Florine Stettheimer
Encyclopedia
Florine Stettheimer was an American
artist. She has been described as "a Deco
-influenced early Modernist
who’s never really gotten her due".
to Joseph Stettheimer and Rosetta Walter. Her father, a banker, left the family before the children were grown. She was the fourth of five children: Walter, Stella, Carrie, Florine, and Ettie. After Walter and Stella married, the youngest three immured with their mother to form an epicurean way of life. She spent much of her early life traveling, studying art in Italy, Spain, France, Germany, and Switzerland. She studied for three years in the mid-1890s at the Art Students League of New York
, but came into her own artistically upon her permanent return to New York after the start of World War I
. In October 1916, the only one-person exhibition of her work during her lifetime took place at New York's Knoedler & Company. She exhibited 12 "high-keyed, decorative paintings", none of which were sold. A book of Stettheimer's poetry, titled "Crystal Flowers", was published posthumously by her sister Ettie Stettheimer.
, but came into her own artistically upon her permanent return to New York after the start of World War I
. In October 1916, the only one-person exhibition of her work during her lifetime took place at New York's Knoedler & Company. She exhibited 12 "high-keyed, decorative paintings", none of which were sold.
Cushioned by family resources, Stettheimer refrained from self-promotion and considered her painting "an entirely private pursuit". She intended to have her works destroyed after her death, a wish defied by her sister Ettie, her executor
.
Stettheimer's privileged position pervades her work. As one critic has written,
She created the sets and costumes for the 1934 production of Four Saints in Three Acts
, an opera by Virgil Thomson
with a libretto by Gertrude Stein
. Her designs, which used cellophane
in innovative ways, proved to be the project for which she was best known during her lifetime.
She assisted her sister Carrie in the creation of the Stettheimer Dollhouse
, now in the collection of the Museum of the City of New York
. The house is a whimsical depiction of an upper-class residence, filled with works by Stettheimer's artist friends, including William Zorach
, Alexander Archipenko
, and Gaston Lachaise
.
in 1967 in anticipation of a new arts center which was never built.
Stettheimer has been the subject of posthumous retrospective
s at institutions including the Museum of Modern Art
(in 1946) and the Whitney Museum of American Art
(in 1995).
United States
The United States of America is a federal constitutional republic comprising fifty states and a federal district...
artist. She has been described as "a Deco
Art Deco
Art deco , or deco, is an eclectic artistic and design style that began in Paris in the 1920s and flourished internationally throughout the 1930s, into the World War II era. The style influenced all areas of design, including architecture and interior design, industrial design, fashion and...
-influenced early Modernist
Modernism
Modernism, in its broadest definition, is modern thought, character, or practice. More specifically, the term describes the modernist movement, its set of cultural tendencies and array of associated cultural movements, originally arising from wide-scale and far-reaching changes to Western society...
who’s never really gotten her due".
Early life
Florine was born in Rochester, New YorkRochester, New York
Rochester is a city in Monroe County, New York, south of Lake Ontario in the United States. Known as The World's Image Centre, it was also once known as The Flour City, and more recently as The Flower City...
to Joseph Stettheimer and Rosetta Walter. Her father, a banker, left the family before the children were grown. She was the fourth of five children: Walter, Stella, Carrie, Florine, and Ettie. After Walter and Stella married, the youngest three immured with their mother to form an epicurean way of life. She spent much of her early life traveling, studying art in Italy, Spain, France, Germany, and Switzerland. She studied for three years in the mid-1890s at the Art Students League of New York
Art Students League of New York
The Art Students League of New York is an art school located on West 57th Street in New York City. The League has historically been known for its broad appeal to both amateurs and professional artists, and has maintained for over 130 years a tradition of offering reasonably priced classes on a...
, but came into her own artistically upon her permanent return to New York after the start of World War I
World War I
World War I , which was predominantly called the World War or the Great War from its occurrence until 1939, and the First World War or World War I thereafter, was a major war centred in Europe that began on 28 July 1914 and lasted until 11 November 1918...
. In October 1916, the only one-person exhibition of her work during her lifetime took place at New York's Knoedler & Company. She exhibited 12 "high-keyed, decorative paintings", none of which were sold. A book of Stettheimer's poetry, titled "Crystal Flowers", was published posthumously by her sister Ettie Stettheimer.
Career
She studied for three years in the mid-1890s at the Art Students League of New YorkArt Students League of New York
The Art Students League of New York is an art school located on West 57th Street in New York City. The League has historically been known for its broad appeal to both amateurs and professional artists, and has maintained for over 130 years a tradition of offering reasonably priced classes on a...
, but came into her own artistically upon her permanent return to New York after the start of World War I
World War I
World War I , which was predominantly called the World War or the Great War from its occurrence until 1939, and the First World War or World War I thereafter, was a major war centred in Europe that began on 28 July 1914 and lasted until 11 November 1918...
