Henry Farny: Working for Harper's

An Engraving by Henry Farny for Harper's
"The Last Scene of the Last Act of the Sioux War"

"Henry Farny left Woodward High School in 1863, sometime prior to the death that year of his father. But the mid-1860s, he was earning money with his artistic talents. He still had not received any formal training, although he was working as a commercial lithographer for Gibson & Company in Cincinnati. He had made drawings that had been used as illustrations in local newspapers, and soon was sending illustrations of Cincinnati events to Harper Brothers in New York. He finally was invited to work as an engraver and cartoonist for Harper Brothers in New York, where he moved in 1866.

The common technique used by large publishing firms in the 1860s was to provide drawings or photos to wood engravers. At Harper's, craftsmanship was valued, and the engravers were instructed to reflect the original medium and quality of line in reproducing the drawings.

Later in his career, Farny's illustrations for Harper's Weekly, Century Magazine, and other publications were conceived in his Cincinnati studio and then sent to the publishers as drawings or finished paintings in gouache on paper. From the late 1870s onward, the printing technology used by publishing firms had evolved from wood engraving to process engraving, which used photographic and mechanical methods to more efficiently transform an original work of art into a reproducible illustration. The original drawing was photographed, and the image was reproduced on a metal plate that was then rolled with ink and etched in acid. 

The gouaches Farny painted for publication were of a size similar to the oil and gouche paintings he created for exhibition or sale to his patrons, and they can stand on their own as finished works of art. At Harper's in 1866, Farny worked for Mr. Charles Parsons, manager of the art department, who was known for encouraging young artists. In New York, Farny had contact with other artists and would have had the opportunity to see exhibits of work by established artists. Regardless of this opportunity, when Farny was twenty he left the United States for Europe, where he studied traditional painting methods at established academies."

To be continued

(Excerpts from "The Artist's Materials and Techniques," an essay by Cecile D. Mear in "Henry Farny Paints the Far West.") 

 

Henry Farny: Varied European Studies

"The Ford" by Henry Farny

"In September of 1867, Henry Farney left New York for Italy where he hoped to study painting under the protection of Thomas Buchanan Read and the sculptor, Randolf Rogers. Arriving on November 9 in Rome he went to live with Read. He seemed pleased with his first months there, working as both secretary and studio assistant to the older artist. During this time, he drew at night and also worked on paintings of his own. In Rome, he met a number of French students as well as Americans.

But soon Farny was chafing under Read's tutelage. He was assisting Read with his compositions by drawing details in preparatory sketches, but was not yet allowed to help with Read's paintings. Their relationship seems to have deteriorated, and the older artist had placed him with Hermann Herzog, a landscapist working in Germany. Farny complained to his mother:

'I wish to become a painter of figures and specially to study portraits (as a very profitable thing) and here this caprice takes Mr. Read to put me with a landscapist. It is as if one put a young man who wished to become a priest with a lawyer. None the less, I work hard, for to know how to paint a landscape is at least something.'

His lack of interest in landscape painting was ironic, since perhaps Farny's greatest achievement as an artist, was his depiction of the American West. Also, his comments show that his interest in art was a professional one. He wished to earn a living and the particular branch of painting that seemed to be most lucrative was the one he wished to pursue. 

While in Düsseldorf, Farny received an encouraging visit from Albert Bierstadt, a renowned American painter of western landscapes. Bierstadt advised Farny to continue his studies for another year, while praising his rapid progress and predicting great success for him. Bierstadt suggested that after Farny completed his studies they should visit the Rocky Mountains. 

By November of 1868 he moved to Strasbourg where he intended to stay several months to study under a Mr. Schuler. Farny's aunt died that same month, leaving 1,200 francs to his family. Apparently, he was able to use this bequest to finance another two years of European study and travel. We don't know the cities he lived in or who he studied with during this time, but one drawing is inscribed Düsseldorf and dated January 12, 1870, so it's possible he may have spent those two years there." 

To be continued

(Excerpts from "Henry Farny" by Denny Carter.)

 

Henry Farny: Pioneer Family

"Days of Long Ago" by Henry Farny

"François Henri Farny was born in Ribeauville, France, on July 15, 1847. The third child of Charles and Jeannette Farny. His father was a carpenter and builder who, as a Protestant, was oppressed by the political and religious atmosphere in France after the revolution in 1848. Accordingly, on September 4, 1853, when Henry was six, Charles Farny left France for America with his wife, his sister-in-law, and his children. After a crossing of about forty-one days, the Farny family arrived in New York.

In January 1854, the Farnys settled in western Pennsylvania, where they bought one hundred sixty-five acres of woodland. Charles Farny established a sawmill on this property with his brother-in-law who owned an adjoining parcel of land. They remained in this area for five years, living in a log cabin. A 1930 'Cincinnati Enquirer article recounts his early years there and his love of art as a child: 'His mother would tell how she could keep him amused for hours by keeping him supplied with paper and a pencil. And in the backwoods when paper was scarce, there was a smooth pine board wall in the kitchen of the log house that he would cover with drawings, which he then would beg someone to scrub off so he could start over again.'

