AFA Winter 2019

Antiques & Fine Art 107 2019 designed a custom wheelchair that allowed Stock to become mobile for the first time since the accident some eight years before. In his journal, Stock wrote: Several attempts had been made to construct something in which I might be able to sit up, which had failed . . . When Dr. S. submitted his plan it met with little favor at first . . . he [by] dint of perseverance succeeded in constructing a chair [and] I was soon enabled to sit up several hours in the day and could roll myself all over the same floor of the house The wheelchair included modifications designed to hold Stock in place, including a confined footrest, knee and abdominal belts, and padding for the sides and back. A series of gears allowed Stock to move the chair himself by cranking small levers near the armrests. While the chair was being constructed, Dr. Swan also a rranged for “ training ”—probably rudimenta r y physical and occupational therapy—to help Stock strengthen his upper body, which enabled him to dress himself and get into his chair from his bed without assistance. Undoubtedly, Stock ’s mental outlook improved, too, with these advances. In 1835, when he received the chair, Stock noted that he could sit up for several hours a day and, as a result, completed twenty- five portraits. When he began to travel the next year, with the help of aides—mainly his siblings—he trebled that number. Once he became mobile, his career as a painter flourished. Stock worked steadily and successfully at painting for the next few years. In 1839, however, another calamity struck, as recorded in his journal: On January 1st, 1839, I was preparing some mastic varnish when it took fire and I was soon involved in the flames . . . [My] hands, face, and neck were badly burned . . . so at the time my physician [Dr. Swan] thought me in considerable danger . . . The accident weakened Stock’s immune system, resulting in a life-threatening infection in his right hip, subsequent joint dislocation, disintegration of the ligaments, and decayed bone. Another doctor, Joseph Henshaw Flint (1786–1846) was called to remove Stock’s hipbone entirely—a risky surgery even today. With no known concept of germ theory and only a rudimentary understanding of asepsis, surgeons such as Dr. Flint had to rely on their medical intuition and common sense when performing such operations. Assisted by the best medical care available and the Erastus Salisbury Field (1805–1900), attributed, Girl in the Yellow Dress with Doll, ca. 1838. Oil on canvas, 42½ x 249⁄16 inches. Fenimore Art Museum, Cooperstown, New York; Gift of Stephen C. Clark (N0234.1961). Photograph by John Bigelow Taylor, NYC. Both Stock and Erastus Salisbury Field worked in similar areas and were based in or near Springfield for most of their overlapping careers. Anecdotal evidence also links Field to Chester Harding who may have influenced both painters. For most of his 95 years, Field lived in and around western Massachusetts, venturing no farther than 200 miles from home to earn a living painting portraits. As a youth, Field first showed an interest in art when he began sketching likenesses of relatives. As a young man, Field traveled to New York City where he briefly studied with the artist and inventor Samuel F.B. Morse (1791–1872).