On and Off the Wall is a series of brief reflections on or about works in the collection, including those that may not often make an appearance on the gallery wall due to shortage of display space. Deborah Spanich is the museum registrar. She compiled the digital database and fell in love with many of the works in the collection.
This old Charleston gate, Smyth or Smythe, is depicted in two works in our collection. Margaret Hardon Wright made the print shown here in about 1900. The other print was made by Alfred Hutty 27 years later. Both Wright and Hutty were members of the Chicago Society of Etchers, although she lived in Boston and he lived in both New York and South Carolina. Their work was exhibited at the Art Institute of Chicago in 1930, along with that of numerous other etchers, on the occasion of the 20th anniversary of the Society.
Margaret Wright collected the work of many of the etchers affiliated with the Chicago collection. She was the source of a large group of prints given to the Museum by her son and his wife, including works by Hutty and examples of work by some of the best etchers in this and other countries. The gates of Charleston are highly regarded, and it’s interesting that two artists in our collection visited this lovely one. I looked for a photo of it on the web, without success. (Does anyone know of one?)
You may see the Hutty etching of Smyth gate in our online catalog at http://maier.randolphcollege.edu/Obj470$2374.
Smythe Gate, Charleston, S.C., by Margaret Hardon Wright
No wonder these gates were etched by these two artists, they are very graceful to look at. There is an elegant quietness about this print.