Morton Livingston Schamberg
Encyclopedia
Morton Livingston Schamberg (October 15, 1881 - October 13, 1918) was an American painter and photographer. He was one of the first American artists to explore the aesthetic qualities of industrial subjects. Schamberg is considered a pioneer of the Precisionism
art movement, and one of the first American adopters of Cubist style.
Schamberg graduated from Philadelphia's Central High School
. He earned a degree in architecture from the University of Pennsylvania
in 1903. In 1902, however, he had discovered an interest in art when he attended a class taught by William Merritt Chase
in Holland. He took another class with Chase during the summer of 1903, in England, and then studied under him for three years at the Pennsylvania Academy of the Fine Arts
. It was through Chase's classes that he met fellow student Charles Sheeler
, who would be his close friend for the rest of his life.
Schamberg met up with Sheeler in Italy in 1908 and together they studied works of the Renaissance masters. Schamberg moved on to Paris later that year, where he became an associate of Leo
and Gertrude Stein
's circle of avant-garde artists and writers. Schamberg's earliest works were heavily influenced by Chase. After studying the works of European artists in Paris, however, his style shifted to modernism, with influences from Cézanne
, Matisse
, and Picasso
evident in his works created between 1909 and 1912. He returned to Philadelphia in mid-1909, and he and Sheeler rented studios in the same downtown building as well as a farmhouse in rural Bucks County
for use on weekends and during the summer.
in New York, showing five of his modernist paintings.
By 1915, Schamberg began painting mechanical forms, possibly through the influence of Dada
artists such as Marcel Duchamp
. These late paintings ranged from precise illustrations to variants on Cubist, Fauvist and Futurist styles. The only work credited to Schamberg that reflects a strong Dadaist sensibility is the assemblage
God
, but this attribution has been questioned by art historians who believe he only photographed it.
Schamberg was a pacifist, and his distress over World War I ultimately caused him to drop the subject of machines to work in watercolors, only one of which has survived: a still life of a bowl of flowers. An associate of art collector Walter Conrad Arensberg, Schamberg exhibited a painting and a drawing in the first show of Arensberg's Society of Independent Artists
, in 1917.
Schamberg died October 13, 1918 in the 1918 flu pandemic and was buried on October 15, which would have been his thirty-seventh birthday. He had been living in a Philadelphia hotel with his father, who also died in the pandemic.
Precisionism
Precisionism, also known as Cubist Realism, was an artistic movement that emerged in the United States after World War I and was at its height during the inter-War period...
art movement, and one of the first American adopters of Cubist style.
Early life and education
Schamberg was born in Philadelphia on October 15, 1881. He was the youngest child in a German Jewish family. His father was a cattle dealer; his mother died when he was a child.Schamberg graduated from Philadelphia's Central High School
Central High School (Philadelphia)
Central High School is a public secondary school in the Logan section of Philadelphia, Pennsylvania. Central, the second-oldest continuously public high school in the United States , was founded in 1836 and is a four-year university preparatory magnet school...
. He earned a degree in architecture from the University of Pennsylvania
University of Pennsylvania
The University of Pennsylvania is a private, Ivy League university located in Philadelphia, Pennsylvania, United States. Penn is the fourth-oldest institution of higher education in the United States,Penn is the fourth-oldest using the founding dates claimed by each institution...
in 1903. In 1902, however, he had discovered an interest in art when he attended a class taught by William Merritt Chase
William Merritt Chase
William Merritt Chase was an American painter known as an exponent of Impressionism and as a teacher. He is also responsible for establishing the Chase School, which later would become Parsons The New School for Design.- Early life and training :He was born in Williamsburg , Indiana, to the family...
in Holland. He took another class with Chase during the summer of 1903, in England, and then studied under him for three years at the Pennsylvania Academy of the Fine Arts
Pennsylvania Academy of the Fine Arts
The Pennsylvania Academy of the Fine Arts is a museum and art school in Philadelphia, Pennsylvania. It was founded in 1805 and is the oldest art museum and school in the United States. The academy's museum is internationally known for its collections of 19th and 20th century American paintings,...
. It was through Chase's classes that he met fellow student Charles Sheeler
Charles Sheeler
Charles Rettew Sheeler, Jr. was an American artist. He is recognized as one of the founders of American modernism and one of the master photographers of the 20th century.-Early life and career:...
, who would be his close friend for the rest of his life.
Schamberg met up with Sheeler in Italy in 1908 and together they studied works of the Renaissance masters. Schamberg moved on to Paris later that year, where he became an associate of Leo
Leo Stein
Leo Stein was an American art collector and critic. He was born in Allegheny, Pennsylvania, the older brother of Gertrude Stein. He became an influential promoter of 20th-century paintings. Beginning in 1892, he studied at Harvard University in Cambridge, Massachusetts, for two years. The...
and Gertrude Stein
Gertrude Stein
Gertrude Stein was an American writer, poet and art collector who spent most of her life in France.-Early life:...
's circle of avant-garde artists and writers. Schamberg's earliest works were heavily influenced by Chase. After studying the works of European artists in Paris, however, his style shifted to modernism, with influences from Cézanne
Paul Cézanne
Paul Cézanne was a French artist and Post-Impressionist painter whose work laid the foundations of the transition from the 19th century conception of artistic endeavour to a new and radically different world of art in the 20th century. Cézanne can be said to form the bridge between late 19th...
