Winter landscape

American folk art paintings are often anonymous. And even when a painting is signed, the signature often doesn't tell art historians very much. This is the only known painting by Addison Kingsley, though its quality suggests that he must have painted many, according to Jane Kallir, author of ``The Folk Art Tradition'' (Viking Press). No one knows where he lived, so this landscape, though typical of New England, could be Maine, Connecticut, or even Delaware.

The type of composition, a New England winter landscape with a barn on one side and a house on the other, is reminiscent of Currier and Ives. The imagery helps date the picture, as few folk art landscapes were painted before the Civil War. And, until Currier and Ives romanticized New England winters, artists seldom painted winter scenes.