Heckscher Museum of Art
Encyclopedia
The Heckscher Museum of Art is named after its benefactor, August Heckscher
, who in 1920 donated 185 works of art to be housed in a new Beaux-Arts building located in Heckscher Park
, in Huntington, New York
. Today the museum has over 2000 works of art, focused mainly on American landscape paintings and work by Long Island
artists, as well as featuring American and European modernism
, and photography
. The most famous painting in the collection is George Grosz
’s “Eclipse of the Sun” (1926).
. In 1957 the town passed responsibility for running the museum to an independent board of trustees, after which the museum began once again to expand its collection. The collection was greatly enlarged in 2001 with the donation of a large collection of American painting
s and drawing
s by Ronald G. Pisano and D. Frederick Baker, one of the largest gifts to the museum since August Heckscher's original donation. The museum ran into controversy in 2005 when it tried to finance a long planned expansion by selling its most valuable work, "Eclipse of the Sun", for $19 million. The museum was forced to back away from the sale after public outcry and the latest expansion plan was canceled. In 2008, the museum completed a less ambitious nine-month restoration.
’s Virgin, Child, St. John the Baptist and Angels of 1534.
The museum has works by 17th, 18th and 19th century European painters, but is strongest in 19th and 20th century American artists, including works by painters such as William Merritt Chase
, Frederic Church, Asher Durand, Thomas Eakins
, Winslow Homer
, George Inness
, Edward Moran
, and Thomas Moran
.
The modern and abstract art collections are extensive and includes artists such as Ilya Bolotowsky
, Georgia O'Keeffe
, Knox Martin
, and Esphyr Slobodkina
. The museum also features many works from one-time Huntington residents such as Arthur Dove
, Helen Torr, and George Grosz
.
The photography collection features the work of Berenice Abbott
, Larry Fink
, Eadweard Muybridge
, and Man Ray
's Electricité portfolio of 1931.
The museum is normally open year round from Wednesday through Sunday. There is an admission fee.
August Heckscher
-Biography:Born in Hamburg, Germany, Heckscher emigrated to the United States in 1867. He initially worked in his cousin Richard Heckscher's coal mining operation as a laborer, studying English at night. Several years later he formed a partnership with his cousin under the name of Richard Heckscher...
, who in 1920 donated 185 works of art to be housed in a new Beaux-Arts building located in Heckscher Park
Heckscher Park (Huntington, New York)
Heckscher Park is a local park and national historic district in Huntington, Suffolk County, New York. Often confused with Heckscher State Park in East Islip, New York it is bounded by Madison Street, Sabbath Day Path, Main Street & Prime Avenue, in Huntington. It is roughly triangular-shaped with...
, in Huntington, New York
Huntington, New York
The Town of Huntington is one of ten towns in Suffolk County, New York, USA. Founded in 1653, it is located on the north shore of Long Island in northwestern Suffolk County, with Long Island Sound to its north and Nassau County adjacent to the west. Huntington is part of the New York metropolitan...
. Today the museum has over 2000 works of art, focused mainly on American landscape paintings and work by Long Island
Long Island
Long Island is an island located in the southeast part of the U.S. state of New York, just east of Manhattan. Stretching northeast into the Atlantic Ocean, Long Island contains four counties, two of which are boroughs of New York City , and two of which are mainly suburban...
artists, as well as featuring American and European modernism
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...
, and photography
Photography
Photography is the art, science and practice of creating durable images by recording light or other electromagnetic radiation, either electronically by means of an image sensor or chemically by means of a light-sensitive material such as photographic film...
. The most famous painting in the collection is George Grosz
George Grosz
Georg Ehrenfried Groß was a German artist known especially for his savagely caricatural drawings of Berlin life in the 1920s...
’s “Eclipse of the Sun” (1926).
History
Founded by August Heckscher in 1920, the museum was based on his initial donation of 185 works of art. Originally run by a private foundation, it was taken over by the town of Huntington as its finances failed during the Great DepressionGreat Depression
The Great Depression was a severe worldwide economic depression in the decade preceding World War II. The timing of the Great Depression varied across nations, but in most countries it started in about 1929 and lasted until the late 1930s or early 1940s...
. In 1957 the town passed responsibility for running the museum to an independent board of trustees, after which the museum began once again to expand its collection. The collection was greatly enlarged in 2001 with the donation of a large collection of American painting
Painting
Painting is the practice of applying paint, pigment, color or other medium to a surface . The application of the medium is commonly applied to the base with a brush but other objects can be used. In art, the term painting describes both the act and the result of the action. However, painting is...
s and drawing
Drawing
Drawing is a form of visual art that makes use of any number of drawing instruments to mark a two-dimensional medium. Common instruments include graphite pencils, pen and ink, inked brushes, wax color pencils, crayons, charcoal, chalk, pastels, markers, styluses, and various metals .An artist who...
s by Ronald G. Pisano and D. Frederick Baker, one of the largest gifts to the museum since August Heckscher's original donation. The museum ran into controversy in 2005 when it tried to finance a long planned expansion by selling its most valuable work, "Eclipse of the Sun", for $19 million. The museum was forced to back away from the sale after public outcry and the latest expansion plan was canceled. In 2008, the museum completed a less ambitious nine-month restoration.
