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Source Description
In this drawing, the gray and brown tones of a row of houses are interrupted by the bright green and yellow of a discarded Christmas tree. The work was created in the same year as <em>Church Bells Ringing</em>, where a Christmas tree visible through a window was meant to contrast the work’s foreboding mood. This earlier image similarly suggests Burchfield’s passion for his favorite holiday, which he saw as a symbol of goodness.
Scholar Source Context
Document identity
localId
131996
label
Backyards in Winter (Castoff Christmas Tree)
core
obj
dtoType
drawing
pageCount
1
Source metadata
id
131996
contentType
drawing
title
Backyards in Winter (Castoff Christmas Tree)
description
In this drawing, the gray and brown tones of a row of houses are interrupted by the bright green and yellow of a discarded Christmas tree. The work was created in the same year as <em>Church Bells Ringing</em>, where a Christmas tree visible through a window was meant to contrast the work’s foreboding mood. This earlier image similarly suggests Burchfield’s passion for his favorite holiday, which he saw as a symbol of goodness.
date
January 1917
rights
CC0
rightsUri
CC0
language
en
wikidata
Q60780971
creators
3989
genreSpecific
Drawing
imageCount
1
source
import
dimensionsRaw
Sheet: 36.3 x 45.8 cm (14 5/16 x 18 1/16 in.)
cul
America
accession
1954.571
Source extras
tec
watercolor, gouache, blue and orange crayons, and black wash on wove paper
tombstone
Backyards in Winter (Castoff Christmas Tree), January 1917. Charles Burchfield (American, 1893–1967). Watercolor, gouache, blue and orange crayons, and black wash on wove paper; sheet: 36.3 x 45.8 cm (14 5/16 x 18 1/16 in.). The Cleveland Museum of Art, Anonymous gift in memory of Henry G. Keller, 1954.571
collection
DR - American 20th Century
didYouKnow
Christmas trees recurred throughout Burchfield's work around this time.
citations
citation
Trovato, Joseph S. <em>Charles Burchfield: Catalogue of Paintings in Public and Private Collections</em>. Utica: Munson-Williams-Proctor Institute, 1970.
page_number
Mentioned: p. 56, no. 245
catalogueRaisonne
Straus; 281; Trovato 245
creditline
Anonymous gift in memory of Henry G. Keller
updatedAt
2026-05-29 06:48:00.045000
sourceId
131996
dept
Drawings
coll
DR - American 20th Century
med
watercolor, gouache, blue and orange crayons, and black wash on wove paper
creatorTags
May Show
Cleveland Institute of Art (alumni)
male
thumbnail_url
image_url
Single page context
seq
1
pageIndex
0
type
photo
mediaId
d136683dd403eef6