Amethyst Passage

William B. E. Ranken (1881-1941); Gloucester, Massachusetts; 1928; Watercolor; Gift of Constance McCann Betts, Helena Woolworth Guest, and Frasier W. McCann, 1942.4631.

In his portrayal of Beauport’s Amethyst Passage, also built in 1921, Ranken highlights one of Sleeper’s most recognizable design hallmarks: the symmetrical massing of colored glass, backlit within a darkened passage. This room provides a transitional palette between the blues of one room and the reds of another, while also pointing to Sleeper’s neighbor Caroline Sinkler — familiarly known as the “Lavender Lady” for her mourning attire — whose home constituted its own transitional space between Sleeper’s and Andrew’s homes.