Alfred Montgomery (American, 1857-1922), Four Ears of Corn

Oil on canvas, signed at lower left, presented in a period oak frame.

Stretcher size 9 x 14 in.; Frame dimensions 12 3/4 x 17 3/4 in.

Alfred Montgomery was an American painter best known for his depictions of farm animals and distinctive still lifes featuring corn, subjects that earned him the nicknames the “Farmer Artist” and the “Corn Artist.” Born in Logan County, Illinois, he moved from Mason City, Iowa, to Bloomington, Illinois, in 1893, where he established his reputation as an artist. The Lakeview Museum in Peoria later described Montgomery as Bloomington’s best-known painter, and his rural subjects brought him recognition well beyond the region.

Montgomery moved to Los Angeles in 1906 and later spent approximately a decade in Tulsa, Oklahoma, before returning to California. He died in Los Angeles in 1922.

Light surface scratch in lower right corner; minor rubbing along wrapped top edge of canvas; no evidence of retouch or restoration visible under UV light.