The children were given the rudiments of an education by their parents and a teacher who came to live with them for three months each year. It was here that Henry had his first contact with Indians. Farny described sketching a picture of a Seneca Indian who came to his house in the woods. Then, but five years old and alone in the house, he opened the door to see a huge Indian garbed in festive array. With the words, 'The tribe wishes you all a happy Christmas' the Indian disappeared. The impression became so fixed in his mind that he was able to make a little colored crayon drawing of him that same day. 

When Henry was 11 his father realized it was a mistake to continue a pioneer's life, sold most of his timber lands, built a large raft with living quarters at one end and a shed at the other for the horses and cows, and came down the Allegheny and Ohio Rivers to Cincinnati. The trip took six weeks.

After his arrival in Cincinnati, Henry attended Woodward High School. In April of 1861, his older brother, Eugene, died and his father followed several years later in 1863. During the last year of his father's illness, Henry had been forced to leave school to help support his family. He is supposed to have worked as a bookkeeper, a decorator of watercoolers, and a lithographer of Civil War battle scenes for Gibson & Co."

To be continued

(Excerpts from "Henry Farny" by Denny Carter, "The Artist's Materials and Techniques," an essay by Cecile D. Mear in "Henry Farny Paints the Far West, and "Cincinnati Studios Lafcadio Hearn Knew" by Robert Allen in the "Cincinnati Enquirer.")  

Frederick Carl Frieseke: The Final Word

"The Blue Gown" by Frederick Carl Frieseke

"Sadie and Frederick Carl Frieseke purchased tickets for a visit to the United States to see Frances, Kenton, and Hugh, their new baby. But it was not to be. On the afternoon of August 24, 1939, shortly after the German invasion of Poland, when it was clear to the world that the awful die was cast, Frederick Frieseke died suddenly at his home in Normandy. The cause was an aneurysm. 

Sadie cabled Frances, 'Darling, our Papa could not stand the overpowering emotions of the last few days - with no suffering he left us last night... be brave and help me to bear my sorrow, love.'

The last paintings from Frieseke's hand are vivid small landscapes done in the spring of 1939, when the orchards were all in flower. In the early summer, two months before Frieseke's death, Macbeth had organized a large retrospective exhibition of Frieseke's work for the New York's Grand Central Art Galleries. Frederick's old friend Karl Anderson wrote to him on July 30, 1939, concerning both the exhibition and the times:

'I want to set you straight on the exhibition at the Grand Central. My own impression and, better, the comment of many artists, to me, was fulsome praise if ever I heard it. I assure you it was a premier show of the year, at least for the painters. It means something, but not much at this time, that you did not sell. Show after show came and went, this year, and no sales were made. 

We can explain this only in this way: that the fear of war and the distressing economic state in this country has so distressed people that they have lost all interest in things of the spirit or of any of the forms of beauty. It occurs to me that this might explain the tolerance of sensitive humans to dull ugliness in line and color. It has been easier to accept the propaganda which fostered it than to think much about it. 

My impression was that your exhibition awakened many to the forgotten promise that has been broken. For a short time many had regret that the art you gave was not now in the mode of the misled amateur. More than one artist told me of their faith that your talent was not in eclipse, but that the thought of it was but out of people's mind, for a short time. You are then in the enviable class of the unappreciated and misunderstood, and you should be very happy about that.'

We still have the paintings, which are alive and continue to offer an invitation to the viewer to enter into conversation with them. But let the last words be those of the painter himself, a simple statement, stubborn and hopeful, the last one we have from him to Macbeth, written in September 1937, after Frances had moved away. If anything he ever wrote explains him, these words do. 'We have decided to stick on here for the present. Am working again.'"

To be continued

(Excerpts from "Frederick Carl Frieseke: A Biography by Nicholas Kilmer" in Frederick Carl Frieseke: The Evolution of an American Impressionist"published on the occasion of an exhibition of Frieseke's work.) 

 

Frederick Carl Frieseke: A Question of Place

"Memories" by Frederick Carl Frieseke

"Frances Frieseke, Frederick and Sadie Frieseke's daughter, and Kenton were married in Le Mesnil sur Blangy on June 2, 1937. As was the custom, the whole village joined in the festivities. Afterward the couple went to the United States to live. With the announcement of Frances' pregnancy at the end of the year, the issue of the Friesekes' possible return took on additional impetus. But should they move Frieseke's career must also change its orientation, since painting is a response to both place and time. 

A letter from Sadie to Kenton and Frances gives some idea of the continuing discussion and of its context:

 'Saint Gaudens [Homer Saint-Gaudens], his wife, and Lerolle came to lunch on Wednesday. Papa was a perfect host and the déjeuner went off beautifully... They were all unanimous in telling him to stay where he is. Saint Gaudens says that unless he lives in New York he might as well be here & that even when the American artists have a good year they are worried to death as to where the next year's rent is coming from. You can see how impossible it would be for Papa to live in such an atmosphere... 

