Artwork
The Last Price
The Last Price is an oil painting by the Impressionist artist John Charles Arter. It dates from 1898 and is held in the collection of the Cleveland Museum of Art.
About this work
Technique & Style
Produced in 1898, it is classified as a painting and falls within the genre art tradition, depicting a scene of everyday life.
The Last Price is executed in oil paint on canvas, a standard support for late nineteenth-century American genre painting. The work measures 79 cm in height by 56 cm in width. Produced in 1898, it is classified as a painting and falls within the genre art tradition, depicting a scene of everyday life.
The medium and canvas support are consistent with the oil-based techniques typical of the period, allowing for the layered handling associated with genre scenes of this scale and date.
The painting is held in the collection of the Cleveland Museum of Art, where its oil-on-canvas construction has been catalogued alongside its genre classification.
History & Provenance
The Last Price was completed in 1898 by the American artist John Charles Arter, rendered in oil paint on canvas. The work exemplifies his genre-scene practice of the period and was made in the United States. While the sources do not record any commission or earlier owners, the painting is presently held in the collection of the Cleveland Museum of Art, where it is catalogued under accession number 1920.751. No further details of its provenance or exhibition history are provided in the available references.
Overview
John Charles Arter's 1898 oil painting, The Last Price, depicts an interior genre scene. Housed at The Cleveland Museum of Art, the work captures a moment of negotiation or transaction within a dimly lit shop. The composition features three figures engaged in an exchange, surrounded by various objects that suggest the nature of the establishment, offering a glimpse into everyday life at the turn of the century.
Subject & Meaning
The scene unfolds within a shop characterized by a stone wall and a hanging paper lantern, suggesting an East Asian setting. A woman in a vibrant, patterned kimono and dark hat stands behind a counter, presenting an item to a seated man. Another woman, cloaked in a red-brown robe and holding a folded fan, observes the interaction. The scattered fans and scrolls further define the shop's merchandise, hinting at a commercial exchange.
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