Howard Russell Butler
Encyclopedia
Howard Russell Butler was an American
painter and founder of the American Fine Arts Society
. Butler also persuaded Andrew Carnegie
to fund the construction of Carnegie Lake near Princeton University
. Butler also designed a mansion, an astronomy hall and painted a solar eclipse
for the U.S. Naval Observatory.
. He was the son of William Allen Butler
, a lawyer and satirist. His early artistic training with William Shannon was complentented by visits to the National Academy of Design
, where his parents were both fellows, and the studio of his uncle, William Stanley Haseltine
.
Butler attended Princeton University
and obtained a degree in Science in 1876 and he was invited to stay on for a year as an assistant professor of physics. From 1878 to 1879 he was doing technical illustrations in New York where he knew Thomas Edison
. In 1881 he was able to graduate from Columbia University
where he had studied law. Whilst he was at Princeton he was an active member of the rowing team despite there being poor facilities. Butler practiced patent law until 1884 when he decided to concentrate entirely on painting.
in Mexico before returning to study with J. Carroll Beckwith
and George de Forest Brush
at the Art Students League in New York.
In 1889 Butler was able to find the capital to build the Fine Arts building at 215 West 57th Avenue. This building was to be the home of the Art Students League, the Society of American Artists
, the Architectural League of New York
and the newly formed American Fine Arts Society
which Butler led for its first 17 years. Whilst raising these funds he first met Andrew Carnegie who employed him for ten years allowing him time off each day to paint. Butler married his wife Virginia Hays in 1890.
By 1899 he was a National academician of the National Academy of Design
and a member of the Architectural League and the Society of American Artists
.
. Whilst Carnegie was sitting for the portrait, the problem of finding places to row at Princeton was discussed. Carnegie noted that Scottish lochs were created by just constraining the flow of water. Butler and the rowing team had just such a scheme in mind to create an artificial lake. With Carnegie's permission, Butler contacted a building firm in his home town and obtained an estimate of US$
118,000 to construct a lake. Lake Carnegie and the purchase of hundreds of acres of land resulted from this meeting. Butler completed the building of Carnegie's mansion on Fifth Avenue but he and Carnegie differed and Butler left.
From 1905 until 1907 he was in California and again in the early 1920s when he was living at Pasadena
and Santa Barbara
. He may therefore have missed the opening of the lake in 1906 that was three and a half miles long and eight hundred feet wide. It was reported that President Wilson
tried to later persuade Carnegie to give funds to Princeton but he was told that he had already given a lake. Wilson is reputed to have said "We needed bread and you gave us cake".
that was observed from Baker City
in Oregon
. The expedition was organised by the U.S. Naval Observatory and included Samuel Alfred Mitchell
as its expert on eclipses. Butler noted later that he used a system of taking notes of the colours using skills he had learnt for transient effects. Usually a sitting for a portrait took two hours but an eclipse would take just over 112 seconds. It has been noted that he had painted Carnegie thirteen times and like the eclipse he could never keep still to allow Butler to make considered notes. His revived interest in physics led to his 1923 book of Painter and Space which coincided with his second visit to a solar eclipse. He also created pictures of planets that were as seen from one of their moons. His last known eclipse visit was in 1932.
Butler is known particularly for paintings of seascapes and for his views of the eclipse of the sun, but he would also paint people and landscapes. Beside the lake, Butler also designed the mansion for Carnegie and an Astronomy Hall for the American Museum of Natural History
. Butler's paintings of solar eclipses were on display for many years at the Hayden Planetarium
at that museum.
Butler died in Princeton
in 1938 near the lake that he had organised for their rowing team. His work can be seen at the Metropolitan Museum of Art
, the National Museum of American Art, American Museum of Natural History
and of course Carnegie Lake.
United States
The United States of America is a federal constitutional republic comprising fifty states and a federal district...
painter and founder of the American Fine Arts Society
American Fine Arts Society
The American Fine Arts Society is located in New York, New York. The building was built in 1891 and was added to the National Register of Historic Places on May 6, 1980. The American Fine Arts Society was founded by Howard Russell Butler.-See also:...
. Butler also persuaded Andrew Carnegie
Andrew Carnegie
Andrew Carnegie was a Scottish-American industrialist, businessman, and entrepreneur who led the enormous expansion of the American steel industry in the late 19th century...
to fund the construction of Carnegie Lake near Princeton University
Princeton University
Princeton University is a private research university located in Princeton, New Jersey, United States. The school is one of the eight universities of the Ivy League, and is one of the nine Colonial Colleges founded before the American Revolution....
. Butler also designed a mansion, an astronomy hall and painted a solar eclipse
Solar eclipse
As seen from the Earth, a solar eclipse occurs when the Moon passes between the Sun and the Earth, and the Moon fully or partially blocks the Sun as viewed from a location on Earth. This can happen only during a new moon, when the Sun and the Moon are in conjunction as seen from Earth. At least...
for the U.S. Naval Observatory.
