Summer, c. 1913
Oil on Canvas
Gift of Mr. & Mrs. Robert H. Krieble 1994.5

This painting depicts the artist’s wife Helen, their son Freeman, and a friend in the family’s garden in Old Lyme. The Footes moved into their new home in Old Lyme in 1909 and developed an Italianate-style garden with terraces and paths that overlooked the Lieutenant River.

Unlike the more muted tonalities of Foote’s earlier, largely figurative work, Summer shows how the artist’s palette became increasingly high key in nature. Boldly applied strokes of contrasting purples, yellows, and greens convey the intense midday light of summer in Old Lyme.