DAY 1: July Americana and Shaker, DAY 2: Gameboards & Americana from the Wendel Collection
Wed, Jul 8, 2026 10:00AM EDT
Live Auction
Lot 226
Mary Ann Willson - The 'Tow' Sisters, an Important Folk Art Watercolor
Estimate: $10,000 - $15,000
Bid Increments
| Price | Bid Increment |
|---|---|
| $0 | $25 |
| $200 | $50 |
| $1,000 | $100 |
| $2,000 | $200 |
| $5,000 | $500 |
| $10,000 | $1,000 |
| $20,000 | $2,000 |
| $50,000 | $5,000 |
| $100,000 | $10,000 |
| $1,000,000 | $50,000 |
Important Folk Art Watercolor, The Tow Sisters, by Mary Ann Willson (active circa 1810–1825), depicting two sisters in a bold, frontal composition rendered in the flat, vibrant palette for which the artist is known. Watercolor and ink on paper. Greenville, Greene County, New York, circa 1830.
Provenance: Christie's, New York, Important American Furniture, Folk Art, Silver and Prints including The Garbisch Collection from the Sky Club on Jan, 21, 2006, Lot 412 (Realized: $18,000); Sotheby's New York, October 19, 1996, lot 2; Sotheby's New York, June 23, 1994, lot 392; David Schorsch, New York, "A Tributed to Excellence," 1989. Elliot and Grace Snyder, South Egremont, Massachusetts.
Exhibited: New York, "A Tributed to Excellence," David A. Schorsch, Inc., 1989.
Measurements: H 13-1/2 in. W 11 in.
More on the Artist: Mary Ann Willson is among the most distinctive and sought-after American folk artists of the early Nineteenth Century. A self-taught watercolorist, she settled in Greenville, Greene County, New York, circa 1810, with her companion Miss Brundage, the two living together on a small farm where Brundage worked the land and Willson made and sold her pictures. She mixed her own pigments from berries, brick dust and other common materials, and her watercolors were reportedly sold to patrons from Canada to Mobile, Alabama. Her work went unrecognized until 1943, when a portfolio of her drawings was discovered at the Harry Stone Gallery in New York City, and she is today considered, alongside Eunice Pinney, one of the earliest American artists to work in watercolor. Examples are held in major institutional collections and rarely come to market.
Condition
Shipping/Pickup
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