Just the right marriage of a naive 19th c.charcoal drawing and folk art frame I think, with a sandpaper finish to the surface of the dark red and dark blue painted frame that of course makes one think of sandpaper (marble dust) drawings from around the same time as this charcoal. The drawing of basket piled high with fruit (grapes and peaches and pear I believe) has an exuberant sort of looseness and warmth to it; perhaps it was drawn quickly to accompany a real basket of fruit and delivered along with it (or could be now!) as a very gracious gift. With label on verso of American folk art dealer Stephen Gemberling, York, PA, and a note about the drawing: "watermarked / Meeteer," the latter I believe the name of its maker, which seems to be a fairly common one in Pennsylvania.
Framed: 12 5/8" x 14 5/16". Sight: 8 7/8 x 10 5/8. There are a couple of clean tears coming in from the edges of the drawing, which appear likely to have been stabilized with tape from the revers, and one vertical crease to the paper near the right side, well flattened.
