Building the Media World of the Edwardians

 

Since purchasing the house in December of 2021 the new owners have been working to create Edwardian themed interiors for the older portions of the house.  The intent has not been to recreate the actual interiors of the house as it was occupied but rather to create an idealized themed environment that reflects the tastes and interests of the new custodians of the home against the Edwardian background of the house.  Decorative elements showcase several of the central themes of the Edwardian period as if the current occupants were living then.  For the Pilgrimage Event in April, the house will be staged as a small-scale walk-through themed attraction designed to bring the tour visitor into a simulated experience of the moment of change that the paradigms of the 19^th century gave birth to the mindset and apparatus of the 20^th.

Among the special elements on view in the house are a number of artifacts that establish the media environment of the Edwardian period.  Most entertainment was still centered around live, in-person activities, with families gathering around the piano or phonograph in the evening. Movie theaters existed but were still primarily outside entertainment rather than home media. This period marked the transition between Victorian parlor culture and the emerging electronic media age that would develop in the 1920s. Among the elements of the Edwardian media environment  you may spot during the tour are:

The World of Oz

The Hall bookcase houses and displays a substantial collection of Oz Books by L. Frank Baum and his successors.  These books are notable not only for their stories but for their illustrations in the Art Nouveau style.  The world of Oz is credited as the first transmedia property. Baum had not only produced the original books but had adapted the books for the stage and for early film.  In fact he lost much of his fortune to his effort to create a movie studio and to film new stories set in Oz.
The case contains many period editions of Baum’s books, including the last two, The Magic of Oz and Glinda of Oz, the latter of which was published posthumously after Baum’s death in May, 1919.

Stereoviews: Victorian Virtual Reality

The patriotic bunting that clads the entry to the front porch serves to immediately establish the tone of remembrance that underlies the April 1919 tour of this home.

On a side table you can see that the occupants in 1919 are still quite immersed in the happenings of the Great War, perhaps having suffered some significant loss during the battles of that war. On the table is the definitive collection of 3D stereoviews documenting events of the Great War.  Issued just after the war it allowed the general public an immersive experience of the realities of combat and the logistics of great armies.  The collection is accompanied by its volume of documentation, citing the source for each of images, the time and circumstances when the image was made.

The Parlor Paintings

The current owners have used the walls to showcase their interest in painting.  In the parlor is a mixture of the type of paintings that you might have found in a upper middle class home of 1919.  There is mixture of established Victorian approaches to image making and works that reflect more modern theories of representation, light and color.

Over the mantle: Hauling in the Nets, ca 1870s by a follower of John of Ipswich.

Here is an 1842 commissioned portrait of a little girl by Thomas Sully.  It appears in the personal accounts he kept of all his painted works. Sully was the preeminent American portrait artist of the first half of the 19^th century.  He painted everyone important who came through Philadelphia including a number of the statesmen from the American Revolution.  He especially is known today for his famous full length portrait of Queen Victoria in her coronation robes which he painted from life shortly after the 18 year-old queen ascended to the throne.

Like the furniture in the room, especially the Eastlake furniture that was likely the gift of the wife’s mother-in-law, in this parlor of 1919 the paintings are a mix of styles that was often the case in vernacular homes of the late Edwardian period.

This is a pastel by ALEXANDRE-JACQUES CHANTRON (1842-1918)

This pastel shows an interesting blend of academic and impressionist influences, which is characteristic of many artists working in the late 19th century who were navigating between traditional academic training and newer artistic movements. The Bouguereau influence is evident in the classical treatment of the nude figure but what's particularly interesting here is how Chantron has incorporated elements that show he was aware of and influenced by Impressionism and other contemporary movements.

Over the couch between two Louis XVI revival sconces is a large post-impressionist landscape of water lilies by Emile Gauffriaud (1877-1957) .  Gauffriaud was a French painter and watercolorist born in Brest. He enjoyed much success during his lifetime as a regional artist. He was a well-known figure in the city of Brest, his tall silhouette, his wide-brimmed hat and his ascot tie were part of the landscape, because he often painted outdoors. His wife and daughter operated a gallery where they sold his work in the tourist destination of Pouliguen, a place considered remarkable today for its Art Nouveau decor. Because of their restful and evocative atmosphere, his painters are popular among amateur collectors today.

Oil Sketch signed by and attributed to Winslow Homer dated 1880

This painting provides an intriguing glimpse into Homer's artistic development just before his transformative period in England. The work, dated 1880, appears to be a seascape study executed in oils, demonstrating Homer's growing interest in marine subjects that would later become his signature focus.

The composition is particularly noteworthy for several technical aspects:

- The horizon line is placed high in the composition, creating a dramatic sense of the sea's expanse

- The brushwork shows confident, gestural handling, especially in the treatment of the waves

- The palette is dominated by cool blues and grays, punctuated by touches of warm orange tones that appear to be reflecting light

- The sky treatment shows careful attention to cloud formations and atmospheric effects

Given the date of 1880, this work would have been executed during Homer's early exploration of marine subjects, likely painted along the Eastern seaboard of the United States. The most probable location would be Gloucester, Massachusetts, where Homer spent considerable time in the late 1870s studying the sea and maritime life. This period marked his transition from the more illustrative style of his early career toward the more direct observational approach that would characterize his mature work.

The painting's relatively small size and immediate, sketch-like quality suggest it may have been painted en plein air, directly from observation. This working method was becoming increasingly important to Homer during this period, as he developed his ability to capture the sea's dynamic qualities directly from nature.

The handling of the waves, while accomplished, shows less of the dramatic force that would characterize his later seascapes from Maine. Instead, we see a more measured study of atmospheric effects and wave patterns, suggesting Homer was still in the process of developing his understanding of marine subjects. The painting demonstrates his growing interest in the technical challenges of depicting water and atmosphere, concerns that would become central to his work during and after his stay in Cullercoats on the English coast.