P. Finney
Pair of Doors from an Independent Order of Odd Fellows Meetinghouse

Public Domain

ExpandFavorite

Images(2)

Maker P. FinneyAmerican, active 19th century

Maker John SereyAmerican, active 19th century

CultureAmerican

Titles

Pair of Doors from an Independent Order of Odd Fellows Meetinghouse

Datec. 1850–1860

Possible placeSaugerties, New York, United States

Probable placeSchroon Lake, New York, United States

MediumUnidentified wood, paint, iron

DimensionsEach: 77 3/4 × 29 3/4 × 1 1/4 in. (197.5 × 75.6 × 3.2 cm)

Credit LineThe Bayou Bend Collection, museum purchase funded by Mrs. James Anderson, Jr.

Object numberB.2009.10.1,.2

Current Location

Bayou Bend Collection and Gardens

Folk Art Room

On view

Explore Further

Department

Bayou Bend

Object Type

BUILDING COMPONENT & ROOM ELEMENT

DescriptionThese painted doors were found in an Odd Fellows lodge in New York State. Signed by the painters P. Finney and John Serey, the exuberant abstraction of the framed elements sharply contrasts with the landscape panels—a silhouette of trees, stripped of their leaves, one upright and the other having been struck down. Given the Odd Fellows’ roots in Christian ideology, a plausible source for this imagery may be found in Matthew 3:10, “and now also the axe is laid onto the root of the trees: therefore, every tree which bringeth not forth good fruit is hewn down, and cast into the fire.” Thus, the broken tree may serve as a warning against sin, with the intact one functioning as an omen of what is to come.
Provenance Research Ongoing Inscriptions, Signatures and Marks

Signed on door B.2009.10.2: P. Finney / Painter / FLT / John Serey / FLT / IOOF

Cataloguing data may change with further research.

If you have questions about this work of art or the MFAH Online Collection please contact us.