Sporting Art by Ripley

Aiden Lassell Ripley(1896-1969) was a Boston native and a prolific painter of sporting scenes. He served in WW I and upon returning made his living doing New England pastoral scenes and paintings of urban Boston. The dawn of the Great Depression compelled him to move to a more marketable genre...and the subject of his personal passion: hunting and fishing.He frequently traveled to the plantations and estates of the wealthy to do commissioned works. Recently one of his originals sold at auction for $89,000.00.

In my parent's attic I came a cross a scrapbook made by my Uncle in the mid 40's. He was an accomplished hunter and had taken pages form Field & Stream that featured Ripley's work. Each page had an accompnaying essay by the prolific outdoor write Nash Buckingham. As to this painting, Nash commented:

        "Wherever fowlers debate the comestible or sporting values of favorite marsh or river ducks,confirmation is usually predominant that for all-round toothsomeness and thrill packed shooting glamour a corn fed,rice-heavy,cooked-just-right mallard brings home the bacon."

At nearly $100,000.00 a pop....I wish I had found an original up in the attic. I would have been banging on Southeby's door faster than a pointer after a downed quail.