Science, Law and Art
Butler was born in New York CityNew York City
New York is the most populous city in the United States and the center of the New York Metropolitan Area, one of the most populous metropolitan areas in the world. New York exerts a significant impact upon global commerce, finance, media, art, fashion, research, technology, education, and...
. He was the son of William Allen Butler
William Allen Butler
William Allen Butler was an American lawyer and writer of poetical satires.Son of the poet and lawyer Benjamin Franklin Butler and nephew of naval hero William Howard Allen, Allen graduated at the University of the City of New York in 1843 and became a New York lawyer...
, a lawyer and satirist. His early artistic training with William Shannon was complentented by visits to the National Academy of Design
National Academy of Design
The National Academy Museum and School of Fine Arts, founded in New York City as the National Academy of Design – known simply as the "National Academy" – is an honorary association of American artists founded in 1825 by Samuel F. B. Morse, Asher B. Durand, Thomas Cole, Martin E...
, where his parents were both fellows, and the studio of his uncle, William Stanley Haseltine
William Stanley Haseltine
William Stanley Haseltine was an American painter and draftsman who was associated with the Düsseldorf school of painting, the Hudson River School and Luminism.-Early life and education:...
.
Butler attended Princeton University
Princeton University
Princeton University is a private research university located in Princeton, New Jersey, United States. The school is one of the eight universities of the Ivy League, and is one of the nine Colonial Colleges founded before the American Revolution....
and obtained a degree in Science in 1876 and he was invited to stay on for a year as an assistant professor of physics. From 1878 to 1879 he was doing technical illustrations in New York where he knew Thomas Edison
Thomas Edison
Thomas Alva Edison was an American inventor and businessman. He developed many devices that greatly influenced life around the world, including the phonograph, the motion picture camera, and a long-lasting, practical electric light bulb. In addition, he created the world’s first industrial...
. In 1881 he was able to graduate from Columbia University
Columbia 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...
where he had studied law. Whilst he was at Princeton he was an active member of the rowing team despite there being poor facilities. Butler practiced patent law until 1884 when he decided to concentrate entirely on painting.
Art and leadership
He reapplied himself studying under the elderly Frederic Edwin ChurchFrederic Edwin Church
Frederic Edwin Church was an American landscape painter born in Hartford, Connecticut. He was a central figure in the Hudson River School of American landscape painters...
in Mexico before returning to study with J. Carroll Beckwith
James Carroll Beckwith
James Carroll Beckwith was an American landscape, portrait and genre painter whose Impressionist style led to his recognition in the late nineteenth century as a prominent figure in American art.-Biography:...
and George de Forest Brush
George de Forest Brush
George de Forest Brush was an American painter. In collaboration with his friend, the artist Abbott H. Thayer, he made contributions to military camouflage, as did his wife, aviator and artist Mary Taylor Brush, and their son, the sculptor Gerome Brush.-Background:Although Brush was born in...
at the Art Students League in New York.
In 1889 Butler was able to find the capital to build the Fine Arts building at 215 West 57th Avenue. This building was to be the home of the Art Students League, the Society of American Artists
Society of American Artists
The Society of American Artists was an American artists group. It was formed in 1877 by artists who felt the National Academy of Design did not adequately meet their needs, and was too conservative....
, the Architectural League of New York
Architectural League of New York
The Architectural League of New York is a non-profit organization "for creative and intellectual work in architecture, urbanism, and related disciplines"....
and the newly formed American Fine Arts Society
American Fine Arts Society
The American Fine Arts Society is located in New York, New York. The building was built in 1891 and was added to the National Register of Historic Places on May 6, 1980. The American Fine Arts Society was founded by Howard Russell Butler.-See also:...
which Butler led for its first 17 years. Whilst raising these funds he first met Andrew Carnegie who employed him for ten years allowing him time off each day to paint. Butler married his wife Virginia Hays in 1890.
By 1899 he was a National academician of the National Academy of Design
National Academy of Design
The National Academy Museum and School of Fine Arts, founded in New York City as the National Academy of Design – known simply as the "National Academy" – is an honorary association of American artists founded in 1825 by Samuel F. B. Morse, Asher B. Durand, Thomas Cole, Martin E...
and a member of the Architectural League and the Society of American Artists
Society of American Artists
The Society of American Artists was an American artists group. It was formed in 1877 by artists who felt the National Academy of Design did not adequately meet their needs, and was too conservative....
.
Art and Carnegie Lake
In 1902 he was invited to join the Society of Artists and he was asked to make another portrait of the philanthropist Andrew CarnegieAndrew Carnegie
Andrew Carnegie was a Scottish-American industrialist, businessman, and entrepreneur who led the enormous expansion of the American steel industry in the late 19th century...
