New England Art Union
Encyclopedia
The New England Art Union (1850-ca.1852) was established in Boston
, Massachusetts
for "the encouragement of artists, the promotion of art" in New England and the wider United States. Edward Everett
, Franklin Dexter, and Henry Wadsworth Longfellow
served as officers of the board. The short-lived but lively union ran a public gallery on Tremont Street
, and published a journal. Artists affiliated with the union included Chester Harding
, Fitz Henry Lane, Alvan Fisher
, and other American artists of the mid-19th century.
; James B. Gregerson; Chester Harding; Joshua H. Hayward; George S. Hilliard; Albert G. Hoit; Jonathan Mason; Benjamin S. Rotch; G. G. Smith; Charles Sumner
; C. G. Thompson; and Ammi B. Young
. Others associated with union administration included James Lawrence and Thomas T. Spear.
The union aimed to promote excellence in art, to single out top performing American artists, and to educate the public eye. To this end, the board thought to increase the breadth of distributed art in circulation amongst the American public by producing fine art prints. In particular, in 1851 the union offered to its subscribers a copy of an engraving by C.E. Wagstaff and Joseph Andrews of Washington Allston
's painting "Saul and the Witch of Endor." The original painting (owned by Thomas Handasyd Perkins
) was also exhibited in the union's gallery.
The board considered their purpose as part of a national effort to raise the quality of American visual art, ideally on par with the greats of Europe and the ancient world. "In empires and monarchies every protection is afforded to institutions of arts. Regarded as the harbingers of refinement, and the heralds of prosperity, they diffuse a radiance around thrones, and a lustre on the rulers that cherish them. In our republican land, genius cannot receive this munificent patronage, but, by the establishment of art unions, the sovereign people can stimulate and educe merit under the combined influence of those urgent springs of action -- emulation and recompense. The divines, statesmen, soldiers and writers of New England, fostered by public applause and patronage, have given high proof of their merit, and we regard the Art Union as destined to elevate the character of our artists. Its fostering patronage will prove that, by affording adequate opportunity, New England is as congenial to the arts of design, as the lands which have produced a Michael Angelo
, a Praxiteles
, a Wilkie
, or the Vernsets [i.e. Claude Joseph Vernet, Carle Vernet, Horace Vernet
."
In the mid-19th century, a number of art unions were organized in the U.S., some more respectable than others. The New England Art Union enjoyed a solid reputation. As one observer commented:
, Boston, is open to the public" and "Their collection already embraces a number of meritorious works." Visitors to the gallery included Adin Augustus Ballou (son of Socialist Adin Ballou
).
The gallery exhibited works by:
Some of the artists affiliated with the union kept studios in Boston's Tremont Temple
, which burned in 1852. Fellow artists took up a collection on behalf of those afflicted by the fire.
's painting of Saul and the Witch of Endor], and a woodcut, spiritedly designed by Hammatt Billings
, in illustration of Mr. Longfellow's ballad, 'The Skeleton in Armor.'"
Boston
Boston is the capital of and largest city in Massachusetts, and is one of the oldest cities in the United States. The largest city in New England, Boston is regarded as the unofficial "Capital of New England" for its economic and cultural impact on the entire New England region. The city proper had...
, Massachusetts
Massachusetts
The Commonwealth of Massachusetts is a state in the New England region of the northeastern United States of America. It is bordered by Rhode Island and Connecticut to the south, New York to the west, and Vermont and New Hampshire to the north; at its east lies the Atlantic Ocean. As of the 2010...
for "the encouragement of artists, the promotion of art" in New England and the wider United States. Edward Everett
Edward Everett
Edward Everett was an American politician and educator from Massachusetts. Everett, a Whig, served as U.S. Representative, and U.S. Senator, the 15th Governor of Massachusetts, Minister to Great Britain, and United States Secretary of State...
, Franklin Dexter, and Henry Wadsworth Longfellow
Henry Wadsworth Longfellow
Henry Wadsworth Longfellow was an American poet and educator whose works include "Paul Revere's Ride", The Song of Hiawatha, and Evangeline...
served as officers of the board. The short-lived but lively union ran a public gallery on Tremont Street
Tremont Street
Tremont Street is a major thoroughfare in Boston, Massachusetts.-Etymology:The name is a variation of one of the original appellations of the city, "Trimountaine," a reference to a hill that formerly had three peaks. Beacon Hill, with its single peak, is all that remains of the Trimountain...
