Charles W. Bartlett
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Hawaiian Mother and Child, 1920 (ca.)
Watercolor and pastel on art board
21 ½ x 28 ½ "
Signed lower left
Private collection
The death of Charles Bartlett's first wife during childbirth, in the early 1890s, followed by the death of his newborn son, led to profound grief and initiated his frequent representation...
The death of Charles Bartlett's first wife during childbirth, in the early 1890s, followed by the death of his newborn son, led to profound grief and initiated his frequent representation of the tender relationship between mother and child, a recurring theme throughout his career. Here, a young Hawaiian woman sits on the ground, holding her baby in her lap. She fingers a half-strung hala lei; the fruit from which the orange segments were pulled is at her side.
