There is, to be sure, some good, old-fashioned charm to William Steig's drawing of The Perfect Wife. The title at first seems coyly innocent, but it allows for a touch of irony too. Is it sexist, defining the woman solely by her marital status? Or perhaps the husband is simply not worthy of a place in the title himself?
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The two figures are shown in an idyllic garden posing for the artist as for a family portrait from a bygone era. The curving branches of the tree frame their heads. The ink and watercolor on paper was sold last month at Heritage Auctions and a little more than four years earlier at Doyle New York. The artist's spelling is not quite up to his drawing; the C has been squeezed into place as a correction..jpeg)
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| William Steig Heritage Auctions listing of April 23, 2024 |
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| William Steig Heritage Auctions item description |
This work was sold in 2018 by Doyle New York for somewhat less, $406 with the premium.
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| William Steig Doyle New York listing of November 13, 2018 https://www.doyle.com/auction/lot/lot-11---steig-william-1907-2003-the-perfect-wife/?lot=122 2725&so=4&st=William%20Steig&sto=0&au=&ef=&et=&ic=False&sd=1&pp=96&pn=1&g=1 |
Note: Neither the William Doyle Galleries, Heritage Auctions, nor your earnest blogger have any idea whether this William Steig piece was ever published, but that doesn't mean that the next person won't know more about it. If you're in possession of the key to the publishing history of this piece, if indeed it can ever be known, please chime in.
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