F. Edwin Church | |
---|---|
Born | Frederic Edwin Church October 25, 1876 |
Died | July 15, 1975 |
Education | Art Students League of New York, Académie Julien, and Columbia University |
Notable work | The Peacock Girl |
Style | Portraits with Japanese influence |
Spouse | Alice Slocum Nichols |
Awards | Thomas B. Clarke Prize by the National Academy of Design for best figural composition for his painting, The Peacock Girl, 1916 |
Elected | Allied Artists of America, American Museum of Natural History, Architectural League of New York, Audubon Artists, Lyme Art Association, National Audubon Society, New York Zoological Society, and Salmagundi Club |
Website | https://fedwinchurch.com |
F. Edwin Church (October 25, 1876 – July 15, 1975) was an American painter best remembered for his portraits with Japanese influence. Church's oeuvre also encompassed impressionist landscapes, undersea paintings, floral still life, and sculpture.
Church was named after Frederic Edwin Church [1] (1826–1900), the Hudson River School artist, by his father E. Dwight Church (1836 – 1908). His father knew the artist but they were not related. To avoid confusion with the prominent artist, Church signed most of his paintings F. Edwin Church. [2]
Born in Brooklyn, New York, Church was the youngest of four sons. He grew up in the Greenpoint Historic District next to the East River. On a summer visit to Middletown, Connecticut, he met his future wife Alice Slocum Nichols, great-granddaughter of Major Abrahm Caleb Truax, [3] founder of Trenton, MI. Following their 1901 marriage in Detroit, [4] they lived in New Rochelle.
Church's grandfather, Austin Church (1799 – 1879), was a co-founder [5] of Church & Dwight, the manufacturer of Arm & Hammer products. Church's three brothers, Elihu Dwight, Jr., Austin, and Charles all worked for the company.
Church's father, E. Dwight Church (1836–1908), studied drawing at the National Academy of Design in New York City, and during the 1850s, taught drawing in the public schools. [6] By the late 1870s he began collecting rare and valuable books of early Americana and English literature. In 1911, Henry E. Huntington [7] purchased his collection [8] which became the foundation for the American [9] collections at the Huntington Library.
A series of his watercolor botanical studies show the influence of Paul de Longpré whose work Church admired. He studied architecture at Columbia University in New York in 1897. Finding that architecture didn't suit him, he enrolled in classes at the Art Students League of New York. [10] His class instructors included Kenyon Cox, Frank Dumond, [11] and John Henry Twachtman.
Church attended the Académie Julien [12] in 1905 and studied under Jean-Paul Laurens. In 1906, a portrait of his wife, noted in the catalogue as Madame C. was accepted to the Salon (Paris). [13] While studying in Paris, Church developed a passion for Japanese print collecting. [14] He assembled a comprehensive reference library and a portfolio of fine, rare, and important Japanese woodblock prints. [15] Like his father, E. Dwight Church, he joined the Grolier Club in New York City and developed lifelong friendships with two avid print collectors, Howard Mansfield [16] and Louis V. Ledoux. [17]
The reference library on Japanese print collecting [18] was sold at Walpole Galleries [19] in New York in 1922. Church's Locust Valley, Long Island house, designed in 1928 by Harrie T. Lindeberg, was paid in part by the sales of a portion of his print collection. The first sale in 1929 was a group of Hiroshige bird and flower prints, sold to Abby Aldrich Rockefeller, who later gifted them to the Rhode Island School of Design. [20] Encouraged by Mansfield, another sale was made to the Metropolitan Museum of Art. Later, in 1946, Parke-Bernet Galleries (now Sotheby's) handled the auction of another large group of prints. As the authority, Church was asked to write the sale catalogue, which was edited by Ledoux.
By 1909 he was a member of the Salmagundi Club. Memberships in the Lyme Art Association, Allied Artists of America, [21] and the Architectural League of New York followed in the next few years. When he was in his seventies, he joined Audubon Artists. [22] Church also held life memberships in the National Audubon Society, the New York Zoological Society, and the American Museum of Natural History.
An active member of the art community, Church was present during the formation of Allied Artists of America in 1914. His lifelong friend, Charles Bittinger, a board member, nominated Church for membership in the first induction of eleven members. [21] Also included in this group were Church's friends Harry L. Hoffman and Everett Warner.
