Dawson Dawson-Watson
Encyclopedia
Dawson Dawson-Watson as a British born Impressionist painter who became famous in 1927 for winning the largest cash prize in American Art, the Texas Competitive Wildflower Competition. He was one of the first members of the famous Impressionist colony in Giverny
, France and was a prominent teacher in Hartford, Connecticut
, St. Louis, Missouri
and San Antonio, Texas
. Dawson-Watson was a vertasile artist and artisan and he made significant contributions to the American Arts & Crafts Movement, first in Boston, Massachusetts and then in Woodstock, New York
. His works are on display in the Witte Museum
in San Antonio and at the San Antonio Art League.
suburb of St. Johns in Middlesex County on June 21, 1864 He came from an artistic family. His father John Dawson-Watson (1832-1892) was a famous illustrator who did illustrations for Robinson Crusoe and Arabian Nights. His grandfather Dawson Watson was a talented amateur artist. His uncle Thomas J. Watson (1847-1912) was also a well recognized painter and his aunt was married to the Victorian painter Myles Birket Foster
(1825-1899). Dawson-Watson grew up in St. John's Wood. surrounded by artists, writers and figures from the British Aesthetic Movement. He was a child prodigy whose first work was accepted by the Royal Academy at the age of sixteen. His father and an American artist Mark Fisher (1841-1923) were his first teachers. A wealthy brewer from Manchester paid for his art studies in Paris, where he remained from 1886 to 1889. He worked under s number of prominent teachers including Carolus-Duran
(1837-1917), Leon Glaize (1942-1932), Luc-Oliver Merson (1846-1920), Aime Morot (1850-1913) and Raphael Colin (1850-1916). He met and married a young American woman Mary Hoyt Sellar in Paris, on May 30, 1888. She had been traveling with the Midwestern artist Emma Richardson Cherry (1859-1954).
(1852-1896) and Thedore Wendel (1859-1932), invited Dawson-Watson to live in Giverny, the spring after its founding. He first registered at the Baudy Cafe on May 12, 1888. In Giverny, Dawson-Watson did paintings that were said to be influenced by the subjects of the Barbizon School but with the palette of Impressionism. Dawson-Watson only had a "nodding acquaintance" with Claude Monet
, who lived in Giverny and insisted that the original painters were not drawn to the village because they knew Monet lived there.
, on the St. Lawrence River. He painted Impressionist paintings of the bluffs and river while he was in Quebec and was mentioned extensively in the 1906 book Quebec Sketch Book. In Quebec he grew to know the American Tonalist painter L. Birge Harrison (1854-1929), who was instrumental in his employment at Byrdcliffe
, the famous utopian Arts & Crafts Colony in Woodstock, New York
. At Byrdcliffe he taught students decorative design in the Byrdcliffe Summer School and designed Arts & Crafts furniture for the furniture company that the colony's founder Ralph Radcliffe Whitehead (1854-1929) had hoped would support the colony. Dawson-Watson only taught for short time at Byrdcliffe and in 1904 he took a position in St. Louis.
in New York by Edgar B. Davis. In San Antonio he became famous for his paintings of the many variety of Cacti that grow in the Texas Hill Country. Dawson-Watson raised his children in San Antonio and remained a resident until his death in 1939.
Giverny
Giverny is a commune in the Eure department in north-western France. It is best known as the location of Claude Monet's garden and home.-Location:Giverny sits on the "right bank" of the River Seine where the river Epte meets the Seine...
, France and was a prominent teacher in Hartford, Connecticut
Hartford, Connecticut
Hartford is the capital of the U.S. state of Connecticut. The seat of Hartford County until Connecticut disbanded county government in 1960, it is the second most populous city on New England's largest river, the Connecticut River. As of the 2010 Census, Hartford's population was 124,775, making...
, St. Louis, Missouri
St. Louis, Missouri
St. Louis is an independent city on the eastern border of Missouri, United States. With a population of 319,294, it was the 58th-largest U.S. city at the 2010 U.S. Census. The Greater St...
and San Antonio, Texas
San Antonio, Texas
San Antonio is the seventh-largest city in the United States of America and the second-largest city within the state of Texas, with a population of 1.33 million. Located in the American Southwest and the south–central part of Texas, the city serves as the seat of Bexar County. In 2011,...
. Dawson-Watson was a vertasile artist and artisan and he made significant contributions to the American Arts & Crafts Movement, first in Boston, Massachusetts and then in Woodstock, New York
Woodstock, New York
Woodstock is a town in Ulster County, New York, United States. The population was 5,884 at the 2010 census, down from 6,241 at the 2000 census.The Town of Woodstock is in the northern part of the county...
