1892 HW ALS Artist Albert E. Sterner to Noted NY Art Critic Perriton Maxwell For Sale

RARE 1892 Autograph Letter by Albert E. Sterner to Perriton Maxwell | American Artist Critiques Society of American Artists | Paris Salon Honoree | Original Manuscript on Art Exhibition Politics

Offered here is an exceptional 7-page autograph letter signed by Albert Edward Sterner (1863–1946), dated June 2, 1892, and addressed to Perriton Maxwell, a noted art editor and critic of the era. In this handwritten letter, Sterner expresses sharp criticism of the Society of American Artists and reflects on the politics and prejudices of art exhibition culture in late 19th-century America.

This original, unpublished manuscript is not only a personal letter but a critical document of art history, in which Sterner vents his frustration with superficial curatorial practices that undermine genuine artistic merit. It includes reference to his well-known painting, “The Bachelor”, which had received Honorable Mention at the 1891 Paris Salon, but was poorly treated in American exhibitions.

The letter is complete, written on 7 pages of stationery, and signed “Yours very truly, Albert E. Sterner.”

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FULL TRANSCRIPTION:

133 E 39., N.Y.

June 2. 92.

Perriton Maxwell Esq.

Dear Sir,

I am in receipt of your circular requesting me to inform you of my summer movements.

I return to my studio in Paris about the middle of July. When I came home in December I had fully serious intentions of remaining here for some time. But after the absurd manner in which I was trialed at the Society of American Artists Exhibition – I prefer to return to France where things in Art rest upon a somewhat higher and just plane.

The reference I make is to the fact that my picture “The Bachelor” (now at my house), which received Honorable Mention and was one of the noticed American pictures of ‘91 in the Salon, was not hung by the Society on account of its having a black frame — it being impossible for these gentlemen to put it on their walls without darkening “a spot.” What this means exactly it is very difficult to say, but I am glad of this opportunity (and I know am voicing the sentiments of many of my confrères) of raising a strong objection to making our exhibitions “tonal successes” — that is to say, pleasing generally to the spectator at the cost of excluding or hanging badly good pictures.

This pernicious habit reigns with nearly every American hanging committee. At the Watercolors Exhibitions, all sorts of queer things are done in the way of just hanging — in order to keep the white room white — and the gold room gold.

At the Metropolitan you (Knows) send two small pictures and the Society only hangs one of them — and we find mere tyros compared to him with four and five pictures. Something is wrong somewhere and as the Society claims to be, and is to a degree representative, one of the American exhibitions — it becomes a matter of public interest that above all things justice be observed by its managers.

Let the best pictures have the best places — and don’t call your exhibition a representative one of Am. Art when you accept some sweet little lady’s “Wisteria in a glass,” and refuse a picture which has had the approbation of a picked jury of great French artists — on account of its being in a black frame (the one it was in at the Salon).

When a man like Charles Davis (whose beautiful Landscapes...)

If you can spare the time I shall be glad to show you the picture any morning at 133 E 39. as also some of my drawings.

Hoping you will pardon me for writing such a lengthy note

I remain

Dear Sir

Yours very truly

Albert E. Sterner

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ABOUT ALBERT E. STERNER (1863–1946):

Albert Edward Sterner was an American painter, illustrator, and etcher born in London, England, who emigrated to the United States in 1879. Initially celebrated for his book illustrations and magazine covers (including work for Harper’s, Scribner’s, and Century), Sterner studied at the Académie Julian in Paris and became one of the first American artists to gain international acclaim at the Paris Salon. His versatility extended from portraiture and landscapes to religious and allegorical themes.

Sterner was elected to the National Academy of Design in 1906, and his work is now housed in the collections of institutions like the Metropolitan Museum of Art, the Library of Congress, and the Art Institute of Chicago. He also taught at the Art Students League and influenced a generation of American artists.

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SIGNIFICANCE OF THIS LETTER:

This letter is a firsthand account of institutional gatekeeping in the American art world. Sterner’s grievances regarding the superficial criteria used in selecting and displaying art—like frame color and wall “harmony”—highlight the political and aesthetic struggles artists faced in the Gilded Age. His experience as an artist honored abroad but slighted at home also reflects the transatlantic tension between European prestige and American artistic identity.

Additionally, the letter\'s mention of other artists, like Charles Davis, and institutions like the Metropolitan Museum of Art and the Society of American Artists, situates it in a crucial moment of cultural formation for the American art establishment.

This is not just a letter—it is a primary document of art criticism, curatorial practice, and professional frustration by a noted American artist with international recognition.

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CONDITION:

7 pages on fine stationery, excellent legibility, light edge wear consistent with age. Ink strong and dark, with Sterner’s bold signature on final page. No tears or loss. A superb example of Gilded Age art correspondence.

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SHIPPING & HANDLING:

Ships flat and protected via USPS Priority Mail, fully insured. International shipping available via Global Shipping Program.

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RARE ORIGINAL ITEM — IDEAL FOR:

Art Historians & Scholars

Museums or Institutions Collecting Artist Correspondence

Gilded Age & Paris Salon Collectors

Dealers of Manuscripts & Cultural Ephemera

Lovers of Fine Art and Artistic Commentary

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Don’t miss this important letter from one of America’s most refined and thoughtful artist-critics of the 19th century.