while on an evening outing.
Provenance
Thomas B. Carroll (New York sale 1895); Henry T. Chapman, (1895 New York sale 1913); Douthitt Gallery; Albert Duveen, New York, 1943; Joseph Katz, Baltimore; M. Knoedler & Co., New York, 1954; L.A. Fleishman, Detroit; Kennedy Galleries, New York
Accession Number
1967.18
Medium
oil on canvas
Dimensions
Framed: 84 x 104 x 8.5 cm (33 1/16 x 40 15/16 x 3 3/8 in.); Unframed: 68.8 x 86.6 cm (27 1/16 x 34 1/8 in.)
Classification
Painting
Credit Line
Mr. and Mrs. William H. Marlatt Fund
Tags
Painting Impressionist & Modern (1851–1900) Oil Painting Canvas American
Background & Context
Background Story
The Devil and Tom Walker from 1856 depicts a scene from Washington Irving's tale of the same name, in which a miserly man sells his soul to the devil in exchange for treasure. Quidor's treatment exaggerates the grotesque and comic elements of Irving's story with the same combination of European Romantic grotesquerie and American frontier humor that distinguishes his other Irving subjects. The 1856 date makes this one of Quidor's last paintings, showing that his commitment to Irving's stories and his distinctive grotesque style persisted throughout his career.
Cultural Impact
The Devil and Tom Walker is important in Quidor's oeuvre because it demonstrates the persistence of his distinctive style and his commitment to Irving's literary subjects throughout his career. The 1856 painting shows that Quidor's combination of European Romantic grotesquerie and American frontier humor was not a youthful experiment but a sustained artistic vision that makes him one of the most original—if also one of the most neglected—painters in the history of American art.
Why It Matters
The Devil and Tom Walker is Quidor's late Irving subject: Washington Irving's tale of a miser selling his soul to the devil rendered with the same grotesque exaggeration that distinguishes his earlier Irving paintings. The 1856 painting demonstrates that Quidor's distinctive combination of European grotesquerie and American humor persisted throughout his career.
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