A painting of a young girl by Buxton folk artist John Brewster Jr. was auctioned in Maine last month for $413,000, far exceeding the expectations of the auctioneer.
The 15-inch by 18-inch painting is of young Marcia Ingraham. Its sale was handled by Massachusetts-based Caddigan Auctioneers.
The painting has been in the Cummings-Ingraham family - early settlers of what's now South Paris - since Brewster completed it in 1823, according to the Portland Press Herald. The work was among several items from the family's estate that were auctioned in late August in South Paris.
Brewster was born in 1766 Connecticut, and was deaf and unable to speak. He eventually settled in Buxton, Maine, to live with his brother, and made his living traveling around painting portraits for wealthy families. Brewster died in 1854.
Former Portland Museum of Art curator Thomas Denenberg, who now directs the Shelburne Museum in Vermont, told the paper that the high price paid for the painting reflects Brewster's growing reputation and the appearance on the market of a new work. The PMA hosted an exhibition of Brewster’s work in 2007.
The successful bidder of the painting called in the bid by phone, and wishes to remain anonymous, the paper reports.
