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36-520: Joseph Henry Sharp , who made paintings of Native Americans throughout his life, visited Taos on a trip through New Mexico in 1893. While there he became interested in the people of the Taos Pueblo and the landscape, an interest he shared with Ernest Blumenschein when they were studying art in Paris. Having heard of the degree to which Sharp was interested in painting the western United States , and

72-420: A "musical dreamer in color", and "America's sky painter". His landscapes are mostly realistic but also use abstract shapes. The musical quality of his works was recognized by contemporary musicians, and a painting by Groll inspired by an Edward MacDowell symphony was kept by the composer in his bedroom. Groll helped popularize the desert as an artistic subject for American art, introducing other artists from

108-530: A log cabin on government land. It was near the confluence of two rivers. Essentially the Crow Agency owned the cabin, which Sharp and his wife Addie built in 1905 with the help of local prison labor, arranged for and mostly supervised by Reynolds. Sharp called the cabin Absarokee Hut. He designed it as a one-room cabin, with a lean-to containing a bedroom and kitchen. The ridgepole of the cabin

144-822: A museum infrastructure in New Mexico: Edgar L. Hewett , the director of the Museum of New Mexico ; and Frank Springer, whose donations helped to build the Museum of New Mexico’s Fine Arts Museum in Santa Fe. During World War I , the Taos society artists served on United War Work Committees, designed posters, and exhibited canvases at Red Cross bazaars. Most notably they created "range-finder paintings", 50 by 100 foot landscapes of Belgium and France used as military teaching tools. Several of these paintings were exhibited in

180-484: A time while Phillips stayed behind. Blumenschein kept up correspondence with Phillips and discussed setting up an artist colony in Taos. Blumenschein also wrote other artists in New York and Paris of Taos about the "beauty and artistic promise of northern New Mexico ." On July 19, 1915 Joseph Henry Sharp , E. Irving Couse , Oscar E. Berninghaus , W. Herbert Dunton , Ernest Blumenschein , and Bert Phillips formed

216-491: A writing pad with him. Sharp's father died when he was twelve years old. Soon after, the boy began working in a nail factory to help support his family. By age 14, his hearing loss made continued schooling impossible. He quit school and moved to Cincinnati , where he lived with an aunt and worked to support himself and send money to his mother. He studied briefly at the McMicken School of Design , then enrolled at

252-880: Is listed on the National Register of Historic Places and the New Mexico Register of Cultural Properties. Albert Lorey Groll Albert Lorey Groll (1866–1952) was an American artist and etcher. He was born in New York City and studied at the Academy of Fine Arts in Munich, Germany, the Royal Academy in Antwerp, Belgium, and for some time in London. In 1910 he was elected into

288-903: The Art Academy of Cincinnati . In 1881, Sharp traveled to Europe, where he studied for a year at the Royal Academy of Fine Arts in Antwerp , Belgium . He returned to the United States and in 1883 made the first of his journeys to the American West , visiting the states of New Mexico , Arizona , California and Wyoming , where he began sketching members of the Pueblo , Umatilla , Klikitat , Shoshone and Ute Indian tribes. In 1885 he traveled to Europe with John Hauser , another Cincinnati artist, who studied with him at

324-593: The Indian pueblo of Taos in particular, Blumenschein came to Taos with fellow artist Bert Phillips in 1898. Planning only to visit Taos, they became so enamored by the Taos Valley and its people that they decided to stay. This was the beginning of the Taos art colony . Blumenschein described his first sights of Taos, "The month was September, and the fertile valley a beautiful sight, and inspiration for those who ply

360-733: The Royal Academy of Fine Arts in Munich . Sharp also studied at the Académie Julian in Paris , and in the 1890s with Frank Duveneck in Italy. In 1890, Sharp and 12 other Cincinnati artists formed the Cincinnati Art Club . Sharp returned to Cincinnati where he married Addie and taught at the Art Academy of Cincinnati . During this period, he painted portraits of local society members. In 1893, he made his second trip to

396-569: The Royal Academy of Fine Arts in Antwerp, Belgium. Groll went back to New York in 1895 and moved from figure painting to landscape painting in part due to the high cost of hiring models. He also became well known as an etcher. In 1904 Groll made the first of several trips to the American Southwest, travelling to Arizona with ethnographer Stewart Culin of the Brooklyn Museum , and later going to New Mexico with his friend

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432-713: The Salmagundi Club Shaw Prize in 1904, and a gold medal at the Pennsylvania Academy of Fine Arts in 1906. He also won a George Inness gold medal in 1912 for his painting of Lake Louise in the Canadian Rockies. This medal was awarded in the annual exhibit of National Academy of Design from 1901 to 1918 to the best landscape paintings. In 1910 he was elected into the National Academy of Design , in 1919 Groll