, Matisse
Henri Matisse
Henri Matisse was a French artist, known for his use of colour and his fluid and original draughtsmanship. He was a draughtsman, printmaker, and sculptor, but is known primarily as a painter...
, and Picasso
Pablo Picasso
Pablo Diego José Francisco de Paula Juan Nepomuceno María de los Remedios Cipriano de la Santísima Trinidad Ruiz y Picasso known as Pablo Ruiz Picasso was a Spanish expatriate painter, sculptor, printmaker, ceramicist, and stage designer, one of the greatest and most influential artists of the...
evident in his works created between 1909 and 1912. He returned to Philadelphia in mid-1909, and he and Sheeler rented studios in the same downtown building as well as a farmhouse in rural Bucks County
Bucks County, Pennsylvania
- Industry and commerce :The boroughs of Bristol and Morrisville were prominent industrial centers along the Northeast Corridor during World War II. Suburban development accelerated in Lower Bucks in the 1950s with the opening of Levittown, Pennsylvania, the second such "Levittown" designed by...
for use on weekends and during the summer.
Career
Schamberg had his first solo art show in mid-1910, at the McClees Galleries in Philadelphia. The show included his early landscapes and some of his larger scale portraits; these were mostly of his friend Fanette Reider and were painted between 1908 and 1912. Around 1912, he began working as a photographer to earn money, initially as a portraitist before focusing on urban architecture. Schamberg participated in the landmark 1913 Armory ShowArmory Show
Many exhibitions have been held in the vast spaces of U.S. National Guard armories, but the Armory Show refers to the 1913 International Exhibition of Modern Art that was organized by the Association of American Painters and Sculptors...
in New York, showing five of his modernist paintings.
By 1915, Schamberg began painting mechanical forms, possibly through the influence of Dada
Dada
Dada or Dadaism is a cultural movement that began in Zurich, Switzerland, during World War I and peaked from 1916 to 1922. The movement primarily involved visual arts, literature—poetry, art manifestoes, art theory—theatre, and graphic design, and concentrated its anti-war politics through a...
artists such as Marcel Duchamp
Marcel Duchamp
Marcel Duchamp was a French artist whose work is most often associated with the Dadaist and Surrealist movements. Considered by some to be one of the most important artists of the 20th century, Duchamp's output influenced the development of post-World War I Western art...
. These late paintings ranged from precise illustrations to variants on Cubist, Fauvist and Futurist styles. The only work credited to Schamberg that reflects a strong Dadaist sensibility is the assemblage
Assemblage (art)
Assemblage is an artistic process. In the visual arts, it consists of making three-dimensional or two-dimensional artistic compositions by putting together found objects...
God
God (sculpture)
God is a 1917 sculpture by Baroness Elsa von Freytag-Loringhoven. It is an example of readymade art, a term coined by Marcel Duchamp in 1915 to describe his found art. God was originally attributed to a machine-painting follower of Francis Picabia named Morton Livingston Schamberg. This...
, but this attribution has been questioned by art historians who believe he only photographed it.
Schamberg was a pacifist, and his distress over World War I ultimately caused him to drop the subject of machines to work in watercolors, only one of which has survived: a still life of a bowl of flowers. An associate of art collector Walter Conrad Arensberg, Schamberg exhibited a painting and a drawing in the first show of Arensberg's Society of Independent Artists
Society of Independent Artists
Society of Independent Artists was an association of American artists founded in 1916 and based in New York.Based on the French Société des Artistes Indépendants, the goal of the society was to hold annual exhibitions by avant-garde artists. Exhibitions were to be open to anyone who wanted to...
, in 1917.
Schamberg died October 13, 1918 in the 1918 flu pandemic and was buried on October 15, which would have been his thirty-seventh birthday. He had been living in a Philadelphia hotel with his father, who also died in the pandemic.
Exhibitions
- Paintings by Morton L. Schamberg (1881-1918), Pennsylvania Academy of the Fine ArtsPennsylvania Academy of the Fine ArtsThe Pennsylvania Academy of the Fine Arts is a museum and art school in Philadelphia, Pennsylvania. It was founded in 1805 and is the oldest art museum and school in the United States. The academy's museum is internationally known for its collections of 19th and 20th century American paintings,...
, Philadelphia, November 21 - December 24, 1963 - Morton L. Schamberg (1881-1918), Zabriskie GalleryZabriskie Gallery-Early years:Virginia Zabriskie took over the art gallery with a one-dollar down payment. It had been the Korman Gallery, a cooperative that included the painters Pat Adams and Clinton Hill .-Zabriskie Gallery, France:...
, New York City, January 6-25, 1964 - Morton Livingston Schamberg (1881-1918), Salander-O'Reilly Galleries, New York City, November 3 - December 31, 1982. Toured January 22, 1983 - March 27, 1984, to Columbus Museum of ArtColumbus Museum of ArtThe Columbus Museum of Art is an art museum located in downtown Columbus, Ohio. Formed in 1878 as the Columbus Gallery of Fine Arts, it was the first art museum to register its charter with the state of Ohio.-Building:...
, Columbus, Ohio; Pennsylvania Academy of the Fine Arts, Philadelphia; Milwaukee Art MuseumMilwaukee Art MuseumThe Milwaukee Art Museum is located on Lake Michigan in Milwaukee, Wisconsin.Beginning around 1872, multiple organizations were founded in order to bring an art gallery to Milwaukee, as the city was still a growing port town with little or no facilities to hold major art exhibitions...
, Milwaukee, Wisconsin.