1949 "Were all Gold bugs" By Otis Kaye (1885-1974). Oil on panel. Approximately 6.5 x 12 inches within a larger 12 x 17.5 inch frame. Professionally re-framed in a modern wood frame reminiscent of the middle to late 19th-century styles, to match the other Kaye painting offered above. As with the previous piece, this painting was purchased by D. Brent Pogue from one of our previous sales, in this case our September 2009 Philadelphia Americana sale. Again, the only difference between that offering and this one is the new frame. It was described previously as follows, with minor edits:“Within a realistic gold painted trompe-l’oeil "frame" is an incredibly realistic rendering of a wrinkled, folded-over Series of 1928 Gold Certificate (Serial #A32578027A) with its top right corner folded over, pointing directly at the portrait of Alexander Hamilton, Americas first Secretary of the Treasury. As it was written in the Kaye Trust Catalog Raisonné now in preparation, this juxtaposition "indicates that all men are anthropomorphically Gold Bugs." A small antique pendant at upper left pins a slip of paper inscribed<em> Were all Gold bugs</em>. Arranged along the bottom of the "frame" are a 1910 Saint-Gaudens $20, Roman gold aureus, Alexander the Great portrait gold coin and Spanish colonial cob 8 escudos or doubloon. Seemingly stuck to the lower right border is a curled label inscribed<em> O. KAYE 1949</em>. Otis Kaye was born in Nahma, Michigan, and was endowed with remarkable artistic ability. He produced few paintings before the great economic crash of October 1929 that wiped out his familys then-significant nest egg of $150,000. This disaster triggered his creation of a succession of trompe-l’oeil paintings featuring coins and paper money, all reflecting the artists overwhelming feelings of anger and loss. A sub-theme of his art was the realization of the fleeting nature of wealth, personified by his use of well-circulated coins and crinkled paper set in often-squalid surroundings. Trompe-l’oeil art has been created since ancient times, and at its finest is able to deceive the viewer with its seeming three-dimensional realism. The pleasure of the artist follows from the viewers eventual realization that he has been deceived, possibly by trying to draw aside a curtain that turns out to be a mere painted surface, or by attempting to pick up a gold coin that is merely a two-dimensional image. Success in this complex and difficult medium demands exceptional artistic skill whether on a small canvas or an entire wall. Kaye was an outstanding exemplar of this medium, and his work was highlighted in the exhibition <em>Old Money: American Trompe loeil Images of Currency</em> at New Yorks Berry-Hill Galleries in 1988. The present painting shows his work at its most meticulous, offering a level of skill seldom encountered. From our 2009 Philadelphia Americana Sale, September 2009, lot 3506.
