William Etty (British, 1787-1849)

Cupid in a Shell on Waves, 1843
oil on panel
signed Wm. Etty and dated Nov. 21 1843 to the reverse
7 3/4 x 10 7/8 inches.

Property from the Estate of Michael L. Wilkie, Chicago, Illinois

Provenance:

Christie's, New York, 1978

Michael L. Wilkie (1941-2021) was the owner of one of the most renowned penthouses in both Chicago and the nation. Recently offered for sale for the first time in nearly fifty years, the penthouse occupies the entire top floor and roof terrace of 1500 Lake Shore Drive, which was built in 1927 by celebrated architect Rosario Candela.

Wilkie, who grew up in Long Grove, Illinois as well as Montecito, California, played a critical role in expanding his family business, the DoALL Company, which came to include over 70 companies around the globe. His father, Leighton A. Wilkie, founded DoALL and invented the metal-cutting bandsaw, one of the most widely used tools in manufacturing today. Michael Wilkie worked for and ran the business for 60 years.

Photos courtesy of Andrew Miller and The Baines Group, Jameson | Sotheby's International Realty.

Frame: 16 1/4 x 19 1/4 inches.

The frame having a large section of loss to the bottom right corner. Other smaller scattered instances of of loss to carved decoration and gilt, exposing basewood and gesso beneath. Having surface grim throughout the frame. The reverse of the panel (back of frame) behind glass.

The panel sits slightly askew in the frame resulting in it leaning forward at the top left corner, though remains intact overall. Examination under UV light shows a probably patch of in-painting to the proper right side of the figure's face. There are some scattered instances of flaking loss to the paint, including minute instances along the center-right edge of the frame and to the red paint just along the figures' proper-right wing. The red paint here and to the other wing appear to be later.

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William Etty (British, 1787-1849)

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