Edward Henry Potthast
Encyclopedia
Central Park
Central Park is a public park in the center of Manhattan in New York City, United States. The park initially opened in 1857, on of city-owned land. In 1858, Frederick Law Olmsted and Calvert Vaux won a design competition to improve and expand the park with a plan they entitled the Greensward Plan...
, and on the beaches of New York and New England.
Life and work
He was born in Cincinnati, OhioOhio
Ohio is a Midwestern state in the United States. The 34th largest state by area in the U.S.,it is the 7th‑most populous with over 11.5 million residents, containing several major American cities and seven metropolitan areas with populations of 500,000 or more.The state's capital is Columbus...
. From June 10, 1879 to March 9, 1881 he studied with Thomas Satterwhite Noble
Thomas Satterwhite Noble
Thomas Satterwhite Noble was born in Lexington, Kentucky. He grew up on a plantation where hemp and cotton were grown. Noble saw the effects of slavery firsthand and portrayed many scenes of the Old South in his works. He attended Transylvania University in Lexington and studied art with Oliver...
. He later studied at the Royal Academy in Munich
Munich
Munich The city's motto is "" . Before 2006, it was "Weltstadt mit Herz" . Its native name, , is derived from the Old High German Munichen, meaning "by the monks' place". The city's name derives from the monks of the Benedictine order who founded the city; hence the monk depicted on the city's coat...
with the American
United States
The United States of America is a federal constitutional republic comprising fifty states and a federal district...
-born instructor Carl Marr. After returning to Cincinnati in 1885 he resumed his studies with Noble. In 1886 he departed for Paris
Paris
Paris is the capital and largest city in France, situated on the river Seine, in northern France, at the heart of the Île-de-France region...
, where he studied with Fernand Cormon
Fernand Cormon
Fernand Cormon was a French painter born in Paris. He became a pupil of Alexandre Cabanel, Eugène Fromentin, and Jean-François Portaels, and one of the leading historical painters of modern France....
. In 1895 he relocated to New York City
New York City
New York is the most populous city in the United States and the center of the New York Metropolitan Area, one of the most populous metropolitan areas in the world. New York exerts a significant impact upon global commerce, finance, media, art, fashion, research, technology, education, and...
and remained there until his death in 1927.
Until the age of thirty-nine Potthast earned a living as a lithographer. The purchase of one of his paintings by the Cincinnati Museum of Art may have encouraged him to abandon lithography for a career as a fine artist. His paintings retained the subdued colors and strong contrasts of the Munich school until he adopted the Impressionist palette late in his career.
After his arrival in New York Potthast worked as a magazine illustrator, and exhibited regularly at the National Academy of Design
National Academy of Design
The National Academy Museum and School of Fine Arts, founded in New York City as the National Academy of Design – known simply as the "National Academy" – is an honorary association of American artists founded in 1825 by Samuel F. B. Morse, Asher B. Durand, Thomas Cole, Martin E...
, the Society of American Artists
Society of American Artists
The Society of American Artists was an American artists group. It was formed in 1877 by artists who felt the National Academy of Design did not adequately meet their needs, and was too conservative....
and the Salmagundi Club
Salmagundi Club
The Salmagundi Club, also known as the Salmagundi Art Club, was founded in 1871 in Greenwich Village, Manhattan, New York City, New York, in the United States. It currently is located at 47 Fifth Avenue...
, winning numerous prizes. By 1908 he was installed in a studio in the Gainsborough Building. Thereafter he painted sun-saturated images of Central Park, New England landscapes, and the Long Island
Long Island
Long Island is an island located in the southeast part of the U.S. state of New York, just east of Manhattan. Stretching northeast into the Atlantic Ocean, Long Island contains four counties, two of which are boroughs of New York City , and two of which are mainly suburban...
beach scenes for which he is best remembered. His work is included in many major museums in the United States.
Further reading
- Stula, Nancy with Nancy Noble. American Artists Abroad and their Inspiration, New London: Lyman Allyn Art Museum, 2004, 64 pages http://www.lymanallyn.org
External links
- Edward Henry Potthast Biography: Hollis Taggart Galleries
- www.EdwardHenryPotthast.org 118 works by Edward Henry Potthast