With its proximity to the cultural hub of New York City and its quieter suburban and rural landscapes, Connecticut was fertile ground for artists and writers in the period of Modernist movements between 1913 and 1979. Many of these cultural figures are well known through biographical and critical studies. Creative Places seeks to show how place played a significant role in creative work, and how in turn the artists and writers influenced communities in Connecticut.
Elisabeth Gordon Chandler
Education/Curation, Sculpture
1913 – 2006
Elisabeth Gordon Chandler is properly described as Renaissance woman who firmly but gently led by the example of her own principled life, and who shared with others her boundless generosity and dedication. She combined her career as an artist with the role of teacher and founder of the Lyme Academy where new generations of artists got their foundation training.
- Biography/Description of Work
A resident of Old Lyme from 1962 until her death, Chandler had studied privately in New York with Edmondo Quattrocchi, a sculptor of busts and monumental statues, and at the Art Students League in NYC. Her own work focused on portraiture in busts and medallions. She was a recipient of the Connecticut Governor’s Art Award and an Honorary Doctorate from St. Joseph’s College, West Hartford. In 1976 she founded the Lyme Academy of Fine Art in Old Lyme, an institution which has become a nationally recognized college of fine arts.
- Sources view
- http://www.lymeacademy.edu/index.php/about/about_the_founder/
UConn artist database - Associated Resource(s)