Lot 172: Alfred Hutty Etching, Charleston Spires, 1930

Alfred Heber Hutty (South Carolina, 1877-1954) etching and drypoint titled “Charleston Spires”, 1930. From the edition of 75. The spire of St. Philip’s Church towers above Charleston’s Church Street, with the French Huguenot Church at right. Signed “Alfred Hutty” in pencil along with snail cypher, lower right. With old inventory number in pencil to lower right margin. Housed in a window mat. Sheet: 16 in. H x 11 1/2 in. W. Sight: 13 5/8 in. H x 10 3/8 in. W. Mat: 20 1/8 in. H x 16 1/8 in. W. Listed as #97 and illustrated p.141 in The Life and Art of Alfred Hutty; Woodstock to Charleston, edited by Sara C. Arnold and Stephen G. Hoffius, with Catalog of Known prints by Edith Howle, The University of South Carolina Press, 2012. An example of this print is in the collection of the Gibbes Museum of Art / Carolina Art Association.

Biographical Note: “One of the principal artists of the Charleston Renaissance, Alfred Heber Hutty was a native of Grand Haven, Michigan. He spent most of his youth in Kansas City, He was employed as a glazier and that led to his pursuit of stained-glass design, initially in Kansas City, later in St. Louis, and finally In New York City, where he was employed by the Tiffany Studios. He studied with Birge Harrison at the Art Students League and at the nascent art colony in Woodstock, New York, where he was among the first artists to settle full time…He began dividing his time seasonally between homes and studios in Woodstock and Charleston and soon became a fixture in Charleston’s art circles. From 1920 to 1924 he was the director of the Carolina Art Association (now the Gibbes Museum of Art), and in 1921 he was a founding member of the Charleston Etchers’ Club. His principal subject, the local scene, naturally led to an interest in historic preservation. The Society for the Preservation of Old Dwellings, among other groups, provided opportunities for artists–among them, Hutty, Alice Ravenel Huger Smith, and Elizabeth O’Neill Verner–to create work that was deeply rooted in Charleston’s past.” (Source: Morris Museum of Art, “Alfred Hutty: Painter, Printmaker, Preservationist”)

PROVENANCE:

Private Southern Collection. 

CONDITION:

Overall very good condition. A richly-inked impression with strong contrasts and traces of burr, especially to shadowy doorway at left and to central foliage. Margins with ink and fingerprints, likely an inherent artifact of the printing process. Hinge-mounted with archival tape affixed to upper edge en verso. Minor, even toning to sheet within sight area.