Preston Dickinson
Encyclopedia
William Preston Dickinson (September 9, 1889 - November 25, 1930) was an American modern art
ist, best known for his paintings of industrial subjects in the Precisionist
style.
, a third-generation American in a working-class family. His father was an amateur painter who made a living as a calligrapher and interior decorator; he died when Preston was only eleven years old. By 1906, his family had relocated to Suffern, New York
.
Dickinson studied between 1906 and 1910 at the Art Students League of New York
under William Merritt Chase
, as well as under Ernest Lawson
. His tuition at the art school was paid by philanthropist and art patron Henry Barbey. Barbey and art dealer Charles Daniel also financed Dickinson's trip to Europe. From 1910 to 1914, he lived in Paris, where he studied at the Académie Julian
and École des Beaux-Arts
, and exhibited his work at the Paris Salon and the Salon des Indépendants.
After the start of World War I
, Dickinson returned to the U.S. in September 1914. Lacking resources, he moved in with his mother, widowed sister and her son in the Bronx
. He shortly participated in several group exhibitions at the Daniel Gallery, ultimately receiving his first solo gallery show there in 1923. He spent the summer of 1924 in Omaha, Nebraska
, where he produced a series of drawings of the Peters Mills granaries and factory complex. He lived in Quebec
from 1925 to 1926, where he painted landscapes and street scenes. By the end of the 1920s, he had established a reputation as an important American modernist and his works had entered public and private collections.
In June 1930, Dickinson moved to Spain with friend and fellow painter Oronzo Gasparo, looking for a cheap place to live and paint. Dickinson's money ran out by that autumn, but before he could leave Spain he was hospitalized with double pneumonia. He died three days later, on November 25, 1930, in Irun, Spain, and was buried there. He had long been in poor health, suffering from alcoholism among other conditions.
Dickinson posthumously received his first solo museum show, staged at the The Phillips Collection in 1931 by its founder and director Duncan Phillips
, who had admired Dickinson's work.
and Charles Demuth
. Dickinson was motivated by a reverence for the benefits of technology and industry to humanity, as well as an interest in its formal qualities. Many of his industrial scenes were imaginary (such as Factory (c. 1920), pictured at right), though his work later shifted towards a greater realism. Dickinson also produced many landscapes, depicting the Harlem River
at many times during his life, though he was most interested in the cut-stone architecture that lined and crossed the river. He painted numerous still lifes of man-made objects, with table-top settings depicting "simple dining" being a recurring theme.
Experimenting with a variety of techniques and styles, his work showed influence from a number of avant-garde art movements, such as Cubism
, Futurism
, Fauvism
, and Synchromism
. His use of color was expressive, showing his influence by the Post-Impressionists and Fauves. His later work, though superficially in a Precisionist style, utilizes off-balance, expressionistic compositions with jagged diagonals. Some of his work in the 1920s was also observed by critics as having an Oriental influence, believed to derive from his studies of Japanese ukiyo-e
art.
Dickinson produced fewer than two hundred works during his twenty-year career. He usually did not sign or date his works, which together with his stylistic experimentation makes it difficult to place them in a chronology.
Modern art
Modern art includes artistic works produced during the period extending roughly from the 1860s to the 1970s, and denotes the style and philosophy of the art produced during that era. The term is usually associated with art in which the traditions of the past have been thrown aside in a spirit of...
ist, best known for his paintings of industrial subjects in the Precisionist
Precisionism
Precisionism, also known as Cubist Realism, was an artistic movement that emerged in the United States after World War I and was at its height during the inter-War period...
style.
Biography
William Preston Dickinson was born on September 9, 1889 in New York CityNew 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...
, a third-generation American in a working-class family. His father was an amateur painter who made a living as a calligrapher and interior decorator; he died when Preston was only eleven years old. By 1906, his family had relocated to Suffern, New York
Suffern, New York
Suffern is a village in the Town of Ramapo, Rockland County, New York, United States located north of the State of New Jersey; east of Hillburn; south of Montebello and west of Airmont...
.
Dickinson studied between 1906 and 1910 at the Art Students League of New York
Art Students League of New York
The Art Students League of New York is an art school located on West 57th Street in New York City. The League has historically been known for its broad appeal to both amateurs and professional artists, and has maintained for over 130 years a tradition of offering reasonably priced classes on a...
under 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...
, as well as under Ernest Lawson
Ernest Lawson
Ernest Lawson was a Canadian-American painter and a member of The Eight, a group of artists which included the group's leaders Robert Henri, Everett Shinn, John Sloan, Arthur B. Davies, Maurice Prendergast, George Luks, and William J. Glackens...
. His tuition at the art school was paid by philanthropist and art patron Henry Barbey. Barbey and art dealer Charles Daniel also financed Dickinson's trip to Europe. From 1910 to 1914, he lived in Paris, where he studied at the Académie Julian
Académie Julian
The Académie Julian was an art school in Paris, France.Rodolphe Julian established the Académie Julian in 1868 at the Passage des Panoramas, as a private studio school for art students. The Académie Julian not only prepared students to the exams at the prestigious École des Beaux-Arts, but offered...
and École des Beaux-Arts
École des Beaux-Arts
École des Beaux-Arts refers to a number of influential art schools in France. The most famous is the École nationale supérieure des Beaux-Arts, now located on the left bank in Paris, across the Seine from the Louvre, in the 6th arrondissement. The school has a history spanning more than 350 years,...
