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Joseph R. Woodwell

From Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia
Joseph R. Woodwell
Portrait of Joseph R. Woodwell by Thomas Eakins, 1904
Born(1842-09-07)September 7, 1842
Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania
DiedMay 30, 1911(1911-05-30) (aged 69)
Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania
NationalityAmerican
Known forPainting

Joseph R. Woodwell (1842 – 1911) was an American businessman who was always more interested in painting and became known as an artist. He gained wealth from his father's hardware business and position by serving as director of three banks. He also continued a study and practice of painting that started when he went abroad to Paris at the age of seventeen.

Biography

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Joseph Ryan Woodwell was born on September 7, 1842, in Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania to Joseph and Joanna Woodwell. His father had been a cabinetmaker in New York. He also carved figures on ships' prows. Soon after the boy's birth, his father started a hardware business, known as Joseph Woodwell & Company, from which he made his wealth. [1]

As a young man, Woodwell traveled to France where he studied with Charles Gleyre.[2] He was associated with the Scalp Level Group painters in Pennsylvania.[1]

Woodwell married Margaret E. Their daughter Johanna later became known as a painter in her own right.[3]

Woodwell exhibited his work at the Carnegie International, the National Academy of Design, and the Pennsylvania Academy of the Fine Arts. He also exhibited at the 1876 Philadelphia Centennial Exposition and the 1893 Chicago World's Fair.[1]

In the 1880s both Woodwell and his brother William K. Woodwell became members of the exclusive South Fork Fishing and Hunting Club, comprised mostly of the wealthy elite from Pittsburgh. It developed a property for summer recreation in the mountains outside Pittsburgh.

He died on May 30, 1911, in Pittsburgh.[1]

Woodwell's work is included in the collection of the Carnegie Museum of Art.[4] His letters are in the Archives of American Art at the Smithsonian Institution.[5]

References

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  1. ^ a b c d "Joseph R Woodwell (1842-1911) - Johnstown Flood National Memorial (U.S. National Park Service)". Johnstown Flood National Memorial Lake View Visitor Center. Retrieved 25 July 2020.
  2. ^ "Joseph Ryan Woodwell". Bedford Fine Art Gallery. Retrieved 25 July 2020.
  3. ^ "Artist Biographies". Gilliland Fine Art. Retrieved 25 July 2020.
  4. ^ "Joseph R. Woodwell". CMOA Collection. Retrieved 25 July 2020.
  5. ^ "Joseph R. Woodwell letters, 1862-1868". Archives of American Art. Smithsonian Institution. Retrieved 25 July 2020.
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