In 1916, at the age of 38, Church was awarded the Thomas B. Clarke Prize by the National Academy of Design for best figural composition for his painting, The Peacock Girl. Reflecting his interest in Japanese prints, he created a colorful composition of a red-haired girl in a blue and green floral kimono-inspired dress. Behind her, a peacock is perched with an outstretched wing in a possessive posture. The New York Times (March 26, 1916) [23] and Harper's Weekly (April 8, 1916) [24] each featured the painting in their pictorial sections.
After the award, The Peacock Girl went on a tour of exhibitions starting at the Detroit Museum of Art [25] followed by Toledo Museum of Art, Ohio State University, Art Institute of Chicago, [26] and Pennsylvania Academy of Fine Arts. It was later shown at Lyme Art Association [27] [28] in 1921 and the artist's 1975 Retrospective.
Church had three exhibitions of significance, the first being his one-man show in New York City at Montross Gallery [29] in January 1927. The show featured portraits, still lifes, and views of the Saint-Jean-de-Luz region of France.
This was followed in December by a show of his undersea and landscape paintings of Haiti [30] at Ainslie Galleries. [31] Along with two other artists, Helen Damrosch Tee-Van ( illustrator) and Vladimir Pierlieff, [32] he had accompanied William Beebe [33] on the 10th Expedition of the New York Zoological Society [34] (now known as the Wildlife Conservation Society.) After closing, the Haitian exhibit then relocated to the American Museum of Natural History in 1928. [35]
The third, a Retrospective, was held in 1975 at the Country Art Gallery [36] in Locust Valley, New York, shortly before his death at the age of 98. It was held to benefit the North Shore Wildlife Sanctuary [37] where he was a founding member [38] and had donated land. [39] The show included portraits of family members, prominent citizens, local landmarks, and the model of his only known sculpture, Great Blue Heron. A bronze casting stands in the sanctuary. [40]
Other public works are: A portrait of Ellsworth Everett Dwight in The Portrait Collection of the New York Genealogical and Biographical Society; Peonies and The Lilypond at Bailey Arboretum; and A Game of Pelota at the National Art Museum of Sport.
F. Edwin Church | |
---|---|
Born | Frederic Edwin Church October 25, 1876 |
Died | July 15, 1975 |
Education | Art Students League of New York, Académie Julien, and Columbia University |
Notable work | The Peacock Girl |
Style | Portraits with Japanese influence |
Spouse | Alice Slocum Nichols |
Awards | Thomas B. Clarke Prize by the National Academy of Design for best figural composition for his painting, The Peacock Girl, 1916 |
Elected | Allied Artists of America, American Museum of Natural History, Architectural League of New York, Audubon Artists, Lyme Art Association, National Audubon Society, New York Zoological Society, and Salmagundi Club |
Website | https://fedwinchurch.com |
F. Edwin Church (October 25, 1876 – July 15, 1975) was an American painter best remembered for his portraits with Japanese influence. Church's oeuvre also encompassed impressionist landscapes, undersea paintings, floral still life, and sculpture.
Church was named after Frederic Edwin Church [1] (1826–1900), the Hudson River School artist, by his father E. Dwight Church (1836 – 1908). His father knew the artist but they were not related. To avoid confusion with the prominent artist, Church signed most of his paintings F. Edwin Church. [2]
Born in Brooklyn, New York, Church was the youngest of four sons. He grew up in the Greenpoint Historic District next to the East River. On a summer visit to Middletown, Connecticut, he met his future wife Alice Slocum Nichols, great-granddaughter of Major Abrahm Caleb Truax, [3] founder of Trenton, MI. Following their 1901 marriage in Detroit, [4] they lived in New Rochelle.
Church's grandfather, Austin Church (1799 – 1879), was a co-founder [5] of Church & Dwight, the manufacturer of Arm & Hammer products. Church's three brothers, Elihu Dwight, Jr., Austin, and Charles all worked for the company.
Church's father, E. Dwight Church (1836–1908), studied drawing at the National Academy of Design in New York City, and during the 1850s, taught drawing in the public schools. [6] By the late 1870s he began collecting rare and valuable books of early Americana and English literature. In 1911, Henry E. Huntington [7] purchased his collection [8] which became the foundation for the American [9] collections at the Huntington Library.
