Looking for information on deceased artist J. E. Worden

Never heard of him...wow, he isn't even on wikipedia. I'll have to keep my eye out for any info on him, sounds interesting.

Thanks so much!

Is there a gallery tag on the back on the painting? How do you know he paid $3000? Is there a bill that shows the name of an auction house or appraisal service?

No, I know because she's my sister-in-law and she worked for her for many years before he passed. The only thing on the back of the pic is the artist's name and address in Ft. Lauderdale, FL and the name of the painting.

Is the front of the painting signed JE Worden? The reason I ask is because there was a Worden Art Gallery in Florida for years and I thought there might be some confusion in the painter and the gallery. I have access to a database of art sold around the world in the last century and no works come up with an exact match to the name J.E. Worden. That is unusual if an artist has had any commercial success. There was a Worden that specifically did marine and nautical themes, but he was mostly active in the 40's-50's. There was also Worden Day who was best know for her woodcuts.

I suggest you take the painting to a professional appraisal service and get an insurance value on it. Even if the artist does not have a strong sales record the painting seems to have value for it's artist merit.

Yes, the front of the painting is signed J E Worden 1916 in the front, right corner. Thanks so much for the info. I will try to find out more about the Worden gallery in FL. Sure wish I knew what the J E stood for...

Hi ppyluv. Good luck with your search. You said the painting's titled?

Thanks Joeblow! Yes, from what I can make out, it looks like "Curtains A Fire"...

Oops! "Curtain A Fire" not "Curtains" )

Sorry ppy, I've got nothing, but it might might help those who know about such things.

Green Witch makes sense I think (as usual)

Well, I think I may be making some progress on the history of the painting! The signature on the front is J Worden 1916. On the back, it says J E Worden and the address in Ft Lauderdale, FL. I was assuming (I know, never assume) that the artist was J E Worden. Then I got to thinking maybe the J E is a descendant of J Worden. Sure enough, I found an artist by the name of John Lorimer Worden, 1876-1954. I have contacted some of the family members and emailed pics of the painting and signature. Hopefully, I will hear something real soon!

Yes! I found him and spoke with his grandson on the phone!! It was really fun tracing the origin and learning about the history. The artist is indeed John Lorimer Worden!

Success! Yay!