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LÖIS MAILOU JONES (1905 - 1998)
Vineyard Haven Harbor
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Watercolor on wove paper, 1924. 254x356 mm; 10x14 inches. Signed and dated in pencil, lower right.
Provenance: collection of the artist; thence by descent to the current owner, private collection, New
York, with the artist’s hand-written label on the frame verso.
This charming view ofVineyard Haven Harbor is one of the earliest known examples of the artist’s
painting on Martha’sVineyard we have located.These docks inTisbury were typical of the Martha’s
Vineyard subjects which Jones would revisit many times over a 60-year period. Jones knew the area
well from summer visits to her family’s residence in Oak Bluffs. In the summer of 1924, Jones had
just finished her first year as a design major at the School of the Museum of Fine Arts, Boston.
According to Tritobia Hayes Benjamin, Jones then met both the musician and composer, Harry T.
Burleigh, and Jonas Lie, president of the National Academy of Design, on theVineyard who offered
their support of her artistic career. Benjamin p. 125.
[5,000/7,000]
