untitled, Charles E. Mills

Exhibition Label:
"American Etchers Abroad, 1880-1939," Apr-2004, Reed Anderson
Little is known of Charles Mills’s early life. He surfaces in the history of art as one of Frank Duveneck’s lesser known students, and although Mills is listed as a painter in the records, the untitled prints in the Spencer’s collection indicate that he also tried his hand at etching while he was a member of Duveneck’s circle. The first print depicts an area in the Tuscan hills, perhaps somewhere near Florence. The large dark villa in the foreground, worked over vigorously with the etching needle, is rendered in a loose spontaneous manner; those in the background are defined by a few hastily drawn outlines. The sketch-like quality of Mills’s drawing shows an affinity with the style favored by his teacher and fellow students.