Will Hicok Low
Encyclopedia
Will Hicok Low was a United States
artist
and writer on art.
. In 1873 he entered the atelier
of Jean-Léon Gérôme
in the École des Beaux Arts at Paris
, subsequently joining the classes of Carolus-Duran
, with whom he remained until 1877. Returning to New York
, he became a member of the Society of American Artists
in 1878 and of the National Academy of Design
in 1890. His pictures of New England
types, and illustrations of John Keats
, brought him into prominence.
Subsequently he turned his attention to decoration, and executed panels and medallions for the Waldorf-Astoria Hotel
in New York City
, a panel for the Essex County
Court House in Newark, New Jersey
as well as numerous panels for private residences and stained glass
windows for various churches, including St. Paul's Methodist Episcopal Church
, Newark
.
He was an instructor in the schools of Cooper Union
, New York, during 1882 to 1885, and in the school of the National Academy of Design from 1889 to 1892. Low, who is known to a wider circle as the friend of R. L. Stevenson
, published some reminiscences, A Chronicle of Friendships, 1873-1900 (1908).
In 1909 he illustrated the book "In Arcady" by Hamilton Wright Mabie
. The style was influenced by the Art Nouveau
movement.
In 1909 he married the former Mary Fairchild
, the former wife of sculptor Frederick William MacMonnies
.
A mural by him is located in the Howard M. Metzenbaum U.S. Courthouse.
United States
The United States of America is a federal constitutional republic comprising fifty states and a federal district...
artist
Artist
An artist is a person engaged in one or more of any of a broad spectrum of activities related to creating art, practicing the arts and/or demonstrating an art. The common usage in both everyday speech and academic discourse is a practitioner in the visual arts only...
and writer on art.
Biography
He was born at Albany, New YorkAlbany, New York
Albany is the capital city of the U.S. state of New York, the seat of Albany County, and the central city of New York's Capital District. Roughly north of New York City, Albany sits on the west bank of the Hudson River, about south of its confluence with the Mohawk River...
. In 1873 he entered the atelier
Studio
A studio is an artist's or worker's workroom, or the catchall term for an artist and his or her employees who work within that studio. This can be for the purpose of architecture, painting, pottery , sculpture, scrapbooking, photography, graphic design, filmmaking, animation, radio or television...
of Jean-Léon Gérôme
Jean-Léon Gérôme
Jean-Léon Gérôme was a French painter and sculptor in the style now known as Academicism. The range of his oeuvre included historical painting, Greek mythology, Orientalism, portraits and other subjects, bringing the Academic painting tradition to an artistic climax.-Life:Jean-Léon Gérôme was born...
in the École des Beaux Arts at 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...
, subsequently joining the classes of Carolus-Duran
Carolus-Duran
Charles Auguste Émile Durand, known as Carolus-Duran , was a French painter and art instructor. He is noted for his stylish depictions of members of high society in Third Republic France.-Biography:...
, with whom he remained until 1877. Returning to New York
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...
, he became a member of the Society of American Artists
Society of American Artists
The Society of American Artists was an American artists group. It was formed in 1877 by artists who felt the National Academy of Design did not adequately meet their needs, and was too conservative....
in 1878 and of the National Academy of Design
National Academy of Design
The National Academy Museum and School of Fine Arts, founded in New York City as the National Academy of Design – known simply as the "National Academy" – is an honorary association of American artists founded in 1825 by Samuel F. B. Morse, Asher B. Durand, Thomas Cole, Martin E...
in 1890. His pictures of New England
New England
New England is a region in the northeastern corner of the United States consisting of the six states of Maine, New Hampshire, Vermont, Massachusetts, Rhode Island, and Connecticut...
types, and illustrations of John Keats
John Keats
John Keats was an English Romantic poet. Along with Lord Byron and Percy Bysshe Shelley, he was one of the key figures in the second generation of the Romantic movement, despite the fact that his work had been in publication for only four years before his death.Although his poems were not...
, brought him into prominence.
Subsequently he turned his attention to decoration, and executed panels and medallions for the Waldorf-Astoria Hotel
Waldorf-Astoria Hotel
The Waldorf-Astoria is a luxury hotel in New York. It has been housed in two historic landmark buildings in New York City. The first, designed by architect Henry J. Hardenbergh, was on the Fifth Avenue site of the Empire State Building. The present building at 301 Park Avenue in Manhattan is a...
in 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...
, a panel for the Essex County
Essex County, New Jersey
Essex County is a county located in the northeastern part of the U.S. state of New Jersey. As of the United States 2010 Census, the population was 783,969, ranking it third in the state after Bergen County and Middlesex County; Essex County's population has declined from 786,147 as of the bureau's...