They think Papa's later pictures the finest he has done & Saint Gaudens said - what you want to do is stop worrying about where to go & just keep on painting. Erwin Barrie, director of the Grand Central Art Galleries & Macbeth wish to have a retrospective exhibition of Papa's pictures at the New York Grand Central Art Galleries, sometime in the fall - with some of his later things. Barrie has sent five of Papa's pictures to the Venice exhibition & the Italian gallery has given him an entire wall, so Papa seems encouraged by the reborn interest in his work.

As Papa says, if he could he would burn at least 3/5 of the pictures he has painted & it may be the very ones he would burn that they will choose. If I could only persuade Papa to go over himself to hang the show [Sadie was ill at this time] - but of course he won't hear of such a thing.'

The Friesekes purchased tickets for a visit to the United States to see Frances, Kenton, and Hugh, their new baby. But it was not to be." 

To be continued

(Excerpts from "Frederick Carl Frieseke: A Biography by Nicholas Kilmer" in Frederick Carl Frieseke: The Evolution of an American Impressionist"published on the occasion of an exhibition of Frieseke's work.) 

 

Frederick Carl Frieseke: For the Love of Art

"Blue Girl Reading" by Frederick Carl Frieseke

"Concerning the Macbeth exhibition of Frieseke's winter subjects, Robert Macbeth wrote with brutal brevity, 'We liked them and the public didn't.' Frederick Carl Frieseke returned to exhibiting at the Société Nationale des Beaux-Arts in 1932, but from then on, working chiefly for himself - and an audience that was not likely to include purchasers - he concentrated almost exclusively on the portrait.

The drastic reduction in the family's finances led them to give up the Paris apartment and to settle down in Normandy. In 1934 Fred reached the age of sixty and was experiencing periods of depression and physical disability, such as neuritis in the shoulders, which made painting difficult.

Nevertheless, the years 1934 to 1935 saw the last great flowering of the painter's energy in a series of portraits including 'The Library,' and culminating in his late masterpiece, 'Blue Girl Reading,' both portraits of Frances. His last extensive show of recent work in October 1935, included some sixteen paintings spanning the period from 1932 onward. That his work continued to be well received, in critical terms, is amply demonstrated by the award of the Corcoran's second William Clark Prize and a silver medal for the 1934 portrait "At the Piano.'

In 1935 it was becoming increasingly evident to all who took note of the political winds in Europe that another major war was inevitable. The effects of the Depression were still a factor also. At the same time, Frances had become engaged to Kenton Kilmer, a young American poet and editor with whom she had begun a correspondence in the winter of 1933-34. Considering their daughter's impending marriage and other factors, the Friesekes contemplated the possibility of moving to the United States. Frieseke wrote Macbeth:  

'I have not been painting for some time. I promise the impetus will come again some day, when I can convince myself that it is worthwhile from some point of view. I have a very few canvases, but it really doesn't seem worthwhile adding to your encumberment. At times we consider returning to America to live but it seems a bit venturesome after all these years, especially as we can live here perfectly comfortably on our greatly reduced income. I must confess, however, that I am getting dissatisfied at not working.'"

To be continued

(Excerpts from "Frederick Carl Frieseke: A Biography by Nicholas Kilmer" in Frederick Carl Frieseke: The Evolution of an American Impressionist"published on the occasion of an exhibition of Frieseke's work.) 

 

Frederick Carl Frieseke: Ill Health

"White Lilies" by Frederick Carl Frieseke

"The Frieseke family returned to the United States during the final weeks of 1928. It had been eighteen years since they had last seen New York. They were shocked and overwhelmed by the rush and vulgarity, and by the hypocrisy manifested in urban America under Prohibition. They also stopped in Pittsburgh and then visited the Karl Andersons in Connecticut. Anderson had been storing old paintings of Frieseke's that Macbeth had no present use for, and Fred took the opportunity to destroy a great many of them, which he felt to be 'no longer a credit to his reputation.'

On their return to France, their daughter, Frances, whose health had never been robust, was diagnosed as having a 'pretubercular' condition. It was decided that she must be exposed to a regimen, which included better air, in Switzerland. This downturn in her health recalled the recent death of her friend Elsbeth, who was Richard Miller's daughter. That had hit the Friesekes very hard. Sadie reminded Frances:

 'You know I was with Elsbeth's mama when Elsbeth was born and I always felt that if anything happened to her parents that she would of course live with us. She seemed so much a part of our family... I think of that other poor mother and father who haven't any little girl any more and I just feel as though I couldn't bear it. I wrote to Aunt Billee & Uncle Richard & I wish you to do also - just the kind of letter you would like Elsbeth to have written to me, if God had taken you away from us... You will all understand how such a terrible tragedy makes my heart stand still. Poor Papa is a wreck & and of one thing you can be sure. There will be no boarding school away off among strangers for you...'

So Sadie accompanied Frances to Switzerland, where they spent the next two years while she followed her cure prescribed by a sanatorium. Fred joined them within four months. Within the next few years Frances improved enough that the family returned to Normandy."

To be continued

(Excerpts from "Frederick Carl Frieseke: A Biography by Nicholas Kilmer" in Frederick Carl Frieseke: The Evolution of an American Impressionist"published on the occasion of an exhibition of Frieseke's work.)