Sailboats (recto); Sailboats (verso)

Lucille Douglass

See More of the Collection

A winged male infant—identified as Cupid, ancient Roman god of love—rides atop an elegantly stylized gazelle, which has been fitted with an ornate saddle, embellished with gilding and red paint, and a sun-like gilded ornamental disc surrounded by three spheres between its antlers. Raised decorative nubs protrude along the center of the back of the gazelle’s head; these nubs visually complement the drop finials on the saddle at the gazelle’s underbelly.
The painting is dominated by a field of tulips in yellow, pink, orange, white, and red, planted in rectangles that recede towards the upper left corner. A village with primarily one-story buildings and a few towered or steepeld structureds sits at the top surrounded by a cloudy sky.
A barren field fills the foreground; its far edge is lined with tall weeds. At the center of the image, against a partly cloudy sky, is a billboard that bears the text, “For Sale Lots for Colored Call HE24457 Now”. Beside the sign are wire laden telephone poles.
Sleeping Child with Cat, Alvin Ross, lithograph