A detail of the handle and the engraved guard of a gold enameled sword presented by the City of London to Captain Bowes Vere Broke following the capture of the American frigate Chesapeake off Boston.
Hyland and Granby devote an entire chapter to the Lawrence material, calling it "one of the most remarkable collections of its type in the world." Following a foreword by Patrick Robinson, a novelist and friend of the collector, and a profile of the collector by the dealers, the book moves onto chapters on fine art, maritime art, America's Cup models and artifacts, nautical artifacts and furniture.
The fine art chapter features works by major artists not typically identified with marine themes, from Claude Monet to Raoul Dufy. Granby's own favorite is "The Golden Rule" by Fitz Henry Lane. The luminous view of ships on a tranquil sea fetched a record $3,966,000 when Christie's auctioned it in 2000.
Also remarkable, particularly when paired with "Three Boys in a Dory" by Winslow Homer, is the watercolor "Sailing The Catboat" by the same artist. Frederic Remington's "Evening on A Canadian Lake" resembles one of Thomas Eakins' iconic paintings of sculling on the Schuykill River. When Koch, who dedicates the book to his children, won the America's Cup, Latin American artist Fernando Botero presented the collector with a portrait of young Wyatt Koch, holding a model of the winning boat. The painting is the best trophy a father could wish for.
"Nineteenth Century American marine painting drew on the great living traditions of American fine art that developed from European models, but quickly grew into recognizably indigenous American styles," Granby and Simons write in a chapter devoted to maritime art.
"Sailing The Catboat” by Winslow Homer, watercolor and gouache over pencil on paper, 7 ½ by 13 ¾ inches.
James E. Buttersworth's "Finishing The Ocean Race" epitomizes the artist's yachting scenes, says Granby, who admires the picture for the atmospheric quality of its water and sky, its accuracy of detail in rendering the vessel and the significance of the transatlantic race depicted, instigated by a dinner bet at the New York Yacht Club in 1866. Another favorite is "Shipboard Celebration Before Departure," John Alexander Gilfillan's captivating depiction of dissolute revelry aboard a West Indianman.
Koch's collection of America's Cup models and artifacts is unsurpassed. As the last American to win the America's Cup, Koch owns a complete model record of the 103 vessels that have raced in the event, originally the Royal Yacht Squadron's Hundred Guinea Cup, initiated in Cowes England in 1851. The models are displayed in a purpose-built room in Koch's Palm Beach home.
Nautical artifacts in the collection include navigational instruments, ship carvings, sailors' valentines and woolies. One of the most striking artifacts is a circa 1790 boxwood and bone prisoner-of-war model fashioned as four miniature bone ships under a bone and boxwood canopy. Granby's favorite ship's figurehead is one that he sold Koch. The elegantly refined figure depicts a freestanding woman in flowing dress and dates to circa 1900.
Illustrated on the jacket cover is "Shipboard Celebration before Departure” by John Alexander Gilfillan, oil on canvas, 25 ½ by 37 1/8 inches.
A chapter on furniture features brass-bound chests and boxes along with unique ship's furniture. One streamlined example is a teak daybed with a caned seat and storage drawers beneath. Made for Nicholas Brown of Providence, R.I., the daybed used on the ship
Ann & Hope was deaccessioned by Winterthur.
Liberally interspersed throughout the book are color plates showing the collection as it is imaginatively installed in Koch's residences in Massachusetts and Florida.
Hyland and Granby's long acquaintance with their subject and Koch's exacting standards have resulted in a book that is sumptuous, entertaining and knowledgeable. The volume benefits from the editorial contributions of Simons, curator of the Nantucket Historical Association.
The ship model room in Koch's Palm Beach home.
The book's glossy, full-color illustrations are top quality. As Granby explains, "Bill thinks of his paintings as windows to another world. He has a special technique for lighting works of art that seems to make picture frames disappear at night. We wanted to replicate the effect on the page."
Maritime Maverick: The Collection of William I. Koch was
edited and produced by Alan Granby and Janice Hyland, with text by Ben Simons, Bob Fisher, Patrick Robinson and R.L. Wilson. It was published by David R. Godine, Boston, in association with the Society of the Four Arts, Palm Beach, Fla., 2006, and is priced at $150, hardcover. It is available from Hyland Granby Antiques, POB 457, Hyannis Port, MA 02647, 508-771-3070, or online at www.hylandgranby.com/publications.asp.
