Bust of a Distant Relative, n. d.
Courtesy of The Philip and Muriel Berman
Museum of Art at Ursinus College.
Vital Statistics
Plaster, 20 x 10½ x 11 inches
Unsigned
The Philip and Muriel Berman
Museum of Art at Ursinus College.
Gift of David Ellinger, Permanent Collection
Commentary
This
portrait bust cannot be definitively attributed to William Trego, as there is
no signature and no provenance. The donor who gave the work to the Berman Museum,
David Y. Ellinger, provided no evidence for his attribution to Trego. There is
some circumstantial evidence, however, in that the tooled surface resembles the
surface of Trego’s funeral monument for Anthony Shimer, as seen in a
photograph
of the clay matrix for that work. Also, in a letter Trego wrote to Harrison
Morris in 1897, he mentioned that he had crafted several small busts. (Letter of
Wm. T. Trego to Harrison S. Morris, 1 May 1897, PAFA Archives)
Exhibitions
Doylestown, Pennsylvania, James A. Michener Art Museum, June 3-Oct 2, 2011: "So Bravely and So Well: The Life and Art of William T. Trego."
Condition
The bust is in basically good condition, but is missing a small chip at the tip of the nose.
< Funeral Monument for Anthony Shimer, 1897