. Whilst Carnegie was sitting for the portrait, the problem of finding places to row at Princeton was discussed. Carnegie noted that Scottish lochs were created by just constraining the flow of water. Butler and the rowing team had just such a scheme in mind to create an artificial lake. With Carnegie's permission, Butler contacted a building firm in his home town and obtained an estimate of US$
United States dollar
The United States dollar , also referred to as the American dollar, is the official currency of the United States of America. It is divided into 100 smaller units called cents or pennies....
118,000 to construct a lake. Lake Carnegie and the purchase of hundreds of acres of land resulted from this meeting. Butler completed the building of Carnegie's mansion on Fifth Avenue but he and Carnegie differed and Butler left.
From 1905 until 1907 he was in California and again in the early 1920s when he was living at Pasadena
Pasadena, California
Pasadena is a city in Los Angeles County, California, United States. Although famous for hosting the annual Rose Bowl football game and Tournament of Roses Parade, Pasadena is the home to many scientific and cultural institutions, including the California Institute of Technology , the Jet...
and Santa Barbara
Santa Barbara, California
Santa Barbara is the county seat of Santa Barbara County, California, United States. Situated on an east-west trending section of coastline, the longest such section on the West Coast of the United States, the city lies between the steeply-rising Santa Ynez Mountains and the Pacific Ocean...
. He may therefore have missed the opening of the lake in 1906 that was three and a half miles long and eight hundred feet wide. It was reported that President Wilson
Woodrow Wilson
Thomas Woodrow Wilson was the 28th President of the United States, from 1913 to 1921. A leader of the Progressive Movement, he served as President of Princeton University from 1902 to 1910, and then as the Governor of New Jersey from 1911 to 1913...
tried to later persuade Carnegie to give funds to Princeton but he was told that he had already given a lake. Wilson is reputed to have said "We needed bread and you gave us cake".
Solar eclipse and art
In 1918, Butler's association with Carnegie led to him being invited to witness and record the 1918 Solar eclipseSolar eclipse of June 8, 1918
A total solar eclipse occurred on June 8, 1918. The eclipse was observed by a U.S. Naval Observatory team at Baker City in Oregon. The painting below shows totality when the moon prevented the sun's rays from hitting that part of Oregon...
that was observed from Baker City
Baker City, Oregon
Baker City is a city in and the county seat of Baker County, Oregon, United States. It was named after Edward D. Baker. The population was 9,828 at the 2010 census.-History:...
in Oregon
Oregon
Oregon is a state in the Pacific Northwest region of the United States. It is located on the Pacific coast, with Washington to the north, California to the south, Nevada on the southeast and Idaho to the east. The Columbia and Snake rivers delineate much of Oregon's northern and eastern...
. The expedition was organised by the U.S. Naval Observatory and included Samuel Alfred Mitchell
Samuel Alfred Mitchell
Samuel Alfred Mitchell was an astronomer who studied solar eclipses and set up a program to use photographic techniques to determine the distance to stars at McCormick Observatory, where he served as the director.-Early years:Mitchell was the son of John Cook and Sarah Chown Mitchell,...
as its expert on eclipses. Butler noted later that he used a system of taking notes of the colours using skills he had learnt for transient effects. Usually a sitting for a portrait took two hours but an eclipse would take just over 112 seconds. It has been noted that he had painted Carnegie thirteen times and like the eclipse he could never keep still to allow Butler to make considered notes. His revived interest in physics led to his 1923 book of Painter and Space which coincided with his second visit to a solar eclipse. He also created pictures of planets that were as seen from one of their moons. His last known eclipse visit was in 1932.
Butler is known particularly for paintings of seascapes and for his views of the eclipse of the sun, but he would also paint people and landscapes. Beside the lake, Butler also designed the mansion for Carnegie and an Astronomy Hall for the American Museum of Natural History
American Museum of Natural History
The American Museum of Natural History , located on the Upper West Side of Manhattan in New York City, United States, is one of the largest and most celebrated museums in the world...
. Butler's paintings of solar eclipses were on display for many years at the Hayden Planetarium
Hayden Planetarium
The Hayden Planetarium is a public planetarium, part of the Rose Center for Earth and Space of the American Museum of Natural History in New York City, currently directed by astrophysicist Dr. Neil deGrasse Tyson....
at that museum.
Butler died in Princeton
Princeton, New Jersey
Princeton is a community located in Mercer County, New Jersey, United States. It is best known as the location of Princeton University, which has been sited in the community since 1756...
in 1938 near the lake that he had organised for their rowing team. His work can be seen at the Metropolitan Museum of Art
Metropolitan Museum of Art
The Metropolitan Museum of Art is a renowned art museum in New York City. Its permanent collection contains more than two million works, divided into nineteen curatorial departments. The main building, located on the eastern edge of Central Park along Manhattan's Museum Mile, is one of the...
, the National Museum of American Art, American Museum of Natural History
American Museum of Natural History
The American Museum of Natural History , located on the Upper West Side of Manhattan in New York City, United States, is one of the largest and most celebrated museums in the world...
and of course Carnegie Lake.