, and published a journal. Artists affiliated with the union included Chester Harding
Chester Harding (painter)
Chester Harding was an American portrait painter.-Biography:Harding was born at Conway, Massachusetts. Brought up in the wilderness of New York state, he was a lad of robust physique, standing over 6 feet 3 inches...
, Fitz Henry Lane, Alvan Fisher
Alvan Fisher
Alvan Fisher was one of the United States's pioneers in landscape painting and genre works.-Early years:...
, and other American artists of the mid-19th century.
History
The union was organized around 1848, and incorporated in Massachusetts in 1850. The board included Everett, Dexter, and Longfellow, and a mix of prominent Bostonian businessmen, artists, and other notables: Joseph Andrews; Thomas G. Appleton; Edward C. Cabot; Alvan Fisher; Nathaniel Langdon FrothinghamNathaniel Langdon Frothingham
Nathaniel Langdon Frothingham was an American Unitarian minister and pastor of the First Church of Boston from 1815 to 1850. Frothingham was opposed to Theodore Parker and the interjection of transcendentalism into the church...
; James B. Gregerson; Chester Harding; Joshua H. Hayward; George S. Hilliard; Albert G. Hoit; Jonathan Mason; Benjamin S. Rotch; G. G. Smith; Charles Sumner
Charles Sumner
Charles Sumner was an American politician and senator from Massachusetts. An academic lawyer and a powerful orator, Sumner was the leader of the antislavery forces in Massachusetts and a leader of the Radical Republicans in the United States Senate during the American Civil War and Reconstruction,...
; C. G. Thompson; and Ammi B. Young
Ammi B. Young
Ammi Burnham Young was an important 19th century American architect whose commissions transitioned from the Greek Revival to the Neo-Renaissance styles. His Second Vermont State House brought him fame and success, which eventually led him to become the first Supervising Architect of the U.S....
. Others associated with union administration included James Lawrence and Thomas T. Spear.
The union aimed to promote excellence in art, to single out top performing American artists, and to educate the public eye. To this end, the board thought to increase the breadth of distributed art in circulation amongst the American public by producing fine art prints. In particular, in 1851 the union offered to its subscribers a copy of an engraving by C.E. Wagstaff and Joseph Andrews of Washington Allston
Washington Allston
Washington Allston was an American painter and poet, born in Waccamaw Parish, South Carolina. Allston pioneered America's Romantic movement of landscape painting...
's painting "Saul and the Witch of Endor." The original painting (owned by Thomas Handasyd Perkins
Thomas Handasyd Perkins
Colonel Thomas Handasyd Perkins, or T. H. Perkins was a wealthy Boston merchant and an archetypical Boston Brahmin. Starting with bequests from his grandfather and father-in-law, he amassed a huge fortune...
) was also exhibited in the union's gallery.
The board considered their purpose as part of a national effort to raise the quality of American visual art, ideally on par with the greats of Europe and the ancient world. "In empires and monarchies every protection is afforded to institutions of arts. Regarded as the harbingers of refinement, and the heralds of prosperity, they diffuse a radiance around thrones, and a lustre on the rulers that cherish them. In our republican land, genius cannot receive this munificent patronage, but, by the establishment of art unions, the sovereign people can stimulate and educe merit under the combined influence of those urgent springs of action -- emulation and recompense. The divines, statesmen, soldiers and writers of New England, fostered by public applause and patronage, have given high proof of their merit, and we regard the Art Union as destined to elevate the character of our artists. Its fostering patronage will prove that, by affording adequate opportunity, New England is as congenial to the arts of design, as the lands which have produced a Michael Angelo
Michelangelo
Michelangelo di Lodovico Buonarroti Simoni , commonly known as Michelangelo, was an Italian Renaissance painter, sculptor, architect, poet, and engineer who exerted an unparalleled influence on the development of Western art...
, a Praxiteles
Praxiteles
Praxiteles of Athens, the son of Cephisodotus the Elder, was the most renowned of the Attic sculptors of the 4th century BC. He was the first to sculpt the nude female form in a life-size statue...
, a Wilkie
David Wilkie (artist)
Sir David Wilkie was a Scottish painter.- Early life :Wilkie was the son of the parish minister of Cults in Fife. He developed a love for art at an early age. In 1799, after he had attended school at Pitlessie, Kettle and Cupar, his father reluctantly agreed to his becoming a painter...