468-922: The Taos Pueblo . Member artists had to have worked in Taos for three consecutive years, shown an interest and aptitude for painting Native Americans and have shown in reputable galleries or New York salons (ongoing art exhibits). The primary reason for the requirements was to ensure that the artists were well-intentioned and capable of capturing the character and spirit of the people. Later members included Julius Rolshoven , E. Martin Hennings , Catharine C. Critcher (the only female member ), Kenneth Adams, Walter Ufer , and Victor Higgins . Some artists from Santa Fe , another developing arts center, were included as Associate members: Robert Henri , Albert L. Groll , Randall Davey , B.J.O. Nordfeldt , Gustave Baumann , Albert Groll , Birger Sandzén , and John Sloan . Honorary memberships were extended to men who helped create

504-579: The 1918 Taos Society of Artists' annual exhibition held at the Museum of New Mexico The Great Depression was the precipitating factor for the dissolution of the Taos Society of Artists. Taos was devastated by the Depression and the artist's patrons were not spending money on art during that time. Victor Higgins the most financially devastated by the Depression made two of his most important paintings during that time, Winter Funeral heralded by

540-558: The American West in the company of fellow Cincinnati artist John Hauser , who had studied in Europe with him. They visited Taos, New Mexico for the first time, Sharp on a commission from Harper's Weekly to illustrate Indian life at the Taos Pueblo . The Sangre de Cristo Mountains and the local Indian culture sparked his enthusiasm, which he shared with colleagues Ernest Blumenschein and Bert Phillips at Académie Julian

576-519: The Governors in Santa Fe soon after their formation. By 1917 they were sending travelling exhibits of their work across the United States. Initial critical reaction of the works was that they were unrealistic and overdone: vivid colors, too emotionally evocative and strong vibrational quality. The artists questioned the critics veracity, since they had never been to the southwestern desert , nor

612-541: The National Academy of Design. He is best known for his landscape paintings of the American Southwest. Groll was born in New York in 1866, the son of a pharmacist immigrant from Darmstadt , Germany. During his early years he travelled to Europe to study at the Academy of Fine Arts in Munich, then called Royal Academy of Fine Arts, under Nicholas Gysis and Ludwig von Löfftz . He also studied in London and in

648-520: The New York press, and Sleeping Nude similarly praised by the Chicago Herald Examiner writer Inez Cunningham Stark. Cunningham likened Higgins to a phoenix rising out of the ashes, "what heights of intellectual and emotional fire. He is one of those fortunate few who continued their career into maturity." The "Taos Six" applied academic techniques to Native themes to produce a uniquely American school of painting. Each artist's style

684-510: The Taos Society of Artists. The six founding members were known as the "Taos Six". E. Irving Couse was the Society's first president. Their work defined the first several decades of the Taos art colony , and was distinguished by depictions of Native Americans in traditional clothing, area Hispanics and Anglo-Americans and landscapes. The group's first exhibition was held at the Palace of

720-547: The artist E. Irving Couse . In 1912 he and his wife moved to the area full-time. He built a house with studio near the chapel. Both artists' homes and studios are part of the Eanger Irving Couse House and Studio—Joseph Henry Sharp Studios , which is listed on the National Register of Historic Places . Sharp was born in Bridgeport, Ohio on September 27, 1859, to Irish immigrant parents. His father

756-648: The artist and illustrator William Robinson Leigh . He mostly focused on oil paintings of the Native American lands, which were mostly realistic, however, encompassed some abstract shapes as well. The Laguna Pueblo people were impressed by Groll's paintings and gave him the name "Chief Bald Head Eagle Eye". Groll kept a studio in the Gainsborough Studios in Manhattan, and won several awards for his work in both Arizona and New York, such as

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792-553: The brush for happiness. The primitive people of this out-of-the-way region were harvesting their crops by sunlight and by moonlight. Brown people they were, both Mexicans and Indians , happy people with happy children, in a garden spot protected by mountains." Native Americans had lived for centuries in the pueblo just outside the village of Taos. There a peace-loving, democratic society has maintained, and continues to maintain, its history, culture, dress and way of life over centuries. Ernest Blumenschein returned to New York City for

828-644: The first time. In 1915, along with Couse, Sharp became one of the six founding members of the Taos Society of Artists , of which he was the most senior and experienced. They worked as a sales cooperative to develop Taos internationally as a recognized artistic community. They continued the Society until 1927. Starting in 1930, Sharp vacationed for a number of winters in Hawaii together with his second wife, Louise. While in Hawaii, Sharp painted only for pleasure. At

864-697: The next year. Sharp continued to teach in Cincinnati until 1902. During this period he also spent time in Montana , where he camped at the battlefield of Little Big Horn . There he painted scenes of native life and portraits of members of the Plains tribes , including the Crow , Sioux , and Nez Perce . In 1900, these portraits were exhibited in Washington, D.C. The Smithsonian Institution bought eleven of

