Fraktur with Inverted Heart1803Sheet: 6 1/8 x 8 1/4 " (15.7 x 21 cm)
Frame: 11 1/8 x 15 1/8 x 3/4 " (28.4 x 38.4 x 1.9 cm)Watercolor and ink on paperGift of Ralph Esmerian2005.8.300Decorated with stylized blossoms, one emanating from an urn-shaped checkerboard vessel, the other from an inverted heart, the whole field filled with other stylized flowers, vines, and leafage, the borders with sawtooth and net-like decorated borders, in blue, gold, red, and green ink on laid paper. Unfinished fraktur or sample fraktur. Muted tones. Empty box LRC.1545603405Jacob StricklerDrawingsThe American Folk Art Museum believes this work to be in the public domain.Pennsylvania GermanHeavily inscribed on the reverse, signed and dated "Jacob Strickler, 1803".United StatesVirginiaWorks on PaperFraktur"The drawing was done, apparently, on a page taken from an existing ledger book, making the other sentences and inscriptions incomplete and virtually impossible to decipher....Jacob Strickler was a direct descendant of Abraham Strickler who was one of the settlers from Lancaster County, Pennsylvania, who emigrated from Switzerland in the early 18th century. Jacob Strickler lived in the Massanutten section of the Shenandoah County, which was heavily populated with Mennonites. Given his frequent contact with Mennonites and the abundance of religious books in his library, there is little doubt that the Mennonites had an influence on his life and work..."The Tall Case Clock descended in Jacob Strickler’s family with this fraktur, his books, ten drawings, additional fraktur, and unfinished designs for fraktur. The discovery of the clock provided Johannes Spitler’s full name and also established a direct connection between the painted motifs and the fraktur produced by Strickler, Spitler’s neighbor. It has been noted that the motifs on the clock and the writing itself bear a strong resemblance to Strickler’s calligraphy, as evidenced in a 1794 Zierschrift, or type of writing sample, leading to questions in recent scholarship about whether Strickler was, in fact, somehow involved in the painting of this and other objects within the group of twenty or so that are attributed to Spitler.
Stacy C. Hollander, “Fraktur with Inverted Heart,” exhibition label for Self-Taught Genius: Treasures from the American Folk Art Museum. Stacy C. Hollander and Valérie Rousseau, curators. New York: American Folk Art Museum, 2014.
Object information is a work in progress and may be updated with new research. Records are reviewed and revised, and the American Folk Art Museum welcomes additional information.
To help improve this record, please email photoservices@folkartmuseum.org18031803 2005 8 30 Fraktur"The drawing was done, apparently, on a page taken from an existing ledger book, making the other sentences and inscriptions incomplete and virtually impossible to decipher....Jacob Strickler was a direct descendant of Abraham Strickler who was one of the settlers from Lancaster County, Pennsylvania, who emigrated from Switzerland in the early 18th century. Jacob Strickler lived in the Massanutten section of the Shenandoah County, which was heavily populated with Mennonites. Given his frequent contact with Mennonites and the abundance of religious books in his library, there is little doubt that the Mennonites had an influence on his life and work..."The Tall Case Clock descended in Jacob Strickler’s family with this fraktur, his books, ten drawings, additional fraktur, and unfinished designs for fraktur. The discovery of the clock provided Johannes Spitler’s full name and also established a direct connection between the painted motifs and the fraktur produced by Strickler, Spitler’s neighbor. It has been noted that the motifs on the clock and the writing itself bear a strong resemblance to Strickler’s calligraphy, as evidenced in a 1794 Zierschrift, or type of writing sample, leading to questions in recent scholarship about whether Strickler was, in fact, somehow involved in the painting of this and other objects within the group of twenty or so that are attributed to Spitler.
Stacy C. Hollander, “Fraktur with Inverted Heart,” exhibition label for Self-Taught Genius: Treasures from the American Folk Art Museum. Stacy C. Hollander and Valérie Rousseau, curators. New York: American Folk Art Museum, 2014.
Object information is a work in progress and may be updated with new research. Records are reviewed and revised, and the American Folk Art Museum welcomes additional information.
To help improve this record, please email photoservices@folkartmuseum.org