Steeplechase
Reginald Marsh (1898-1954), Steeplechase, etching and engraving, 1932, signed in pencil lower right and numbered (13) lower left. Reference: Sasowsky 138, Tenth state (of 10). Edition of about 25. Very good condition, a touch of light tone, printed on a cream wove paper, with margins, 7 7/8 x 10 7/8, the sheet 9 1/16 x 12 inches, window matting.
A superb black impression.
This is one of Marsh’s iconic Coney Island images, a couple – a girl and a sailor – at the center of the composition, and two girls at either end. The sense of movement is palpable.
Posthumous impressions were made for the Whitney benefit edition, but of course these are merely a ghostly reminder of the richness and sweep of the lifetime impressions, which in this case was printed by Marsh personally (he printed impressions 6 through 19).
A painting was made of this subject, called George Tilyou’s Steeplechase, which is now at the Smithsonian American Art Museum.
Steeplechase Park was one of the most famous amusement parks in the industry’s history. The park opened in 1897 and its feature attraction was the Steeplechase Ride, a horse race which wound around the Pavilion of Fun. The park closed in 1964.