reaki ng TrWaITH dition BOhio Women Painters , 1 870 –1950 FIGURE 1: Christine Fowler Shearer, M.A. Clara Deike (1881–1964) Brigitte M. Foley, M.A. Self-Portrait with Orange Hat, c. 1925 William H. Robinson, Ph.D. Oil on canvas , 23 x 17.5 Judy L. Larson, Ph.D. Private Collection Courtesy of Vixseboxse Art Galleries THE MASSILLON MUSEUM Massillon, Ohio May 21, 2005—August 7, 2005 THE RIFFE GALLERY Columbus, Ohio November 3, 2005—January 8, 2006 THE SOUTHERN OHIO MUSEUM AND CULTURAL CENTER Portsmouth, Ohio February 12, 2006—May 21, 2006 © Copyright 2005 Massillon Museum 121 Lincoln Way East Massillon, OH 44646 Christine Fowler Shearer, Director Library of Congress Catalog Number: 2005926800 ISBN: 0-9755555-1-0 Exhibition Curated by: Christine Fowler Shearer, M.A. Project Coordinated by: Ann Caywood Brown Edited by: Hugh J. Brown Typography and Design by: Margy Vogt Printing by: Bates Printing Inc., Massillon, Ohio Staff Support: Alexandra Nicholis, M.A. Amanda Altimus Photo Credits: Brian Pierce Christine Fowler Shearer Canton Museum of Art Keny Galleries Butler Institute of American Art Spanierman Gallery, LLC FIGURE 2: May Ames (1869–1943) In the Ruins, 1926 Oil on canvas, 18 x 12 inches Collection of Robert Burns FIGURE 3: Emma Mendenhall (1873–1964) Flower Market, nd Watercolor, 18 x 14 inches Collection of Robert Burns 2 FIGURE 4: Clara Deike (1881–1964) Willows and Hollyhocks 1916 Watercolor and gouache on paper 18 x 21 inches Christine and Brian Pierce Collection Contents Exhibition Sponsors . 4 Lenders to the Exhibition . 6 Massillon Museum Board of Trustees . 6 Foreword Judy L. Larson, Ph.D .. 7 Breaking with Tradition: Ohio Women Painters, 1870–1950 Christine Fowler Shearer, MA . 13 Patterns and Similarities in Stylistic Development Brigitte M. Foley, MA . 21 Against All Odds: An Untold History of Women Artists in Ohio Wililam H. Robinson, Ph. D. 31 Artists and Paintings in the Exhibition . 51 Bibliography . 58 Authors . 60 Acknowledgments . 62 3 Donors This catalog and exhibition have been made possible by the generous support of the following foundations, organizations and individuals: Canton /Stark County Convention & Visitors Bureau The Ohio Humanities Council Jeanne Cooper Doris Browarsky William and Linda Cornell Russel Carpenter Robert and Carolyn David Beverly Denholm Nancy and Robert Dawson Barbara Gaul Maggie Denman Marie Gardner Bob and Nancy Gessner Cass and Lori Gowins Richard and Susan Gessner Kathleen Hickey Green William and Judy Kapper Robert Hopp Evaline Kirkpatrick David and Judy Lundquist Dave and Kim Leffler David and Jane Schultz Clare Murray Rod and Christine Shearer Mr. and Mrs. Richard Reichel Don and Shirley Sibila Ron and Jane Sibila Harold Smith Mr. and Mrs. Walter T. Sorg, Jr. John and Elaine Snively Dale Young John and Amelia Sparks Thomas and Nancy Straughn Robert and Susan Yund Junie and Dolores Studer Elizabeth Zelei Rudolph and Aileen Tekaucic 4 FIGURE 5: Harriet Kirkpatrick (1877–1962) Docked, 1910 Watercolor on paper, 15 x 10.5 inches Collection of artist’s granddaughter, Sally and Brian Kriska 5 Lenders to the Exhibition Robert Burns Daniel Bush Butler Institute of American Art The Canton Museum of Art Cincinnati Museum Center Cleveland Artists Foundation The Cleveland Play House Columbus Museum of Art James Corcoran Fine Arts Limited, Inc. 2005 Massillon Museum Pete and Pidge Diehl Dr. Eugene Folden Board of Trustees Robin and Harry Froeschke John and Susan Horseman Robert K. Yund, Chairman Keny Galleries David W. Schultz, Past Chairman Sally and Brian Kriska Fred Butler, Vice Chairman Mrs. Richard Margolis David Lundquist, Treasurer Mrs. William A. Monroe Judy Paquelet, Secretary Christine and Brian Pierce Karen Boyd Playhouse Square Center Margaret Cocklin Private Collections Beverly Denholm Rachel Davis Fine Arts William Doll Richmond Art Museum Jayne Ferrero The Schumacher Gallery, Capital University Nancy Gessner Spanierman Gallery, LLC, New York Shane Jackson Thomas French Fine Art William Kapper Helen Wessel Robert Shedlarz Western Reserve Historical Society, Cleveland FIGURE 6: Edith Stevenson Wright (1883–1975) Helen Watkins, 1950’s Oil on Canvas , 24 x 21 inches The Cleveland Play House Collection 6 Foreword Judy L. Larson Be prepared to make some stunning discoveries as you view Breaking with Tradition: Ohio Women Painters, 1870–1950, an exhibition featuring fifteen artists from three geographic areas in Ohio—Columbus, Cincinnati, and Cleveland. In reading this catalogue, you will likely find artists’ names you do not recognize or works that seem less than familiar. This should not deter you; there is both reward and joy in discovering women artists from all periods. Neglected in most art history textbooks before the 1980s, interest in women artists in the last two decades has been at the center of a resurgence of interest. Scholars comb through historic archives to add to our knowledge of women artists. Curators continue to search the corners of museum storage rooms seeking