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.
Bernhard Gutmann
Illustration, Painting/Drawing
1869 – 1936
- Biography/Description of Work
Bernhard Gutmann was born in 1869 in Germany. He studied art at Dusseldorf and Karlsruhe Academies before moving to the United States at the age of 23. He settled in Virginia and first became an electrician before becoming the supervisor of the Lynchburg Public Schools art programs. While living in Lynchburg, Gutmann became a strong influence in the art community and founded the Lynchburg Art Club. In 1899, he moved to New York City and worked as a magazine illustrator. He then went on to form a fine art publishing company. In 1907 he married Bertha Goldman, granddaughter of the founder of the investment banking firm Goldman Sachs. They moved to Europe and lived there for the next five years while Gutmann embraced Impressionism. In 1912, Gutmann and his wife returned to the United States and he exhibited his art at the New York Armory Show of 1913. Later that year, they moved to New Canaan, Connecticut. Gutmann helped to form the Silvermine Guild, and in 1934 he became the regional director for the Works Progress Administration in the area. Throughout his life, he exhibited his artwork but sold very little; it remained in the family. He was “rediscovered” in 1988. Many of his garden paintings were done on this property.
- Sources view
- http://www.williamsamericanart.com/Artist_Biographies/Bernhard_Gutmann___(American,_1869_-_1936)/, http://www.abbeville.com/bookpage.asp?isbn=1558596119
- Associated Resource(s)