Michael Lehr Antiques
Live Auction

June 2026 Vernacular Photo History Auction

Wed, Jun 24, 2026 11:00AM EDT
  2026-06-24 11:00:00 2026-06-24 11:00:00 America/New_York Michael Lehr Michael Lehr : June 2026 Vernacular Photo History Auction https://auction.michaellehrantiques.com/auctions/michael-lehr-antiques/june-2026-vernacular-photo-history-auction-23574
Our June 2026 auction presents a focused and exceptional selection of historical photographs spanning the 1840s through the early twentieth century, with unusual depth in named subjects, rare formats, and documented provenance anchored by strong vernacular material that rewards close looking.
Michael Lehr Antiques info@michaellehrantiques.com
Lot 564

Real Photo Postcard, Artist Painting at Rocky Lake Shore

Estimate: $25 - $50
Starting Bid
$10

Bid Increments

Price Bid Increment
$0 $5
$100 $10
$200 $25
$500 $50
$1,000 $100
$2,000 $250
$5,000 $5,000
$10,000 $1,000
$20,000 $2,000
$50,000 $5,000
An unidentified male artist works en plein air along a rocky, wooded lakeshore in this real photo postcard bearing a Chicago, Illinois postmark dated 1911. The photographer's initials S.J.C. appear in the lower right corner of the image. The subject stands with his back to the camera, brush in hand, actively painting at an easel positioned among dense shoreline vegetation. A second completed canvas rests propped on a wooden paint box at his feet, depicting what appears to be a wooded island or shoreline reflected in still water.

The artist wears a dark suit coat and a wide-brimmed hat, his right arm raised toward the canvas on the easel. Weathered driftwood logs are scattered across the foreground, and tall conifers and birch trees line the opposite shore, visible across a calm, misty expanse of water. Rocky outcroppings extend along the near bank behind him.

The scene captures an outdoor painting session in a setting consistent with the lake country of Wisconsin or the upper Midwest, plausibly near Lake Geneva given the postcard's destination address. The reverse bears a one-cent Benjamin Franklin stamp and is addressed to Mr. Longland, Lake Geneva, Wisconsin, care of C.L. Hutchinson, Wytchwood, with a catalog notation reading 3/16/19, Col. 2.

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