Florence Griswold House
Encyclopedia
The Florence Griswold Museum is an art museum in Old Lyme, Connecticut
centered around the home of Florence Griswold
. It is noted for its collection of American Impressionist paintings.
opened in 2002.
In 2001, the Museum acquired the corporate collection of the Hartford Steam Boiler Inspection and Insurance Company, once the world's largest insurer against equipment breakdown. The collection included 157 oil paintings, 31 works on paper and 2 works of sculpture, all Connecticut-related.
Collection highlights:
Works by Emil Carlsen
, Charles Ebert, Bruce Crane
and Willard Metcalf
.
Florence Griswold House in Old Lyme, Connecticut
was a boarding house run by Florence Griswold
, where American Impressionist
artists lived and painted—often directly on the walls and doors of the house. The building is now part of the campus of the Florence Griswold Museum.
Leading artists of the Lyme Art Colony who stayed at the boarding house were Henry Ward Ranger
, Edward Charles Volkert
, Childe Hassam
, and Willard Metcalf
. U.S. President Woodrow Wilson
and his family dined with "Miss Florence" and the artists in the house.
, the height of its years as an artists' boarding house. Visitors enter through a wide center hall, where an "informal gallery" displays paintings on grass cloth walls. The hall also contains Colonial and Empire furniture. Two bedrooms are off the hallway — Miss Florence's bedroom and a guest bedroom. A parlor on the first floor has artists' brushes on the mantel. In that room the artist-boarders would present various types of entertainment for each other. The second floor is exhibition space.
Samuel Belcher, architect of the Old Lyme Congregational Church
, designed the late Georgian-style house for William Noyes. It was built in 1817.
The artists who painted on the house's doors and walls were probably following a tradition imported from hostelries in the French art colonies at Barbizon, Giverny, and Pont-Aven. A total of 41 painted panels are in the downstairs rooms.
The house was declared a National Historic Landmark
in 1993. In July 2007 the building reopened after a 14-month restoration project.
Connecticut
Connecticut is a state in the New England region of the northeastern United States. It is bordered by Rhode Island to the east, Massachusetts to the north, and the state of New York to the west and the south .Connecticut is named for the Connecticut River, the major U.S. river that approximately...
centered around the home of Florence Griswold
Florence Griswold
Florence Ann Griswold was a resident of Old Lyme, Connecticut, USA who became the nucleus of the "Lyme Art Colony" in the early 20th century. Her home has since been made into the Florence Griswold Museum....
. It is noted for its collection of American Impressionist paintings.
Museum
The Museum's Robert and Nancy Krible Gallery, featuring 9500 square feet (882.6 m²) of exhibit space and sweeping views of the Lieutenant RiverLieutenant River
The Lieutenant River is a tidal river located in Old Lyme, Connecticut. It joins the Connecticut River in the estuary, just above the point where that river flows into Long Island Sound....
opened in 2002.
In 2001, the Museum acquired the corporate collection of the Hartford Steam Boiler Inspection and Insurance Company, once the world's largest insurer against equipment breakdown. The collection included 157 oil paintings, 31 works on paper and 2 works of sculpture, all Connecticut-related.
Collection highlights:
- Portrait of a Man by Harlan PageHarlan Page-Basketball:-External links:* at the Basketball Hall of Fame* at College Basketball at Sports-Reference.com* at Hoopedia.NBA.com...
(1815)
- The Charter Oak at Hartford by Frederic Church in 1946
- Shore of Darien, Connecticut John F. Kensett (1872)
- View of Greenwich, Connecticut David JohnsonDavid Johnson (American artist)David Johnson was a member of the second generation of Hudson River School painters.He was born in New York City, New York. He studied for two years at the antique school of the National Academy of Design. He also studied briefly with the Hudson River artist Jasper Francis Cropsey...
(1878)
- The Fisher Boy (1840) by Edwin WhiteEdwin WhiteEdwin White was an American painter who studied in Paris, Rome, and Florence and later taught at the National Academy of Design, in New York....
- Black Bass (1872) by Gordon Trumbull
- East Rock, New Haven John Ferguson Wier 1901
- East Hartford Meadow Milton AveryMilton AveryMilton Avery was an American modern painter. Born in Altmar, New York, he moved to Connecticut in 1898 and later to New York City.-Biography:...
(1922)
- Summer Evening, (1886) a Woman at the window Childe HassamChilde HassamFrederick Childe Hassam was a prolific American Impressionist painter, noted for his urban and coastal scenes. Along with Mary Cassatt and John Henry Twachtman, Hassam was instrumental in promulgating Impressionism to American collectors, dealers, and museums...