, and exhibited his work at the Paris Salon and the Salon des Indépendants.
After the start of World War I
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...
, Dickinson returned to the U.S. in September 1914. Lacking resources, he moved in with his mother, widowed sister and her son in the Bronx
The Bronx
The Bronx is the northernmost of the five boroughs of New York City. It is also known as Bronx County, the last of the 62 counties of New York State to be incorporated...
. He shortly participated in several group exhibitions at the Daniel Gallery, ultimately receiving his first solo gallery show there in 1923. He spent the summer of 1924 in Omaha, Nebraska
Omaha, Nebraska
Omaha is the largest city in the state of Nebraska, United States, and is the county seat of Douglas County. It is located in the Midwestern United States on the Missouri River, about 20 miles north of the mouth of the Platte River...
, where he produced a series of drawings of the Peters Mills granaries and factory complex. He lived in Quebec
Quebec
Quebec or is a province in east-central Canada. It is the only Canadian province with a predominantly French-speaking population and the only one whose sole official language is French at the provincial level....
from 1925 to 1926, where he painted landscapes and street scenes. By the end of the 1920s, he had established a reputation as an important American modernist and his works had entered public and private collections.
In June 1930, Dickinson moved to Spain with friend and fellow painter Oronzo Gasparo, looking for a cheap place to live and paint. Dickinson's money ran out by that autumn, but before he could leave Spain he was hospitalized with double pneumonia. He died three days later, on November 25, 1930, in Irun, Spain, and was buried there. He had long been in poor health, suffering from alcoholism among other conditions.
Dickinson posthumously received his first solo museum show, staged at the The Phillips Collection in 1931 by its founder and director Duncan Phillips
Duncan Phillips (art collector)
Duncan Phillips was a Washington, DC, based art collector and critic who played a seminal role in introducing America to modern art. The grandson of James H. Laughlin, a banker and co-founder of the Jones and Laughlin Steel Company, Phillips was born in Pittsburgh and moved with his family to...
, who had admired Dickinson's work.
Work
Dickinson was one of the first American artists to focus on industrial subjects. He was working in the Precisionist mode by at least 1915, and his depictions of factories and granaries predate those of fellow Precisionists Charles SheelerCharles Sheeler
Charles Rettew Sheeler, Jr. was an American artist. He is recognized as one of the founders of American modernism and one of the master photographers of the 20th century.-Early life and career:...
and Charles Demuth
Charles Demuth
Charles Demuth was an American watercolorist who turned to oils late in his career, developing a style of painting known as Precisionism....
. Dickinson was motivated by a reverence for the benefits of technology and industry to humanity, as well as an interest in its formal qualities. Many of his industrial scenes were imaginary (such as Factory (c. 1920), pictured at right), though his work later shifted towards a greater realism. Dickinson also produced many landscapes, depicting the Harlem River
Harlem River
The Harlem River is a navigable tidal strait in New York City, USA that flows 8 miles between the Hudson River and the East River, separating the boroughs of Manhattan and the Bronx...
at many times during his life, though he was most interested in the cut-stone architecture that lined and crossed the river. He painted numerous still lifes of man-made objects, with table-top settings depicting "simple dining" being a recurring theme.
Experimenting with a variety of techniques and styles, his work showed influence from a number of avant-garde art movements, such as Cubism
Cubism
Cubism was a 20th century avant-garde art movement, pioneered by Pablo Picasso and Georges Braque, that revolutionized European painting and sculpture, and inspired related movements in music, literature and architecture...
, Futurism
Futurism
Futurism was an artistic and social movement that originated in Italy in the early 20th century.Futurism or futurist may refer to:* Afrofuturism, an African-American and African diaspora subculture* Cubo-Futurism* Ego-Futurism...
, Fauvism
Fauvism
Fauvism is the style of les Fauves , a short-lived and loose group of early twentieth-century Modern artists whose works emphasized painterly qualities and strong colour over the representational or realistic values retained by Impressionism...
, and Synchromism
Synchromism
Synchromism was an art movement founded in 1912 by American artists Stanton MacDonald-Wright and Morgan Russell. Their abstract "synchromies", based on a theory of color that analogized it to music, were among the first abstract paintings in American art...
. His use of color was expressive, showing his influence by the Post-Impressionists and Fauves. His later work, though superficially in a Precisionist style, utilizes off-balance, expressionistic compositions with jagged diagonals. Some of his work in the 1920s was also observed by critics as having an Oriental influence, believed to derive from his studies of Japanese ukiyo-e
Ukiyo-e
' is a genre of Japanese woodblock prints and paintings produced between the 17th and the 20th centuries, featuring motifs of landscapes, tales from history, the theatre, and pleasure quarters...
art.
Dickinson produced fewer than two hundred works during his twenty-year career. He usually did not sign or date his works, which together with his stylistic experimentation makes it difficult to place them in a chronology.