VERSO
Label, Christie’s, New York, New York

According to Goodwin biographer Dr. Larry Len Peterson, “In life no one knows what is just around the corner. That makes some people anxious, but for Goodwin it provided the opportunity for suspenseful compositions. If shooting the rapids wasn’t exhilarating enough, adding the intrigue of two battling bull moose near the shore line catapults this painting to another level. While Goodwin’s friend Carl Rungius is called the Rembrandt of the moose, he didn’t shy away from demonstrating his own prowess at capturing this noble beast in action. For example, Goodwin’s moose appeared on countless magazine covers, illustrations, calendars, posters, illustrated letters to Charles M. Russell, and even on Russell’s 1907 privacy screen at Bull Head Lodge in Glacier National Park.

“Yet there is more. One of the leading periodicals of the day was the famed The Saturday Evening Post. To have your work on the cover signified you had arrived as an illustrator. How many titans of Western American art had their illustrations grace the cover? Frederic Remington had one (1901). What about Charles M. Russell, Maynard Dixon, Carl Rungius, and Frank Tenney Johnson? None. On the contrary, Goodwin, America’s sporting and wildlife artist, had three. The most memorable was a moose swimming in a lake, which appeared on the cover of the October 14, 1905 issue. Of course, Norman Rockwell (first 1916) and his friend J. C. Leyendecker (first 1900) would become synonymous with the magazine’s covers.

“For this offering Goodwin imagined two battling bulls on the shoreline providing the companion in the front of the canoe a split-second opportunity at a shot. On more than one occasion, the artist observed two bull moose sparring during the days leading up to the rut. Every autumn from late September to mid-October the rut is anticipated after the bulls shed the velvet from their antlers. The might of 1,500 lb. beasts in combat is unforgettable. They cautiously approach each other with the intent of engaging their antlers followed by pushing and thrashing. The loser is subdued and vanquished from the competition for the female cows during mating season. Their antlers shed between November and March, and thereafter new ones appear. The cycle is repeated every fall.

“A transient glimpse at the duel is quick history as the canoe is swept downstream by the swift rapids, and all attention is focused on not capsizing. We feel a sense of a shared history and a common future, which is so important in friendships.”

PROVENANCE
New Orleans Auction Galleries, New Orleans, Louisiana, 2012
William I. Koch Collection, Palm Beach, Florida
Christie’s, New York, New York, 2015
Private collection, Alaska

LITERATURE
Larry Len Peterson, Philip R. Goodwin: America’s Sporting & Wildlife Artist, Coeur d’Alene Art Auction and Settlers West Galleries, 2001, p. 316, illustrated

Additional Resources

• Philip R. Goodwin’s Past Results
• View Condition Report

Condition ReportSurface is in good condition. Bar mark across top, with corresponding inpainting. Several hairline cracks in the sky. One small spot of inpainting in water, to the right of canoe.

Important Notice: Statements of condition are provided as a service to potential bidders; such statements are educated opinions and should not be regarded as facts. The Coeur d’Alene Art Auction has no responsibility for any errors or omissions.