- Laurel, Edward F. Rook 1905-1910
Works by Emil Carlsen
Emil Carlsen
Soren Emil Carlsen was an American Impressionist painter who emigrated to the United States from Denmark...
, Charles Ebert, Bruce Crane
Bruce Crane
Robert Bruce Crane was an American painter. He joined the Lyme Art Colony in the early 1900s. His most active period, though, came after 1920, when for more than a decade he did oil sketches of woods, meadows, and hills. He developed into a Tonalist painter under the influence of Jean Charles...
and Willard Metcalf
Willard Metcalf
Willard Leroy Metcalf was an American artist born in Lowell, Massachusetts. He studied at the School of the Museum of Fine Arts, Boston, and later attended Académie Julian, Paris. After early figure-painting and illustration, he became prominent as a landscape painter...
.
Florence Griswold House
Old Lyme, Connecticut
Old Lyme is a town in New London County, Connecticut, United States. The Main Street of the town is a historic district. The town has long been a popular summer resort and artists' colony...
was a boarding house run by Florence Griswold
Florence Griswold
Florence Ann Griswold was a resident of Old Lyme, Connecticut, USA who became the nucleus of the "Lyme Art Colony" in the early 20th century. Her home has since been made into the Florence Griswold Museum....
, where American Impressionist
American Impressionism
Impressionism, a style of painting characterized by loose brushwork and vivid colors, was practiced widely among American artists in the late 19th and early 20th centuries.-An emerging artistic style from Paris:...
artists lived and painted—often directly on the walls and doors of the house. The building is now part of the campus of the Florence Griswold Museum.
Leading artists of the Lyme Art Colony who stayed at the boarding house were Henry Ward Ranger
Henry Ward Ranger
Henry Ward Ranger , American artist, was born in western New York State. He became a prominent landscape and marine painter, much of his work being done in the Netherlands, and showing the influence of the modern Dutch school. He became a National Academician , and a member of the American Water...
, Edward Charles Volkert
Edward Charles Volkert
Edward Charles Volkert , was an American Impressionist artist best known for his colorful and richly painted impressionist landscapes. His trademark subject was that of cattle and plowmen. He has been referred to as America's cattle painter extraordinaire".The son of a hat merchant from Alsace,...
, Childe Hassam
Childe Hassam
Frederick Childe Hassam was a prolific American Impressionist painter, noted for his urban and coastal scenes. Along with Mary Cassatt and John Henry Twachtman, Hassam was instrumental in promulgating Impressionism to American collectors, dealers, and museums...
, and Willard Metcalf
Willard Metcalf
Willard Leroy Metcalf was an American artist born in Lowell, Massachusetts. He studied at the School of the Museum of Fine Arts, Boston, and later attended Académie Julian, Paris. After early figure-painting and illustration, he became prominent as a landscape painter...
. U.S. President Woodrow 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...
and his family dined with "Miss Florence" and the artists in the house.
Appearance and layout
The entire first floor has been furnished to reflect its appearance in about 19101910 in art
-Events:*Robert Delaunay marries Sonia Terk.*Bronze sculptor Robert Kionsek joins the Berlin workshop of Ferdinand Preiss to form the PK firm; the two men combine their specialties to produce sculptures in bronze and ivory.-Exhibitions:...
, the height of its years as an artists' boarding house. Visitors enter through a wide center hall, where an "informal gallery" displays paintings on grass cloth walls. The hall also contains Colonial and Empire furniture. Two bedrooms are off the hallway — Miss Florence's bedroom and a guest bedroom. A parlor on the first floor has artists' brushes on the mantel. In that room the artist-boarders would present various types of entertainment for each other. The second floor is exhibition space.
Samuel Belcher, architect of the Old Lyme Congregational Church
Old Lyme Congregational Church
The Old Lyme Congregational Church is located in Old Lyme, Connecticut. The church is noted as a favorite subject of Lyme Art Colony painters. It is affiliated with the United Church of Christ.-History:...
, designed the late Georgian-style house for William Noyes. It was built in 1817.
The artists who painted on the house's doors and walls were probably following a tradition imported from hostelries in the French art colonies at Barbizon, Giverny, and Pont-Aven. A total of 41 painted panels are in the downstairs rooms.
The house was declared a National Historic Landmark
National Historic Landmark
A National Historic Landmark is a building, site, structure, object, or district, that is officially recognized by the United States government for its historical significance...
in 1993. In July 2007 the building reopened after a 14-month restoration project.