Court House in Newark, New Jersey
Newark, New Jersey
Newark is the largest city in the American state of New Jersey, and the seat of Essex County. As of the 2010 United States Census, Newark had a population of 277,140, maintaining its status as the largest municipality in New Jersey. It is the 68th largest city in the U.S...
as well as numerous panels for private residences and stained glass
Stained glass
The term stained glass can refer to coloured glass as a material or to works produced from it. Throughout its thousand-year history, the term has been applied almost exclusively to the windows of churches and other significant buildings...
windows for various churches, including St. Paul's Methodist Episcopal Church
Methodist Episcopal Church
The Methodist Episcopal Church, sometimes referred to as the M.E. Church, was a development of the first expression of Methodism in the United States. It officially began at the Baltimore Christmas Conference in 1784, with Francis Asbury and Thomas Coke as the first bishops. Through a series of...
, Newark
Newark, New Jersey
Newark is the largest city in the American state of New Jersey, and the seat of Essex County. As of the 2010 United States Census, Newark had a population of 277,140, maintaining its status as the largest municipality in New Jersey. It is the 68th largest city in the U.S...
.
He was an instructor in the schools of Cooper Union
Cooper Union
The Cooper Union for the Advancement of Science and Art, commonly referred to simply as Cooper Union, is a privately funded college in the East Village neighborhood of Manhattan, New York City, United States, located at Cooper Square and Astor Place...
, New York, during 1882 to 1885, and in the school of the National Academy of Design from 1889 to 1892. Low, who is known to a wider circle as the friend of R. L. Stevenson
Robert Louis Stevenson
Robert Louis Balfour Stevenson was a Scottish novelist, poet, essayist and travel writer. His best-known books include Treasure Island, Kidnapped, and Strange Case of Dr Jekyll and Mr Hyde....
, published some reminiscences, A Chronicle of Friendships, 1873-1900 (1908).
In 1909 he illustrated the book "In Arcady" by Hamilton Wright Mabie
Hamilton Wright Mabie
Hamilton Wright Mabie, A.M., L.H.D., LL.D. was an American essayist, editor, critic, and lecturer.-Biography:He was born at Cold Spring, N. Y. in 1846. Mabie was the youngest child of Sarah Colwell Mabie who was from a wealthy Scottish-English family and Levi Jeremiah Mabie, whose ancestors were...
. The style was influenced by the Art Nouveau
Art Nouveau
Art Nouveau is an international philosophy and style of art, architecture and applied art—especially the decorative arts—that were most popular during 1890–1910. The name "Art Nouveau" is French for "new art"...
movement.
In 1909 he married the former Mary Fairchild
Mary Fairchild Low
Mary Fairchild Low was an American figure, landscape, and portrait painter, who married Frederick MacMonnies in 1888 and Will H. Low in 1909. She was born at New Haven, Conn., and studied at the St. Louis Art School , and in Paris at the Académie Julian and under Carolus Duran...
, the former wife of sculptor Frederick William MacMonnies
Frederick William MacMonnies
Frederick William MacMonnies was the best known expatriate American sculptor of the Beaux-Arts school, as successful and lauded in France as he was in the United States...
.
A mural by him is located in the Howard M. Metzenbaum U.S. Courthouse.
External links
- Biography from the Morseburg Galleries
- http://libcdm1.uncg.edu/cdm4/results.php?CISOOP1=exact&CISORESTMP=results.php&CISOVIEWTMP=item_viewer.php&CISOMODE=grid&CISOGRID=thumbnail%2CA%2C1%3Btitle%2CA%2C1%3Bdescri%2C200%2C0%3Bdate%2CA%2C0%3Bnone%2CA%2C0%3B20%3Brelevancy%2Cnone%2Cnone%2Cnone%2Cnone&CISOBIB=title%2CA%2C1%2CN%3Bdate%2CA%2C0%2CN%3Bdescri%2C200%2C0%2CN%3Bnone%2CA%2C0%2CN%3Bnone%2CA%2C0%2CN%3B20%3Brelevancy%2Cnone%2Cnone%2Cnone%2Cnone&CISOTHUMB=20+%284x5%29%3Brelevancy%2Cnone%2Cnone%2Cnone%2Cnone&CISOTITLE=20%3Btitle%2Cnone%2Cnone%2Cnone%2Cnone&CISOHIERA=20%3Bdate%2Ctitle%2Cnone%2Cnone%2Cnone&CISOSUPPRESS=1&CISOPARM=%2Ftb1+%3Acreato%3ALow%2C+Will+Hicok%2C+1853-1932UNCG American Publishers' Trade Bindings: Will Hicok Low]