Provenance:

Ex. Coll. Stephen Vangarth, Kingston, acquired from the Talisman, Cobourg, Ontario, in 1978; The Estate of Donald G. Crossley, Ontario; By descent

Literature:

See Don Crossley, In Quest of authenticity: the case of the Canadian “Constable”, published in Canadian Art magazine, Fall 1985 issue, pgs. 82-83.
In the Fall of 1980, this work was featured in several Toronto newspaper and Canadian media features including:
a Global Television news feature, a CBC, Metro Morning interview with Mr. Crossley; and an article and illustration of the work published in The Toronto Sun newspaper .
In December 1981, Charles S. Rhyne, then Chairman of the Department of Art, at Reed College, Portland, Oregon obtained permission to include a reproduction of Gathering Flowers in a forthcoming four-volume catalogue raisonné to contain all drawings and paintings Attributed to John Constable.

Exhibited:

Art Gallery Of Ontario, Toronto extended loan from 1980-1990 as David Cox Snr.

Note:

Since being discovered in 1979 this work has been the subject of much debate and intrigue. It charmed art-lovers at the AGO for ten years and hung amid masterpieces by Cézanne, Matisse, Constable and Van Gogh.
This lot is accompanied by a letter to Mr. Crossley from Michael J.H. Liveridge, Lecturer-in-charge at the University of Bristol, dated August 30, 1980 confirming the attribution of this work to David Cox Snr. Liveridge writes: “The painting conforms closely to the usual canon of the artist’s informal oil studies, and the style is also close to his work in watercolour. In particular the handling of foliage and the treatment of atmospheric effects in [the] painting correspond to Cox’s vigorous and direct treatment of landscape scenery, especially in his oil sketches.”