. His works are on display in the Witte Museum
Witte Museum
The Witte Museum, established in 1926 under the charter of the San Antonio Museum Association, is located adjacent to Brackenridge Park in San Antonio, Texas, on the banks of the source of the San Antonio River. It is dedicated to the history, science, and culture of the region. Nearby is the San...
in San Antonio and at the San Antonio Art League.
Childhood and Studies
Dawson Dawson-Watson was born in the LondonLondon
London is the capital city of :England and the :United Kingdom, the largest metropolitan area in the United Kingdom, and the largest urban zone in the European Union by most measures. Located on the River Thames, London has been a major settlement for two millennia, its history going back to its...
suburb of St. Johns in Middlesex County on June 21, 1864 He came from an artistic family. His father John Dawson-Watson (1832-1892) was a famous illustrator who did illustrations for Robinson Crusoe and Arabian Nights. His grandfather Dawson Watson was a talented amateur artist. His uncle Thomas J. Watson (1847-1912) was also a well recognized painter and his aunt was married to the Victorian painter Myles Birket Foster
Myles Birket Foster
Myles Birket Foster was a popular English illustrator, watercolour artist and engraver in the Victorian period. His name is also to be found as Myles Birkett Foster.-Life and work:...
(1825-1899). Dawson-Watson grew up in St. John's Wood. surrounded by artists, writers and figures from the British Aesthetic Movement. He was a child prodigy whose first work was accepted by the Royal Academy at the age of sixteen. His father and an American artist Mark Fisher (1841-1923) were his first teachers. A wealthy brewer from Manchester paid for his art studies in Paris, where he remained from 1886 to 1889. He worked under s number of prominent teachers including Carolus-Duran
Carolus-Duran
Charles Auguste Émile Durand, known as Carolus-Duran , was a French painter and art instructor. He is noted for his stylish depictions of members of high society in Third Republic France.-Biography:...
(1837-1917), Leon Glaize (1942-1932), Luc-Oliver Merson (1846-1920), Aime Morot (1850-1913) and Raphael Colin (1850-1916). He met and married a young American woman Mary Hoyt Sellar in Paris, on May 30, 1888. She had been traveling with the Midwestern artist Emma Richardson Cherry (1859-1954).
The Impressionist Colony
The American painter John Leslie Breck (1860-1899), who was one of the first Americans to settle in Giverny with Louis Ritter (1852-1896), Willard Leroy Metcalf (1858-1925) Blair Bruce (1859-1906), Henry Fitch Taylor (1853-1925), Theodore RobinsonTheodore Robinson
Theodore Robinson was an American painter best known for his impressionist landscapes. He was one of the first American artists to take up impressionism in the late 1880s, visiting Giverny and developing a close friendship with Claude Monet...
(1852-1896) and Thedore Wendel (1859-1932), invited Dawson-Watson to live in Giverny, the spring after its founding. He first registered at the Baudy Cafe on May 12, 1888. In Giverny, Dawson-Watson did paintings that were said to be influenced by the subjects of the Barbizon School but with the palette of Impressionism. Dawson-Watson only had a "nodding acquaintance" with Claude Monet
Claude Monet
Claude Monet was a founder of French impressionist painting, and the most consistent and prolific practitioner of the movement's philosophy of expressing one's perceptions before nature, especially as applied to plein-air landscape painting. . Retrieved 6 January 2007...
, who lived in Giverny and insisted that the original painters were not drawn to the village because they knew Monet lived there.
The United States
Dawson Dawson-Watson and his family moved to the United States in 1893. They first stayed in Boston and then he took a position teaching art for the Hartford Art Association. His son, the artist Edward Dawson-Watson was born in Hartford in 1893 and his daughter Hilda Dawson Watson in 1895. During the time he lived in Hartford he exhibited in Boston and when he left the art association, he moved back to Boston where he became part of the Arts & Crafts colony in Scituate, Massachusetts. He collaborated with the artist Thomas Meteyard on a small publication titled the Courrier Innocent and was part of the Bohemian community. When his parents died, he received a small inheritance and moved back to England where he and his family lived for a number of years.Canada and Woodstock
The Dawson-Watson family returned to North America on June 9, 1901 and they settled in QuebecQuebec
Quebec or is a province in east-central Canada. It is the only Canadian province with a predominantly French-speaking population and the only one whose sole official language is French at the provincial level....
, on the St. Lawrence River. He painted Impressionist paintings of the bluffs and river while he was in Quebec and was mentioned extensively in the 1906 book Quebec Sketch Book. In Quebec he grew to know the American Tonalist painter L. Birge Harrison (1854-1929), who was instrumental in his employment at Byrdcliffe
Byrdcliffe Colony
The Byrdcliffe Colony, also called the Byrdliffe Arts Colony or Byrdcliffe Historic District, was founded in 1902 near Woodstock, New York by Jane and Ralph Radcliffe Whitehead and colleagues, Bolton Brown and Hervey White...
