Sale of Rittmann painting to benefit Warwick Museum of Art

Posted 1/8/14

For more than 50 years, Karl R. Rittmann created scenes of Rhode Island landmarks, people and the bay, and many residents proudly hang his lithographs in their homes. Rittmann's oil painting output, …

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Sale of Rittmann painting to benefit Warwick Museum of Art

Posted

For more than 50 years, Karl R. Rittmann created scenes of Rhode Island landmarks, people and the bay, and many residents proudly hang his lithographs in their homes. Rittmann's oil painting output, however, was more limited and works on canvas seldom came to market. So with some fanfare, the Warwick Museum of Art (WMOA) has announced the painting "Lockwood School" by Karl R. Rittmann will be sold at auction Monday, Jan. 19 by Briarbrook Auctions. The painting can be previewed at WMOA, located at 3259 Post Road in Warwick, from now until Saturday, Jan. 17.

WMOA was given the painting by the estate of Mary Frances Brown, who owned it for many years.

"It was a touching and generous gesture on her part to leave it to us," says board president Pamela Unwin-Barkley. "But it would be a disservice to her, and to the painting itself, to keep it here."

The busy arts organization has no permanent collection or the archival storage space needed to protect the painting long-term.

"A painting of this size and value deserves a much better home than we can give it," said Unwin-Barkley.

Domenic Rignanese, the independent appraiser who reviewed the painting for the Brown estate, placed its value at $4,600.

"Karl Rittmann's work was well executed, it is accessible, and it resonates with Rhode Islanders," he observed recently. "Rittmann was well known and was grouped with respected artists like Spencer Crooks, Maxwell Mays and Armand LaMontagne."

Rignanese, who also owns Complements Art Gallery, keeps a keen eye on the art market and says large Rittmann oil paintings usually sell for $6,000. He valued the 20" x 32" framed painting of Lockwood School lower because it's site specific but was quick to note there is always interest in Rittmann's work.

Nanci Thompson, co-owner of Briarbrook Auctions, agrees and has included the painting in her auction of high-end furnishings from the "Plaisance" manor house on Bellevue Avenue in Newport.

"I've auctioned works by Karl R. Rittmann in the past, and there's always a lot of local interest," she said. "This auction in particular will be a good venue for the painting because it will draw serious collectors of art and antiques from various states."

The auction is scheduled for Monday, January 19 at 5 p.m. and more information is available at www.briarbrookauctions.com, including a listing of the auction lots.

Local residents may remember Rittmann from his time at Veterans Memorial High School; he taught there for more than 20 years before becoming vice principal. After retiring from the school system, he focused his energies on capturing iconic and treasured scenes of Rhode Island on canvas. According to the website created by his son, Guy (www.rittmann-art.com), Karl painted more than 40 works, including landscapes, historical buildings, seascapes and college campus montages, to name a few. Many scenes were later reproduced as lithographs.

Rittmann also designed and painted large-scale murals inside prominent Rhode Island buildings, like "The Burning of the Gaspee" mural located in the Shrine's Hall on Broad Street in Cranston. Plus, Rittmann painted portraits of every Warwick mayor from 1936-1999 when he finished a portrait of a soon-to-be senator, Lincoln Chafee. The portraits are on display in Warwick City Hall in historic Apponaug just two doors from WMOA. He also profiled local athletes, business leaders, officials and celebrities for the Warwick Beacon.

"Lockwood School" can be seen at WMOA from now until January 17 (gallery hours are Tuesdays-Fridays 10 a.m. to 5 p.m. and Saturdays 10 a.m. to 3 p.m.). Anyone who wants to bid on the piece should attend the Briarbrook Auction on January 19 at the Varnum Armory located at 6 Main Street, East Greenwich. Bidding will start at $2,800 and the winning bidder can take the painting home that day. For more information about WMOA call the office at 737-0010; for more information about Briarbrook Auctions call 439-2346.

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  • MariaMuses

    There are a lot of specifics missing from this article creating a gray area. Did the gift from the estate come with stipulations about it's care, keeping, or disposal? How long have they had this? I can applaud the museum for recognizing that it might not be the right place for the piece in terms of its care, but in the acceptance of this gift, the museum did undertake the stewardship of this piece and did create a collection for itself. Thus "not having a permanent collection" is not a reason to sell; have they been given other things that they do not view as a collection? It is a common occurrence for non-collecting institutions to find themselves with objects and the resulting need to preserve them for the public good. Just saying you don't have a collection doesn't safeguard against the responsibilities that follow after acquiring objects, no matter the original intention of the museum in it's collecting goals, or how the museum ended up with a collection.

    I'm wondering in what ways WMOA will benefit from the sale. I would hope it's not a move to buffer operational funding, keeping the lights on is not a reason to sell collections. Actually, it's unethical in the museum world. From the Code of Ethics of the American Alliance of Museums: "disposal of collections through sale, trade or research activities is solely for the advancement of the museum's mission. Proceeds from the sale of nonliving collections are to be used consistent with the established standards of the museum's discipline, but in no event shall they be used for anything other than acquisition or direct care of collections." www.aam-us.org/resources/ethics-standards-and-best-practices/code-of-ethics

    If the article could go into these specifics then many with reservations over the sale of "Lockwood School" could be assured that this is situation is the best outcome for the right reasons.

    Monday, January 12, 2015 Report this

  • warwickguy

    who cares its a painting for Christ sake. Its not like its a Monet its just a painting of an old school...

    Thursday, January 15, 2015 Report this