900-578: The portraits of 200 Native American warriors who survived the Battle of the Little Bighorn . While working on this project, Sharp lived on land of the Crow Agency , Montana , where he built Absarokee Hut in 1905. Boosted by his sale of 80 paintings to Phoebe Hearst, Sharp quit teaching and began to paint full-time. In 1909, he bought a former chapel in Taos to use as a studio, near the house of

936-613: The portraits. Sharp came to the attention of President Theodore Roosevelt , who took an interest in him and commissioned him to paint portraits of 200 Native American warriors who had survived the Battle of the Little Big Horn. To be able to stay in the area, Sharp apparently made a private arrangement with Samuel Reynolds, the US Indian Commission agent of the Crow Agency, Montana , and gained permission to build

972-513: The request of a local gallery owner, Sharp agreed to show some of his work. The Sharps wintered in Hawaii for the next eight years, except for 1931 and 1933, when they wintered in Mexico and the Orient respectively. The Gilcrease Museum ( Tulsa, Oklahoma ) featured a retrospective of Sharp's work in 1949. The Museum currently curates the largest collection of Sharp's work worldwide. Sharp closed

1008-474: The studio in Taos when he was 93 years old to travel to California. While he intended to return to Taos the next year, he fell ill and died in Pasadena, California on August 29, 1953. Over his lifetime, Sharp had produced around 10,500 works of art, including oil paintings, etchings, monotypes, pastels, and watercolors. Of these works, fully 7,800 are of Native American subjects, including 3,200 portraits. He

1044-531: The walls of many museums. Joseph Henry Sharp Joseph Henry Sharp (September 27, 1859 – August 29, 1953) was an American painter and a founding member of the Taos Society of Artists , of which he is considered the "Spiritual Father". Sharp was one of the earliest European-American artists to visit Taos, New Mexico , which he saw in 1893 with artist John Hauser . He painted American Indian portraits and cultural life, as well as Western landscapes. President Theodore Roosevelt commissioned him to paint

1080-425: Was a merchant by trade. From childhood, Sharp was fascinated with anything to do with American Indians . As a boy, Sharp nearly drowned in a swimming accident. He was pulled from the water and carried to his home by friends who thought he was dead. His mother resuscitated him, but the incident permanently damaged his hearing, and he gradually became totally deaf. As a result, he had to learn to read lips and carried

1116-748: Was a historian of the West as well as a painter, and helped to preserve the record of a way of life that was changing. His painting "View of the Taos Pueblo" was stolen on December 14, 2022, from a truck in Boulder, Colorado. It was recovered the next month in Lakewood, Colorado. Sharp built a two-story house with studio near the chapel. His historic studios in Taos are maintained as part of The Couse/Sharp Historic Site at 146 Kit Carson Road by The Couse Foundation, which offers scheduled and private tours. It

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1152-662: Was elected as an associate member of the Taos Society of Artists , and in 1933 became a member of the National Institute of Arts and Letters . He was also invited to join the American Watercolor Society . He died on 2 October 1952, aged 85 years old, with funeral services held at the Frank E. Campbell Funeral Chapel in Manhattan. Groll's work is characterized by his skillful technique, rich colors, and poetic approach to landscape, being called

1188-685: Was eventually donated to the University of California, Berkeley .) Sharp continued to spend some summers in New Mexico , and in 1909 he purchased a former Penitente chapel in Taos for use as a studio. It was near the home of the artist E. Irving Couse . The Sharps finally made a permanent move to Taos in 1912, where Addie died in 1913. Responding to the new landscape and light of New Mexico, Sharp began to change some of his techniques. Although he had trained as an academic painter and usually worked in his studio, he adopted plein air painting for

1224-572: Was high enough (16.5 ft.) to allow a balcony at one end, where he hung animal hides and Indian blankets for privacy, to make the space behind it usable as a guest bedroom. The Sharps furnished the cabin in an Arts and Crafts style and decorated it with their collection of Indian artifacts, which included Navajo rugs , a buffalo robe, shields, pottery, and baskets. The cabin was featured in The Craftsman magazine. In an unusual arrangement, Sharp lived and worked there rent-free, and finally

1260-410: Was permitted to buy the cabin in 1922. Phoebe Hearst (mother of William Randolph Hearst ) bought 80 of Sharp's paintings of Native Americans. This enabled him to quit teaching, move into Absarokee Hut with Addie, and devote himself to painting. Hearst commissioned an additional 75 portraits to include members of every major Great Plains tribe. (Hearst's entire collection of 155 of Sharp's paintings

1296-476: Was unique, though cross influence can be noted as can elements of their European Academic artistic training . Aside from the inspiration of their environment, one quality early Taos art colony paintings share is their vibrant palette of colors - not a common sight when paired with more traditional representational images and application of paint. Today, these artists are recognized for their contribution to artistic development and their scenes of Taos locales hang on

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