, the famous utopian Arts & Crafts Colony in Woodstock, New York
Woodstock, New York
Woodstock is a town in Ulster County, New York, United States. The population was 5,884 at the 2010 census, down from 6,241 at the 2000 census.The Town of Woodstock is in the northern part of the county...
. At Byrdcliffe he taught students decorative design in the Byrdcliffe Summer School and designed Arts & Crafts furniture for the furniture company that the colony's founder Ralph Radcliffe Whitehead (1854-1929) had hoped would support the colony. Dawson-Watson only taught for short time at Byrdcliffe and in 1904 he took a position in St. Louis.
San Antonio
Dawson-Watson began spending time in San Antonio while he was still living in St. Louis. From 1914 to 1926 he spent part of each year in San Antonio, until finally becoming a full-time resident. From 1918-1919 he served as director for the San Antonio Art Guild. It is generally stated that it was the Edgar B. Davis Wildflower Competition that drew him to San Antonio permanently. In 1926 it was announced that the oilman Edgar B. Davis would sponsor an art competition that was intended to draw attention to the beauty of the Texas Hill Country. A jury selected paintings for an exhibition and there were categories for artists who were residents of Texas and those who came from outside of the state. The formal name of the contest, organized by the San Antonio Art League, was the Texas Wildflower Competitive Exhibition. In 1927 Dawson-Watson won the prize for artists who cane from outside Texas and was awarded the $5,000 first prize for Glory of the Morning while his friend, Jose Apra, the Spanish painter won the prize for Texas residents. He went on to ion first and fifth prizes in the 1929 competition. These awards not only gave Dawson-Watson great prestige in San Antonio, but national recognition and the financial awards made him comfortable for the first time in his life. Glory of the Morning was presented to the Lotos ClubLotos Club
The Lotos Club is a gentleman's club in New York City. Founded in 1870 by a young group of writers and critics, Mark Twain, an early member, called it the "Ace of Clubs"...
in New York by Edgar B. Davis. In San Antonio he became famous for his paintings of the many variety of Cacti that grow in the Texas Hill Country. Dawson-Watson raised his children in San Antonio and remained a resident until his death in 1939.
Studio Locations
- Paris, France (1886-1888)
- Giverny, France (1888-1893)
- Hartford, Connecticut (1893-1896)
- Boston, Massachusetts (c. 1897)
- Acton, England (1898-1901)
- Byrdecliffe Colony, Woodstock, New York (1903-1904)
- Quebec City (c.1901-1904)
- 3379 Windsor Place, St. Louis, Missiouri (1910)
- 19th & Locust Street, St. Louis, Missouri (1914)
- 6029 Horton Place, St. Louis, Missouri (1920)
- San Antonio, Texas (1926-1939)
Organizations
- San Antonio Artists League
- Boston Arts & Crafts Guild
- St. Louis Artist's Guild
- St. Louis Junior Players
- San Antonio Art Guild
- 2x4 Society
- Society of Western Artists
- Boston Society of Arts & Crafts
- St. Louis Art League
External links
- Texas Wildflower Painters Web Site
- http://libcdm1.uncg.edu/cdm4/results.php?CISOOP1=exact&CISORESTMP=results.php&CISOVIEWTMP=item_viewer.php&CISOMODE=grid&CISOGRID=thumbnail%2CA%2C1%3Btitle%2CA%2C1%3Bdescri%2C200%2C0%3Bdate%2CA%2C0%3Bnone%2CA%2C0%3B20%3Brelevancy%2Cnone%2Cnone%2Cnone%2Cnone&CISOBIB=title%2CA%2C1%2CN%3Bdate%2CA%2C0%2CN%3Bdescri%2C200%2C0%2CN%3Bnone%2CA%2C0%2CN%3Bnone%2CA%2C0%2CN%3B20%3Brelevancy%2Cnone%2Cnone%2Cnone%2Cnone&CISOTHUMB=20+%284x5%29%3Brelevancy%2Cnone%2Cnone%2Cnone%2Cnone&CISOTITLE=20%3Btitle%2Cnone%2Cnone%2Cnone%2Cnone&CISOHIERA=20%3Bdate%2Ctitle%2Cnone%2Cnone%2Cnone&CISOSUPPRESS=1&CISOPARM=%2Ftb1+%3Acreato%3ADawson-Watson%2C+Dawson%2C+1864-1939UNCG American Publishers' Trade Bindings: Dawson Dawson-Watson]