BIOGRAPHY
Maurice Prendergast was born in St. John's, Newfoundland, but grew up in Boston. From his youth he aspired to be an artist but initially made his living lettering show cards listing the acts and performers for the theater. Unlike some other artists who began their artistic studies at a young age, Prendergast was unable to afford formal art training or foreign travel until he was in his thirties. By the time he enrolled in the Académie Julian and the Académie Colarossi in Paris in 1891, dramatic changes in the art world were revolutionizing French painting.
Initially Prendergast was influenced most by the works of Edouard Manet and the expatriot American painter James McNeill Whistler, but he soon found inspiration from other sources, most notably Paul Cézanne and the Nabis painters Edouard Vuillard and Pierre Bonnard. Like them, Prendergast found his subjects in the everyday life of Parisian parks and streets as well as in the colorful scenes at nearby resorts.
Returning to Boston in 1895, Prendergast joined his brother Charles in his recently established framing business. He gradually began to build a reputation as a painter, initially concentrating on watercolors because the materials required were less expensive than those needed for oils. A pronounced emphasis on surface pattern, which would become a hallmark of his mature work, was evident from his earliest works.
Around 1899 Prendergast began to enjoy increasing artistic recognition and made regular trips to New York. Although most of his work from the early 1900s portrays middle-class leisure activities in parks or on beaches, he also explored the working-class docks and waterfronts of both New York and Boston.
Sotheby's April 16, 2014
MAURICE BRAZIL PRENDERGAST
JUNE DAY
LOT SOLD. 43,750| Sotheby’s Oct-Nov 2013 |
MAURICE BRAZIL PRENDERGAST
SCHOOL DAY (CLARK, MATHEWS & OWENS 1604)
Estimate 20,000 — 30,000
Maurice Prendergast’s Park Street Church, Boston (circa 1905-07), failed to sell.
Prendergast’s Picnic Party (circa 1900-03) didn’t quite reach its low estimate of $300,000 when it sold for $290,500.
Sotheby’s May 17 2012
Estimate 200,000 — 300,000
Estimate 500,000 — 700,000
Lot Sold 452,500
Sotheby's May 19, 2011
MAURICE BRAZIL PRENDERGAST
1858 - 1924
1858 - 1924
LOW TIDE
Estimate 200,000 — 300,000
SOTHEBY’S MAY 19 2011
THE PARIS OMNIBUS
LOT SOLD. 362,500
LOT SOLD. 362,500
SOTHEBY’S SEPT 28 2012
MAURICE BRAZIL PRENDERGAST
'THE BEACH' AND 'ALONG THE SEA WITH BOAT AND PEOPLE': A DOUBLE-SIDED WATERCOLOR
LOT SOLD. 25,000
LOT SOLD. 25,000
FIGURES IN A PARK
LOT SOLD. 205,000
Bonhams Nov 29 2011
LOT SOLD. 205,000
Bonhams Nov 29 2011
Maurice Brazil Prendergast (American, 1858-1924)
Park along the Shore
20 1/4 x 24 3/8in
US$ 250,000 - 350,000
Bonhams May 22, 2013
Maurice Brazil Prendergast (American, 1858-1924)
The Terrace
14 x 19 3/4in
US$ 40,000 - 60,000
Christie’s 19 November 2014
ST MALO
$600,000 - $800,000
Christie’s May 23, 2013
Christie’s May 23, 2013
MAURICE BRAZIL PRENDERGAST (1859-1924)
DIVING RAFT
Estimate $150,000 - $250,000 Price Realized $195,750
Christie's 2012
MAURICE BRAZIL PRENDERGAST (1859-1924)
BY THE SEA
Estimate $150,000 - $250,000 Price Realized $146,500
PR.$43,750
Christie's 2009
Elegant Woman in a Blue Dress
PRICE REALIZED
$1,022,500
Christie's 2005
Christies 2008
Christie’s 2004
Christie’s 2000
Christie’s 1999
MAURICE BRAZIL PRENDERGAST (1859-1924)
TRPORT BEACH
Estimate $120,000 - $180,000 Price Realized $211,500
Christie's 1998
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