A series of his watercolor botanical studies show the influence of Paul de Longpré whose work Church admired. He studied architecture at Columbia University in New York in 1897. Finding that architecture didn't suit him, he enrolled in classes at the Art Students League of New York. [10] His class instructors included Kenyon Cox, Frank Dumond, [11] and John Henry Twachtman.
Church attended the Académie Julien [12] in 1905 and studied under Jean-Paul Laurens. In 1906, a portrait of his wife, noted in the catalogue as Madame C. was accepted to the Salon (Paris). [13] While studying in Paris, Church developed a passion for Japanese print collecting. [14] He assembled a comprehensive reference library and a portfolio of fine, rare, and important Japanese woodblock prints. [15] Like his father, E. Dwight Church, he joined the Grolier Club in New York City and developed lifelong friendships with two avid print collectors, Howard Mansfield [16] and Louis V. Ledoux. [17]
The reference library on Japanese print collecting [18] was sold at Walpole Galleries [19] in New York in 1922. Church's Locust Valley, Long Island house, designed in 1928 by Harrie T. Lindeberg, was paid in part by the sales of a portion of his print collection. The first sale in 1929 was a group of Hiroshige bird and flower prints, sold to Abby Aldrich Rockefeller, who later gifted them to the Rhode Island School of Design. [20] Encouraged by Mansfield, another sale was made to the Metropolitan Museum of Art. Later, in 1946, Parke-Bernet Galleries (now Sotheby's) handled the auction of another large group of prints. As the authority, Church was asked to write the sale catalogue, which was edited by Ledoux.
By 1909 he was a member of the Salmagundi Club. Memberships in the Lyme Art Association, Allied Artists of America, [21] and the Architectural League of New York followed in the next few years. When he was in his seventies, he joined Audubon Artists. [22] Church also held life memberships in the National Audubon Society, the New York Zoological Society, and the American Museum of Natural History.
An active member of the art community, Church was present during the formation of Allied Artists of America in 1914. His lifelong friend, Charles Bittinger, a board member, nominated Church for membership in the first induction of eleven members. [21] Also included in this group were Church's friends Harry L. Hoffman and Everett Warner.
In 1916, at the age of 38, Church was awarded the Thomas B. Clarke Prize by the National Academy of Design for best figural composition for his painting, The Peacock Girl. Reflecting his interest in Japanese prints, he created a colorful composition of a red-haired girl in a blue and green floral kimono-inspired dress. Behind her, a peacock is perched with an outstretched wing in a possessive posture. The New York Times (March 26, 1916) [23] and Harper's Weekly (April 8, 1916) [24] each featured the painting in their pictorial sections.
After the award, The Peacock Girl went on a tour of exhibitions starting at the Detroit Museum of Art [25] followed by Toledo Museum of Art, Ohio State University, Art Institute of Chicago, [26] and Pennsylvania Academy of Fine Arts. It was later shown at Lyme Art Association [27] [28] in 1921 and the artist's 1975 Retrospective.
Church had three exhibitions of significance, the first being his one-man show in New York City at Montross Gallery [29] in January 1927. The show featured portraits, still lifes, and views of the Saint-Jean-de-Luz region of France.
This was followed in December by a show of his undersea and landscape paintings of Haiti [30] at Ainslie Galleries. [31] Along with two other artists, Helen Damrosch Tee-Van ( illustrator) and Vladimir Pierlieff, [32] he had accompanied William Beebe [33] on the 10th Expedition of the New York Zoological Society [34] (now known as the Wildlife Conservation Society.) After closing, the Haitian exhibit then relocated to the American Museum of Natural History in 1928. [35]
The third, a Retrospective, was held in 1975 at the Country Art Gallery [36] in Locust Valley, New York, shortly before his death at the age of 98. It was held to benefit the North Shore Wildlife Sanctuary [37] where he was a founding member [38] and had donated land. [39] The show included portraits of family members, prominent citizens, local landmarks, and the model of his only known sculpture, Great Blue Heron. A bronze casting stands in the sanctuary. [40]
Other public works are: A portrait of Ellsworth Everett Dwight in The Portrait Collection of the New York Genealogical and Biographical Society; Peonies and The Lilypond at Bailey Arboretum; and A Game of Pelota at the National Art Museum of Sport.