AFA Summer 2021

2021 Antiques & Fine Art 61 early on, American weathervanes have carried associations with historical memory, at times even taking on mystical implications. In the words of nineteenth-century novelist Nathaniel Hawthorne, one of Drowne’s vanes became an animate presence—a witness to events taking place on the streets below, like a “sentinel watch[ing] over the city.” Such imagery captures the sense of wonder historically evoked by these objects, which was often linked to an impulse to personify weathervanes. Examples such as a Heart in Hand (Fig. 2) and trumpeting Angel Gabriel (Fig. 3) have served as time capsules, carrying notes within them from makers or later stewards of these life-like objects—further suggesting the role they have played as keepers of history and memory, and presaging their treatment by early twentieth-century folk art collectors as symbols of a distinctive American artistic heritage. The original purchasers of American weathervanes chose themes that held symbolic meaning for them. Taking the form of eagles and other patriotic emblems, such vanes served as badges of political identity from the era of the young Republic well into the nineteenth century. A bold Eagle and Shield vane (Fig. 4) represents the exuberant patriotism of the early United States, while the Dove of Peace (Fig. 5) speaks to George Washington’s optimism for the new nation. Goddess of Liberty-form vanes (see Fig. 8) were made around the time of the Civil War but reflect the iconography of the Revolutionary era, capturing a continuity of national sentiment across generations. The Business of Weathervanes Weathervane-making gained significant speed in the third quarter of the nineteenth century, when numerous manufacturers developed businesses, especially in Massachusetts and, later, in New York. During this period of broad industrial growth in the United States, models of business efficiency advanced quickly, and weathervane-makers developed new ways to keep up with the competition. Advertising broadsides and illustrated trade cards allowed vane-makers to showcase their wares, laying out the range of available options. Buyers could select vanes that met their needs based on price, size, and theme. Well-known makers such as J. Howard (Fig. 6), A. L. Jewell (Fig. 7), and Cushing & White (Fig. 8) vied with one another to provide original ideas while also offering popular forms such as roosters, horses, and other domestic and wild animals. In the late nineteenth century, the high demand for weathervanes and the development of efficient manufacturing techniques brought about creative f lights of fancy, spawning witches (Fig. 9), dragons, and other mythological figures. In an indication of the preoccupations of a rapidly industrializing society, weathervanes also took up motifs of innovation, exemplified by forms such as locomotives, cars, and planes (Figs. 10, 11). Throughout the course of the nineteenth century, weathervanes continued to take on various expressions of pride and identity. Forms such as eagles and representations of “Liberty” celebrated national sentiment, with the Statue of Liberty (Fig. 12) joining the earlier personification of the goddess recognizable from her staff and cap. Weathervanes as American Folk Art Although demand for new weathervanes waned in the early twentieth century, around this same time, dealers and collectors began to recognize the appeal of these objects as artworks and to display them in art exhibitions. This interest formed part of a new movement to appreciate American “folk art”—works created outside the context of an academic art establishment. Collectors during this time championed American weathervanes as overlooked but significant forerunners in a national sculptural tradition—and also as symbols of an older, seemingly simpler time. The passion for weathervanes as art objects would continue to grow throughout the century, reaching a plateau just before the 1976 bicentennial with the seminal show The Flowering of American Folk Art. That exhibition included the Curlew vane (Fig. 13) seen here, along with other icons of the folk art collecting tradition. Strikingly modern in its bold silhouette, this form exemplifies the allure of graphic simplicity for collectors of early American folk art.  American Weathervanes: The Art of the Winds, on view at the American Folk Art Museum from June 23, 2021–January 2, 2022, is the first exhibition in decades to treat this topic comprehensively. Accompanied by a 256-page book by Robert Shaw, the show explores these objects’ rich layers of meaning through a display of remarkable American weathervanes crafted between the 1760s and 1914. Robert Shaw is an independent curator and Emelie Gevalt is curator of Folk Art at the American Folk Art Museum, NYC CONTINUED FROM PAGE 51