Henry Alexander (painter)
Encyclopedia
Henry Alexander was an American
painter from California
.
After early exhibiting a talent for drawing and painting, he went to study at the Academy of Fine Arts in Munich
, where his teachers were Ludwig von Loeffts and the history painter Wilhelm Lindenschmidt.
The New York Herald
described Henry Alexander as one of the creators of the modern school of art.
Aside from a few trompe-l'oeil paintings, his paintings generally depict individuals within highly detailed interiors. He also painted Chinese
and Japan
ese subjects.
He left San Francisco for New York City
on April 15, 1887, in order to be at the center of the art world, but he suffered from money troubles
and alcoholism
. He had a studio at 51 West Tenth Street. The other artists in the building avoided him, because he was always trying to borrow money. On May 15, 1894, his money troubles led him to commit suicide by swallowing oxalic acid
in the Oriental Hotel at Broadway and Thirty-Ninth Street.
United States
The United States of America is a federal constitutional republic comprising fifty states and a federal district...
painter from California
California
California is a state located on the West Coast of the United States. It is by far the most populous U.S. state, and the third-largest by land area...
.
After early exhibiting a talent for drawing and painting, he went to study at the Academy of Fine Arts in Munich
Munich
Munich The city's motto is "" . Before 2006, it was "Weltstadt mit Herz" . Its native name, , is derived from the Old High German Munichen, meaning "by the monks' place". The city's name derives from the monks of the Benedictine order who founded the city; hence the monk depicted on the city's coat...
, where his teachers were Ludwig von Loeffts and the history painter Wilhelm Lindenschmidt.
The New York Herald
New York Herald
The New York Herald was a large distribution newspaper based in New York City that existed between May 6, 1835, and 1924.-History:The first issue of the paper was published by James Gordon Bennett, Sr., on May 6, 1835. By 1845 it was the most popular and profitable daily newspaper in the UnitedStates...
described Henry Alexander as one of the creators of the modern school of art.
Aside from a few trompe-l'oeil paintings, his paintings generally depict individuals within highly detailed interiors. He also painted Chinese
China
Chinese civilization may refer to:* China for more general discussion of the country.* Chinese culture* Greater China, the transnational community of ethnic Chinese.* History of China* Sinosphere, the area historically affected by Chinese culture...
and Japan
Japan
Japan is an island nation in East Asia. Located in the Pacific Ocean, it lies to the east of the Sea of Japan, China, North Korea, South Korea and Russia, stretching from the Sea of Okhotsk in the north to the East China Sea and Taiwan in the south...
ese subjects.
He left San Francisco for 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...
on April 15, 1887, in order to be at the center of the art world, but he suffered from money troubles
Debt
A debt is an obligation owed by one party to a second party, the creditor; usually this refers to assets granted by the creditor to the debtor, but the term can also be used metaphorically to cover moral obligations and other interactions not based on economic value.A debt is created when a...
and alcoholism
Alcoholism
Alcoholism is a broad term for problems with alcohol, and is generally used to mean compulsive and uncontrolled consumption of alcoholic beverages, usually to the detriment of the drinker's health, personal relationships, and social standing...
. He had a studio at 51 West Tenth Street. The other artists in the building avoided him, because he was always trying to borrow money. On May 15, 1894, his money troubles led him to commit suicide by swallowing oxalic acid
Oxalic acid
Oxalic acid is an organic compound with the formula H2C2O4. This colourless solid is a dicarboxylic acid. In terms of acid strength, it is about 3,000 times stronger than acetic acid. Oxalic acid is a reducing agent and its conjugate base, known as oxalate , is a chelating agent for metal cations...
in the Oriental Hotel at Broadway and Thirty-Ninth Street.
List of Paintings
- Morning Prayer
- Sunday Afternoon
- Lost Genius
- First Lesson
- Neglecting Business (Playing Chess), 1887 (now in the Fine Arts Museum of San Francisco)
- The Letter Home
- Lesson in Gunning
- The Cap Makers (as of 1892, in the collection of Thomas D. Clark)
- Sunday Morning (as of 1892, in the collection of Thomas D. Clark)
- Interesting Game (as of 1892, in the collection of Thomas D. Clark)
- The Hebrew Orphan AsylumHebrew Orphan Asylum of New YorkThe Hebrew Orphan Asylum of New York was a Jewish orphanage in New York City. It was founded in 1860 by the Hebrew Benevolent Society. It closed in 1941, after pedagogical research concluded that children thrive better in foster care or small group homes, rather than in large institutions...
(the painter's favorite) - In the Laboratory (painted 1885-87; a portrait of the San Francisco assayer Thomas Price; in the collection of the Metropolitan Museum of ArtMetropolitan Museum of ArtThe 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...
, purchased 1939, item number 39.46)
External links
- Henry Alexander papers, 1879-1888 from the Smithsonian Archives of American ArtArchives of American ArtThe Archives of American Art is the largest collection of primary resources documenting the history of the visual arts in the United States. More than 16 million items of original material are housed in the Archives' research centers in Washington, D.C...