, or the Vernsets [i.e. Claude Joseph Vernet, Carle Vernet, Horace Vernet
Horace Vernet
Émile Jean-Horace Vernet was a French painter of battles, portraits, and Orientalist Arab subjects.Vernet was born to Carle Vernet, another famous painter, who was himself a son of Claude Joseph Vernet. He was born in the Paris Louvre, while his parents were staying there during the French...
."
In the mid-19th century, a number of art unions were organized in the U.S., some more respectable than others. The New England Art Union enjoyed a solid reputation. As one observer commented:
"If I have of late been more solicitous for the N.E. Art-Union, it is because it is new, and because I know that the men who direct it are gentlemen, in the true sense of the word; and am fully confident that they will not domineer, and dictate, and calumniate, and make false pretences about the value of their prints and paintings, and puff the servile daubers who submit to them, and declare that the country produces no better works than theirs, and that all who are not their loyal subjects are of no account at tall, and that they have 'declined' their works. Such a line of argument, affecting to despise their opponents, yet covertly stinging them with envenomed sneers and lies -- such blackguardism the Managers of the New England Art Union cannot possibly commit, because they are gentlemen. Edward Everett, Henry W. Longfellow, Franklin Dexter; has anybody heard of them? does anybody want a better guarantee?"
Gallery
Around 1850, local directories and arts publications reported that "the gallery of the institution, no.38 Tremont RowTremont Row
Tremont Row in Boston, Massachusetts, was a short street that flourished in the 19th and early-20th centuries. It was located near the intersection of Court, Tremont, and Cambridge streets, in today's Government Center area. It existed until the 1920s, when it became known as Scollay Square...
, Boston, is open to the public" and "Their collection already embraces a number of meritorious works." Visitors to the gallery included Adin Augustus Ballou (son of Socialist Adin Ballou
Adin Ballou
Adin Ballou was an American prominent proponent of pacifism, socialism and abolitionism, and the founder of the Hopedale Community...
).
The gallery exhibited works by:
- Joseph AmesJoseph Alexander AmesJoseph Alexander Ames was an American artist, primarily known for portrait and genre painting. Originally named Joseph Emes, he was born in Roxbury, New Hampshire. Ames began painting at a young age. At the age of twelve Henry Theodore Tuckerman wrote about one of his paintings. After moderate...
- William Babcock [i.e. William Perkins Babcock, 1826–1899]
- Thomas BallThomas Ball (artist)Thomas Ball was an American artist and musician. His work has had a marked influence on monumental art in the United States, especially in New England.-Life:...
- Charles A. Barry [i.e. Charles A. Barry, 1830–1892]
- Albert Fitch BellowsAlbert Fitch BellowsAlbert Fitch Bellows , American landscape painter of the Hudson River School, was born at Milford, Massachusetts.-Early years:...
- A. BierstadtAlbert BierstadtAlbert Bierstadt was a German-American painter best known for his lavish, sweeping landscapes of the American West. In obtaining the subject matter for these works, Bierstadt joined several journeys of the Westward Expansion...
- William T. Carlton [i.e. William Tolman Carlton, 1816–1888]
- Benjamin ChampneyBenjamin ChampneyBenjamin Champney was a painter whose name has become synonymous with White Mountain art of the 19th century. He began his training as a lithographer under celebrated marine artist Fitz Henry Lane at Pendleton's Lithography shop in Boston...
- J.A. CodmanJohn Amory CodmanJohn Amory Codman was an artist in Boston, Massachusetts, in the 19th-century. He was affiliated with the New England Art Union, and kept a studio in Amory Hall in the 1850s.-Further reading:...
- C.P. Cranch [i.e. Christopher Pearse Cranch, 1813–1892]
- Mrs. H. Dassell
- Thomas EdwardsThomas Edwards (artist)Thomas Edwards was an artist in 19th-century Boston, Massachusetts, specializing in portraits. Born in London and trained at the Royal Academy, he worked in Boston in the 1820s-1850s, and in Worcester in the 1860s.-Biography:...
- Alvan Fisher
- W.A. Gay [i.e. Winckworth Allan Gay, 1821–1910 ]
- Samuel L. GerrySamuel Lancaster GerrySamuel Lancaster Gerry was an artist in 19th-century Boston, Massachusetts. He painted portraits, and also landscapes of the White Mountains and other locales in New England. He was affiliated with the New England Art Union, and the Boston Artists' Association. In 1857 he co-founded the Boston Art...
