Spanish Duenna Richard Norton Gallery (Chicago) showed work by Gertrude Abercrombie and Clayton Whitehill at Expo Chicago 2015 (September 18 to 20).
Abercrombie was born in Austin, Texas. Her parents were opera singers. The family wound up in Aledo Illinois in 1914 when the artist was five. She studied at University of Illinois. She was, to put it mildly, a colorful character. Her home in Hyde Park was a creative gathering spot for the likes of Thornton WIlder, Sonny Rollins, Dizzy Gillespie, Billie Holiday, Sarah Vaughn and more. Known for throwing wild parties and careening through town in a beaten up Rolls Royce she was also RUMORED to be Charles Addams' inspiration for Morticia (there is no actual hard evidence of this). She created small works that were often, in part, self-portraits. She was featured in the LACMA exhibit In Wonderland: The Surrealist Adventures of Women Artists in Mexico and the United States.
Spanish Duenna and Snails in the Moonlight are oil on masonite and painted (respectively) in 1947 and 1963. Broken Limb is tempera on masonite and is from 1940.
Abercrombie was born in Austin, Texas. Her parents were opera singers. The family wound up in Aledo Illinois in 1914 when the artist was five. She studied at University of Illinois. She was, to put it mildly, a colorful character. Her home in Hyde Park was a creative gathering spot for the likes of Thornton WIlder, Sonny Rollins, Dizzy Gillespie, Billie Holiday, Sarah Vaughn and more. Known for throwing wild parties and careening through town in a beaten up Rolls Royce she was also RUMORED to be Charles Addams' inspiration for Morticia (there is no actual hard evidence of this). She created small works that were often, in part, self-portraits. She was featured in the LACMA exhibit In Wonderland: The Surrealist Adventures of Women Artists in Mexico and the United States.
Spanish Duenna and Snails in the Moonlight are oil on masonite and painted (respectively) in 1947 and 1963. Broken Limb is tempera on masonite and is from 1940.
Snails in the Moonlight
Broken Limb
Whitehill, from Philadelphia, was a World War I veteran and graduated from Columbia University (New York). He was a Professor of Art at the Museum School of Philadelphia Museum of Art. He wrote a book, The Moods
of Type, on typography which is still used today.
Then, in the late 1950s he did what all of us want to do; he moved to Italy. He lived there, painting, until his death in 1963.
of Type, on typography which is still used today.
Then, in the late 1950s he did what all of us want to do; he moved to Italy. He lived there, painting, until his death in 1963.
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