. In October 1916, the only one-person exhibition of her work during her lifetime took place at New York's Knoedler & Company. She exhibited 12 "high-keyed, decorative paintings", none of which were sold.
Cushioned by family resources, Stettheimer refrained from self-promotion and considered her painting "an entirely private pursuit". She intended to have her works destroyed after her death, a wish defied by her sister Ettie, her executor
Executor
An executor, in the broadest sense, is one who carries something out .-Overview:...
.
Stettheimer's privileged position pervades her work. As one critic has written,
money she regarded as a birthright, decidedly not something to be flaunted in the shape of a dozen yachts, but rather to be used as a palliative against the more unpleasant aspects of the world outside... In this frame of mind, she felt free to depict life as a series of boating parties, picnics, summertime naps, parades and strolls down Fifth Avenue.
She created the sets and costumes for the 1934 production of Four Saints in Three Acts
Four Saints in Three Acts
Four Saints in Three Acts is an opera by American composer Virgil Thomson with a libretto by Gertrude Stein. Written in 1927-8, it contains about 20 saints, and is in at least four acts...
, an opera by Virgil Thomson
Virgil Thomson
Virgil Thomson was an American composer and critic. He was instrumental in the development of the "American Sound" in classical music...
with a libretto by Gertrude Stein
Gertrude Stein
Gertrude Stein was an American writer, poet and art collector who spent most of her life in France.-Early life:...
. Her designs, which used cellophane
Cellophane
Cellophane is a thin, transparent sheet made of regenerated cellulose. Its low permeability to air, oils, greases, bacteria and water makes it useful for food packaging...
in innovative ways, proved to be the project for which she was best known during her lifetime.
She assisted her sister Carrie in the creation of the Stettheimer Dollhouse
Stettheimer Dollhouse
- Carrie Stettheimer :Carrie Walter Stettheimer created a remarkable two-story, twelve-room dollhouse over the course of twenty-five years, from 1916 to 1935...
, now in the collection of the Museum of the City of New York
Museum of the City of New York
The Museum of the City of New York is an art gallery and history museum founded in 1923 to present the history of New York City, USA and its people...
. The house is a whimsical depiction of an upper-class residence, filled with works by Stettheimer's artist friends, including William Zorach
William Zorach
William Zorach was a Lithuanian-born American sculptor, painter, printmaker, and writer. He won the Logan Medal of the arts.-Life and career:...
, Alexander Archipenko
Alexander Archipenko
Alexander Porfyrovych Archipenko was a Ukrainian avant-garde artist, sculptor, and graphic artist.-Biography:...
, and Gaston Lachaise
Gaston Lachaise
Gaston Lachaise was an American sculptor of French birth, active in the early 20th century. A native of Paris, he was most noted for his female nudes such as Standing Woman.-Early life and education:...
.
Legacy
After her sisters’ deaths, 45 works were given to 37 institutions, with another 50 going to Columbia UniversityColumbia University
Columbia University in the City of New York is a private, Ivy League university in Manhattan, New York City. Columbia is the oldest institution of higher learning in the state of New York, the fifth oldest in the United States, and one of the country's nine Colonial Colleges founded before the...
in 1967 in anticipation of a new arts center which was never built.
Stettheimer has been the subject of posthumous retrospective
Retrospective
Retrospective generally means to take a look back at events that already have taken place. For example, the term is used in medicine, describing a look back at a patient's medical history or lifestyle.-Music:...
s at institutions including the Museum of Modern Art
Museum of Modern Art
The Museum of Modern Art is an art museum in Midtown Manhattan in New York City, on 53rd Street, between Fifth and Sixth Avenues. It has been important in developing and collecting modernist art, and is often identified as the most influential museum of modern art in the world...
(in 1946) and the Whitney Museum of American Art
Whitney Museum of American Art
The Whitney Museum of American Art, often referred to simply as "the Whitney", is an art museum with a focus on 20th- and 21st-century American art. Located at 945 Madison Avenue at 75th Street in New York City, the Whitney's permanent collection contains more than 18,000 works in a wide variety of...
(in 1995).
Print biographies
- Bloemink, Barbara J., The Life and Art of Florine Stettheimer, Yale University PressYale University PressYale University Press is a book publisher founded in 1908 by George Parmly Day. It became an official department of Yale University in 1961, but remains financially and operationally autonomous....
, 1995. - Tyler, Parker, Florine Stettheimer: A Life in Art, Farrar, StrausFarrar, Straus and GirouxFarrar, Straus and Giroux is an American book publishing company, founded in 1946 by Roger W. Straus, Jr. and John C. Farrar. Known primarily as Farrar, Straus in its first decade of existence, the company was renamed several times, including Farrar, Straus and Young and Farrar, Straus and Cudahy...
, 1963.
Theses
- Liles, Melissa M., "Florine Stettheimer: A Re-Appraisal of the Artist in Context," Virginia Commonwealth University, Richmond, 1994.
External links
- Triple Canopy a short piece on Stettheimer's poetry