forgotten works by women artists. It is a challenging area for research, but as this exhibition reveals, there is much to be found. During 1870–1950, the time period covered in this exhibition, women were given few solo exhibitions; they rarely received mention in critical reviews of group exhibitions, and they received little encouragement by way of commissions or through the sale of their art. Nineteenth century attitudes about a woman’s proper role of domesticity, purity, and modesty lingered well into the twentieth century. It was difficult for women to receive training at art academies; women’s classes were often segregated from men’s. A woman was at a disadvantage in the business of art, often barred from the daily commercial worries of caring for a studio, hiring models, and selling art work. Her subject matter was limited: she could not travel as freely as she might like or visit public spaces unless accompanied by a friend or relation. Marriage and motherhood usually signaled the end of any artistic ambitions for a woman, making it especially admirable that women pursued artistic careers at all. FIGURE 7: Clara Deike (1881–1964) New England Landscape , 1931 Oil on canvas , 23 x 17.5 inches Collection of Daniel Bush 7 A scholarly trend during the 1990s in American art history delved more deeply into the works of regional artists and introduced audiences to the varied, rich inventory of new artists and to the local influences that affected artistic styles. Breaking With Tradition: Ohio Women Painters, 1870–1950 follows this scholarly direction, focusing on important women. Ohio has always been a welcoming place for women in the arts. The shaping of arts institutions and commercial artistic venues can be traced to the dreams of a few visionary Ohio women. Many philanthropically minded women deserve mention for their roles in establishing the arts institutions and artistic communities that helped women artists achieve success. As early as the 1850s, Sarah Worthington King Peter established the Ladies Academy of Fine Arts in Cincinnati, which not only offered classes to women but also a collection of European art for their study and appreciation. Entrepreneurial leadership from Maria Longworth Nichols, founder of the Rookwood Pottery Company, and Mary Louise McLaughlin of the Cincinnati Pottery Club created employment opportunities for women interested in design and craft. In the 1930s, the Taft Museum of Art, also of Cincinnati, opened in an historic house with the gift of a large collection of art from Anna Sinton Taft and her husband. Dayton’s Art Institute counts among its founders Julia Shaw Carnell, who became the most generous and influential patron of the arts in her community. In Toledo, the Toledo Museum of Art owes as much to Florence Scott Libbey as to Edward Drummond Libbey—both were committed to artistic education as a vehicle for improving the quality of life for the citizens of Ohio. Elisabeth Severance Prentiss founded the Allen Memorial Museum at Oberlin College in the 1940s. In 1977, Harriet Anderson and her husband established The Dairy Barn—a center for Ohio artisans. Women in Ohio continue to play a significant leadership role in the arts as trustees, directors and curators in art museums today. FIGURE 8: Elizabeth Nourse (1859–1938) Chapelle de St. Guénolé 1908 Oil on canvas 29 x 36 inches Spanierman Gallery, LLC, New York (MASSILLON ONLY ) 8 FIGURE 9: Alice Schille (1869–1936) Grape Arbor, c. 1907–08 Watercolor on paper, 18 x 24 inches Private Collection, Courtesy of Keny Galleries Columbus, Ohio (COLUMBUS ONLY ) Museum visitors are creatures of habit. We tend to gravitate to exhibitions where we are familiar with the names of artists. Because women artists are less known, it is often difficult to find those “celebrity” names on the checklist of an exhibition. In Breaking with Tradition: Ohio Women Painters 1870–1950, Elizabeth Nourse and Alice Schille are likely to be the stellar artists by name. Nourse became an expatriate from Cincinnati, finding her new home in Paris, lured by a more open attitude towards women and by a wide circle of artistic friends who influenced her style of painting and her choice of “modern life” as her subject. The opportunities to hone artistic skills in Paris were also important to Caroline A. Lord, Emma Mendenhall and Alice Schille. While Nourse, Lord, and Mendenhall studied either at the Academie Julian or privately with artists who were familiar with the accepted styles of the French Salon, Alice Schille sought out the avant-garde, looking to Post-Impressionists and Fauve painters for inspiration. The Modernism that Schille carried back to Ohio was as new and startling to American audiences as Impressionism had been to the French a generation earlier. This exhibition held revelations for me, which is always a delight. The sun-drenched plein air landscapes of May Ames were new to me; the joy of nature is revealed in her own variation on the styles and themes of Impressionism.