Collection
The collection has grown from its original 185 works to over 2,100, and spans over 500 years. The oldest major work is Lucas Cranach the ElderLucas Cranach the Elder
Lucas Cranach the Elder , was a German Renaissance painter and printmaker in woodcut and engraving...
’s Virgin, Child, St. John the Baptist and Angels of 1534.
The museum has works by 17th, 18th and 19th century European painters, but is strongest in 19th and 20th century American artists, including works by painters such as William Merritt Chase
William Merritt Chase
William Merritt Chase was an American painter known as an exponent of Impressionism and as a teacher. He is also responsible for establishing the Chase School, which later would become Parsons The New School for Design.- Early life and training :He was born in Williamsburg , Indiana, to the family...
, Frederic Church, Asher Durand, Thomas Eakins
Thomas Eakins
Thomas Cowperthwait Eakins was an American realist painter, photographer, sculptor, and fine arts educator...
, Winslow Homer
Winslow Homer
Winslow Homer was an American landscape painter and printmaker, best known for his marine subjects. He is considered one of the foremost painters in 19th century America and a preeminent figure in American art....
, George Inness
George Inness
George Inness was an American landscape painter; born in Newburgh, New York; died at Bridge of Allan in Scotland. His work was influenced, in turn, by that of the old masters, the Hudson River school, the Barbizon school, and, finally, by the theology of Emanuel Swedenborg, whose spiritualism...
, Edward Moran
Edward Moran
Edward Moran was an American artist.He emigrated with his family to America at the age of 15, and subsequently settled in Philadelphia, where after having followed his fathers trade of weaver, he became a pupil of James Hamilton and Paul Weber...
, and Thomas Moran
Thomas Moran
Thomas Moran from Bolton, England was an American painter and printmaker of the Hudson River School in New York whose work often featured the Rocky Mountains. Moran and his family took residence in New York where he obtained work as an artist...
.
The modern and abstract art collections are extensive and includes artists such as Ilya Bolotowsky
Ilya Bolotowsky
Ilya Bolotowsky was a leading early 20th-century painter in abstract styles in New York City. His work, a search for philosophical order through visual expression, embraced cubism and geometric abstraction and was much influenced by Dutch painter Piet Mondrian.Born to Jewish parents in St...
, Georgia O'Keeffe
Georgia O'Keeffe
Georgia Totto O'Keeffe was an American artist.Born near Sun Prairie, Wisconsin, O'Keeffe first came to the attention of the New York art community in 1916, several decades before women had gained access to art training in America’s colleges and universities, and before any of its women artists...
, Knox Martin
Knox Martin
Knox Martin is an American painter, sculptor and muralist.Born in 1923 in Barranquilla, Colombia, he studied at the Art Students League of New York from 1946 till 1950. He is one of the leading members of New York School - a group of artists and writers. He lives and works in New York City."Art is...
, and Esphyr Slobodkina
Esphyr Slobodkina
Esphyr Slobodkina was a popular artist, author, and illustrator, best known for her classic 1940 children's book Caps for Sale.-Biography:...
. The museum also features many works from one-time Huntington residents such as Arthur Dove
Arthur Dove
Arthur Garfield Dove was an American artist. An early American modernist, he is often considered the first American abstract painter.-Youth and education:...
, Helen Torr, and George Grosz
George Grosz
Georg Ehrenfried Groß was a German artist known especially for his savagely caricatural drawings of Berlin life in the 1920s...
.
The photography collection features the work of Berenice Abbott
Berenice Abbott
Berenice Abbott , born Bernice Abbott, was an American photographer best known for her black-and-white photography of New York City architecture and urban design of the 1930s.-Youth:...
, Larry Fink
Larry Fink (photographer)
Larry Fink is an American photographer best known for his black-and-white images of people at parties and in other social situations.- Life and career :Fink was born in 1941 in Brooklyn, New York...
, Eadweard Muybridge
Eadweard Muybridge
Eadweard J. Muybridge was an English photographer who spent much of his life in the United States. He is known for his pioneering work on animal locomotion which used multiple cameras to capture motion, and his zoopraxiscope, a device for projecting motion pictures that pre-dated the flexible...
, and Man Ray
Man Ray
Man Ray , born Emmanuel Radnitzky, was an American artist who spent most of his career in Paris, France. Perhaps best described simply as a modernist, he was a significant contributor to both the Dada and Surrealist movements, although his ties to each were informal...
's Electricité portfolio of 1931.
The museum is normally open year round from Wednesday through Sunday. There is an admission fee.