- George H. Hall [i.e. George Henry Hall, 1823–1913]
- W.H. Hanley
- Albert Gallatin HoitAlbert Gallatin HoitAlbert Gallatin Hoit was an American painter who lived in Boston, Massachusetts. He painted portraits of William Henry Harrison, Daniel Webster and Brenton Halliburton.-Biography:...
- H.P. Hunt
- D.C. JohnstonDavid Claypoole JohnstonDavid Claypoole Johnston was an 19th-century American cartoonist, printmaker, painter and actor from Boston, Massachusetts...
- J.F. KensettJohn Frederick KensettJohn Frederick Kensett was an American artist and engraver. He attended school at Cheshire Academy, and studied engraving with his immigrant father, Thomas Kensett, and later with his uncle, Alfred Dagget...
- John A. Knight
- Kurtz
- Fitz Henry Lane
- W. Morrison
- B.F. NuttingBenjamin F. NuttingBenjamin Franklin Nutting was an artist in Boston, Massachusetts in the 19th-century. He taught drawing in local schools, and published do-it-yourself drawing instruction materials...
- Mrs. Oakes
- John PopeJohn Pope (artist)John Pope was an artist in Boston, Massachusetts, and New York in the 19th century. He created portraits of W.H. Prescott, Daniel Webster and others. He belonged to the Boston Artists' Association; and exhibited with the Massachusetts Charitable Mechanic Association and the New England Art Union...
- A. Ransom
- John W. A. ScottJohn W. A. ScottJohn White Allen Scott or John W.A. Scott was an artist in Boston, Massachusetts, in the 19th century. He worked for Pendleton's Lithography early in his career. In the 1840s he started a lithography business in partnership with Fitz Hugh Lane . Around 1852 he kept a studio in Boston's Tremont...
- Thomas T. Spear
- P. Stephenson [i.e. Peter Stephenson, about 1823–1860]
- H.G. Wilde
- Moses WightMoses WightMoses Wight was an artist in Boston, Massachusetts and Paris in the 19th-century. He painted portraits of Edward Everett, Louis Agassiz, Charles Sumner, Alexander von Humboldt, and other notables.-Biography:...
Some of the artists affiliated with the union kept studios in Boston's Tremont Temple
Tremont Temple
The Tremont Temple on 88 Tremont Street is a Baptist church in Boston, affiliated with the American Baptist Churches, USA. The existing structure opened in May 1896 and was designed by architect Clarence Blackall.-History:...
, which burned in 1852. Fellow artists took up a collection on behalf of those afflicted by the fire.
Journal
In 1852 the union issued its Bulletin, "embellished with a well executed sketch of the engraving [of Washington AllstonWashington Allston
Washington Allston was an American painter and poet, born in Waccamaw Parish, South Carolina. Allston pioneered America's Romantic movement of landscape painting...
's painting of Saul and the Witch of Endor], and a woodcut, spiritedly designed by Hammatt Billings
Hammatt Billings
Charles Howland Hammatt Billings was an artist and architect from Boston, Massachusetts.Among his works are the original illustrations for Uncle Tom's Cabin ,...
, in illustration of Mr. Longfellow's ballad, 'The Skeleton in Armor.'"
Publications of the union
- Catalogue of Paintings now on exhibition in the Free Gallery of the New England Art Union, No. 38, Tremont Row, Boston. Boston: Dutton and Wentworth. 1851.
- Bulletin of the New England Art Union, no. 1, 1852.
- Catalogue of Paintings now on exhibition in the Free Gallery of the New England Art Union, No. 38, Tremont Row, Boston. Boston: Dutton and Wentworth, 1852.
Publications about the union
- "From the American Sentinel. Art in New England." New Hampshire Sentinel, 03-13-1851.
- Arrest on a Charge of Dealing in Lottery Tickets. Barre Gazette (Barre, Massachusetts), 04-09-1852; p.2. Describes the arrest of Horace A. Pinkham for illegal selling of lottery tickets of the "New England Art Union Association."
- Leah Lipton. "The Boston Artists' Association, 1841-1851." American Art Journal, Vol. 15, No. 4 (Autumn, 1983), pp. 45-57.