“A Shady Nook—Late Afternoon” [SOLD]

Joseph Roy (J. R.) Willis (1876-1960) was a legend in Albuquerque. He was a slim gent with a small mustache. He wore capes. He twirled canes. He smoked Pall Mall cigarettes in an ivory holder. He loved, more than anything, to discuss his paintings. Albuquerque old-timers, who were fascinated by his foppish bearing, remember him. He had flair, a flakiness that today would be considered weird. J. R. Willis was just different. He was an artist. He came from the Southeast to chronicle the Great Southwest. Willis learned art on slates. He made fashion drawings for the Atlanta Constitution. He painted backdrops for Universal Studios in Hollywood. In 1917, Willis left for New York to discuss cartoon syndication. He stopped in Arizona to sketch Hopis. He decided to stay in the Great Southwest. He moved to Gallup, New Mexico, and set himself up as a photographer, and toured the reservations to photograph Navajos, Hopis, Zunis, Lagunas and Acomas. He would then use the photos as sources for his paintings.

Willis moved from Gallup to Albuquerque in 1931 and set up a studio in Albuquerque’s Old Town in 1938. He built a house in the Country Club area within walking distance of his studio.  Willis painted until the time of his death.

This painting is typical of the fine paintings he produced.  The adobe house nestled under the shade of the fall colors of the cottonwood trees is a sight seen in many New Mexico small villages.  The late afternoon sun casts wonderful shadows on the building and grounds.  The yard surrounding the house is void of vegetation in typically New Mexico fashion.  The ristras of chile hanging from the vigas have turned red and will be taken in to the kitchen for use during the winter. There is a woman in the open doorway.

It would have been interesting to have met J. R. Willis but he passed away a couple years after I arrived in Albuquerque, and long before I was interested in New Mexico art.  I missed meeting him and Carl von Hassler, another eccentric artist of Albuquerque.  Knowing both of them would have been a life-enlightening experience.

Condition:  The condition of the painting is very good, but it appears that it was on a stretcher frame at one time and was removed and the canvas glued to a board.  There are seams around the painting where the stretcher frame caused a crease in the canvas.  We originally set a price of $3600 on this painting but reduced it to half that amount after examining and discovering the apparent canvas creases around the edges. 

Provenance: from a gentleman in Colorado who inherited it from his father.