FRITZ G. VOGT (1842-1900)

The present lot, with its sophisticated, linear composition and its vivid colors, is an exemplary work by German-born Fritz G. Vogt. Vogt traveled through various counties in upstate New York between 1890 and 1900, earning his living as a farm laborer and an itinerant artist. Exquisitely delineated, his renditions of farmhouses and livestock are typically embellished with the name of the property owner and the date on which Vogt executed the work, as seen in the present lot. Little is known about Vogt and his biography is largely dependent on oral histories which color him as an eccentric man who wore several ripped shirts at once, slept on piles of hay, and was a talented musician and singer. His drawing skills likely came from studies in architecture while still living in Germany, yet his compositions often lack a realistic sense of perspective. Instead of creating a lifelike depiction, Vogt drew the homes, businesses and farms of his patrons in a way which elevates their prestige. He successfully accomplished this by focusing on frontality and details, allowing the place to be easily recognizable.