Claggett Wilson
Encyclopedia
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...
. After serving as a lieutenant in The First World War
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...
, Wilson returned from France to document his experiences in a series of war paintings.
Youth
Born in 1887 in Washington, D.C.Washington, D.C.
Washington, D.C., formally the District of Columbia and commonly referred to as Washington, "the District", or simply D.C., is the capital of the United States. On July 16, 1790, the United States Congress approved the creation of a permanent national capital as permitted by the U.S. Constitution....
, Wilson eventually made New York City
New 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...
his home. In his teenage years he worked as a cowboy in Arizona, and in England rode to hounds. After a short stay at Princeton University, he lived in Paris
Paris
Paris is the capital and largest city in France, situated on the river Seine, in northern France, at the heart of the Île-de-France region...
from 1906 to 1910, and showed in the Paris Salon
Paris Salon
The Salon , or rarely Paris Salon , beginning in 1725 was the official art exhibition of the Académie des Beaux-Arts in Paris, France. Between 1748–1890 it was the greatest annual or biannual art event in the Western world...
.
World War I
Wilson served in World War One as Brigade HQ chief in the 2nd (Indian Head) Division and later, because he spoke fluent French, as aid-de-camp to Brigadier General Wendell Neville. He was wounded twice and never shook the debilitating effects of mustard gas. He was awarded the Navy Cross, the Silver Star, and the Croix de Guerre, and ended up with the maple leaf of a Major. His War Paintings were bequeathed to the Smithsonian American Art Museum by Alice H. Rossin.Art
Wilson was a portraitist, muralist, and designer–decorator, as well as a costume and set designer. New York’s Metropolitan Museum of ArtMetropolitan 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 Brooklyn Museum
Brooklyn Museum
The Brooklyn Museum is an encyclopedia art museum located in the New York City borough of Brooklyn. At 560,000 square feet, the museum holds New York City's second largest art collection with roughly 1.5 million works....
, and the Smithsonian Museum of American Art own a number of Wilson’s paintings.
Patrons of the arts such as Solomon R. Guggenheim
Solomon R. Guggenheim
Solomon Robert Guggenheim was an American businessman, art collector, and philanthropist.-Biography:He was born in Philadelphia, Pennsylvania, son of Meyer Guggenheim and brother of Simon, Benjamin, Daniel and four other siblings.Following studies in Switzerland at the Concordia Institute in...
, Adolph Lewisohn
Adolph Lewisohn
Adolph Lewisohn was a German-Jewish immigrant born in Hamburg who became a New York City investment banker, mining magnate, and philanthropist. He is the namesake of the former School of Mines building on the Morningside Heights campus of Columbia University, as well as the former Lewisohn Stadium...
, Edgar Rossin, James Cox Brady, and Rodney Sharp
Rodney Sharp
H. Rodney Sharp III has been a director of DuPont since 1981. Sharp is president of the Board of Trustees of Longwood Foundation, Inc., and a director of Wilmington Trust. He is a trustee and director of Christiana Care Corporation. Sharp also serves as secretary of the board of Planned Parenthood...
adorned their walls with his canvases and murals. Alfred Lunt
Alfred Lunt
Alfred Lunt was an American stage director and actor, often identified for a long-time professional partnership with his wife, actress Lynn Fontanne...
and Lynn Fontanne
Lynn Fontanne
Lynn Fontanne was a British actress and major stage star in the United States for over 40 years. She teamed with her husband Alfred Lunt.She lived in the United States for more than 60 years but never relinquished her British citizenship. Lunt and Fontanne shared a special Tony Award in 1970...
engaged Wilson in 1935 to design the costumes and sets for The Taming of the Shrew. In 1938 he began a two-year project at the Lunts' home in Wisconsin, Ten Chimneys
Ten Chimneys
Ten Chimneys is the well-preserved summer home of actors Lynn Fontanne and Alfred Lunt. Ten Chimneys is located in Genesee Depot, Town of Genesee, in Waukesha County, Wisconsin, United States.Ten Chimneys was declared a National Historic Landmark in 2003....
, painting murals throughout and decorating the historical residence.