APPRAISER: So you brought us an Eloise McGill. What can you tell me about her?
GUEST: She was an artist in San Antonio back in the 1880s, 1890s.
APPRAISER: So, she...
GUEST: But she was my great-great-aunt. She's made quite a few paintings. We have about six in our family. We have two in our house.
APPRAISER: When I looked her up, I realized that her full name is Eloise Polk McGill. She has a distinguished lineage.
GUEST: Some people thought she was a direct descendant of President Polk, but he did not have any children. She's the grand-niece of Judge Baylor, who started Baylor University.
APPRAISER: Well, I...
GUEST: So she's got some connections here to Texas.
APPRAISER: Absolutely. She's, first studied with Robert Onderdonk in Texas.
GUEST: Right.
APPRAISER: And then, at some point later, she studied with William Merritt Chase in New York.
GUEST: Ah.
APPRAISER: Now, William Merritt Chase was a, quite a personality as a teacher. And there are lots of little adages that he would say that would stick with his students.
GUEST: (chuckles)
APPRAISER: And one of them was, "Take all the time you want to paint this painting-- take 15 minutes."
GUEST: Wow.
APPRAISER: Meaning that before you touch your brush to the canvas-- in this case, panel-- you should know exactly what the composition is going to be, and how the painting is going to develop. So that once you start painting, you paint quickly.
GUEST: Ah, interesting.
APPRAISER: And that is extremely evident in this painting. She's incredibly competent, secure, confident as a painter. The artist was born in 1868, and she died about 1938. This painting was done in the last two years of her life, and when I saw this painting, when you came up, I was blown away by the brilliant color.
GUEST: Yes.
APPRAISER: She was known for doing bluebonnets, as well.
GUEST: Yes, we have one of the bluebonnets.
APPRAISER: Well, bluebonnets are particularly popular in Texas, but I love the cactus flowers. Cactuses, they, they bloom in one day, and then the blooms are gone. Isn't that correct?
GUEST: That's correct.
APPRAISER: The value of this painting, for retail replacement purposes, is probably close to $20,000.
GUEST: Oh! Wow, we were hoping for a few thousand-- that's awesome.
