The Filson Historical Society Blog

This month The Filson is celebrating the publication of a new portrait book by Estill Curtis Pennington, Lessons in Likeness: Portrait Painters in Kentucky and the Ohio River Valley, 1802-1920. This book is a comprehensive overview, encompassing both a cultural chronology and biographies of significant portrait artists. For anyone deeply affected by either art, history, or both, Lessons in Likeness offers fascinating insights.

One notable practice mentioned in this book was that of commissioning a portrait artist to paint a picture of a deceased loved one. The painter would usually rely on previous likenesses, such as a daguerreotype, although in some cases the subject’s abandoned earthly coil would function as the artist’s model.

"Interior with Portraits" by Thomas LeClear

One example of this method is the painting “Interior with Portraits” by Thomas LeClear, done in 1865 (hung in the Smithsonian American Art Museum). This painting was commissioned by an elder brother for two of his departed siblings. As Pennington notes, “there are as many layers to the painting as there is clutter in the studio.” The figures of the two deceased subjects are posed in the middle of the composition in front of a painted landscape, so that their photograph may be taken by the photographer on the right. Portraits hung on the wall peek out over the landscape backdrop, playful reminders that this painting, too, is only a likeness. The photographer carefully focuses the camera, intent on capturing the best image of these two children. The painting is both a vivid rendering of the two deceased children and a lively meditation on the juxtaposition of photography and portrait painting.

Another painting of this type is “Marie Jane Andrew” by Joseph Mason, done in 1841 (hung in the Indianapolis Museum of Art). This portrait was commissioned by Marie’s parents after her sudden death and offers striking details. Apparently Mason’s father was a bookseller, so the textbooks included in the painting may be an allusion to this. Also, the book on top of the stack bears the title “Birds with Coloured Engravings,” an apparent reference to Audubon. A mysterious boy looks out from his own portrait, on the left. Marie herself is brought back to glowing life, her almond eyes steadily assessing the viewer.

"Marie Jane Andrew" by Joseph Mason

Pennington offers many more insights into portrait painting in Lessons in Likeness. The Filson is holding a reception honoring the book’s publication on Thursday, November 11, which all are welcome to attend. There are other events as well, including Gallery Tours of portraits included in the book. Check www.filsonhistorical.org for more details.

Norman Kohlhepp

University of Cincinnati Track Team, Normal Kohlhepp Second from the Right

Currently being processed in Special Collections are the papers and photographs of Louisvillian Norman Kohlhepp (1892 – 1986).  Kohlhepp was a multi-talented individual who excelled in the fields of science, art  and education.  A graduate of Louisville’s Manual Training High School, he went on to obtain a degree in metallurgical engineering from the University of Cincinnati.   After graduating, he worked for the General Fireproofing Co. in Boston, MA, a manufacturer of steel office furniture.

In 1917, Kohlhepp enlisted in the armed forces and served in the “Reserve Mallet” in World War I – a transport unit that was created as part of the French Army but later became part of the United States Army’s Transport Service.  He also trained other mechanics during his time in France.  Kohlhepp remained in Europe until 1919 when he returned to Camp Taylor and was demobilized from the Army.

Already skilled at mechanical and scientific rendering, in his mid-thirties Kohlhepp began to seriously pursue the fine arts.  During further visits to France, he founded the American Students and Artists Club in Paris, where he met his future wife, Dorothy.  She encouraged his artistic inclinations and Kohlhepp began his studies at the Académie Colarossi and Académie de la Grande Chaumière.   Kohlhepp and his wife also studied with Andre Lhote, the cubist painter.

Kohlhepp whole-heartedly extended his support to the Louisville arts community and was active in the Art Center and the Louisville School of Art.  His work resides in collections at the University of Louisville, The J. B. Speed Art Museum, The National Museum of American Art and the Smithsonian Institution.

The Kohlhepp photo collection contains over 200 negatives and prints, highlighting his time at the University of Cincinnati, the General Fireproofing Co., the war years in France, and his travels abroad in later decades.

The Kohlhepp papers contain correspondence from his parents while he is attending UC,  his senior thesis and supporting articles, and material from his time in the army, including his note books on automotive repair and maps of various sections of France.  The collection also includes financial papers and work correspondence from the 1920s to the 1940s, and a 1983 copy of Beaux Arts features an article about Kohlhepp and his artwork.

Scrapbook of Photographs from the General Fireproofing Co.

One of my favorite paintings in the Ferguson Mansion hangs in the stairwell on the way to the basement level. It is a portrait of a certain Mrs. Denton Whipps, painted by a mysterious unknown artist, and generously donated by Mrs. Walter Osborne.

This painting utilizes a severe palette of white, black and gray. Mrs. Whipps’ luminous skin vividly contrasts with her crimson lips and brown eyes, as well as the black beads of her necklace. Similarly, the white ruffles surrounding her neck stand out strongly against Mrs. Whipps’ black dress and provide symmetry to the white and black ruffles of her headpiece. The strong nose and determined mouth signify that Mrs. Whipps is not to be trifled with. At the same time, her eyes hold a reassuring kindness.

Both this portrait and others in The Filson Collection bring to mind the contemporary artist Anne Faith Nicholls. Nicholls employs a striking use of folk art imagery and animal totems, and there is an environmental edge to her work as well. Nicholls characterizes herself as a Neo-folk artist, which has been defined as a recent outgrowth of folk art influenced by early colonial American and European folk art paintings and Surrealism. This movement is considered to be a part of both the high-low art aesthetic and the outsider art perspective.

“Hold Back Against the Naysayers” by Nicholls depicts a seated woman with Gothic hair, a thundercloud above raining down on her head (click http://www.annefaithnicholls.com/#goto=painting-portfolio&viewimage=20 to view). The details of her clothing, such as her riding boots and corseted dress, as well as her exaggeratedly pale, heart-shaped face, evoke an earlier era. Looking out at the viewer with wide eyes, she resolutely grasps the collar of a flame-breathing dog. Winged hands point to her in accusation. The palette of this painting echoes that of the portrait of Mrs. Whipps, with luminous white utilized to emphasize the woman’s face. The oval that frames the woman and her frenetic dog in lace-like curves is also white. Faux-wood panels in shades of gray radiate from the framed scene like dreary sunrays.

Nicholls seemingly depicts this woman’s twin in her painting “Catch or Release” (click http://www.annefaithnicholls.com/#goto=painting-portfolio&viewimage=22 to view). Here, the woman holds a beached whale distinctive for its small scale. The dank landscape, which includes felled trees, a burning house and a weeping cloud, echoes the whale’s distress. Plants float in the lower corners of the picture like seaweed. The painting also features alternating panels of gray and a curved white oval, accentuating the woman in her grief.

The environmental concerns and dark emotions that Nicholls depicts in her work are a world away from the serenity of Mrs. Denton Whipps. But the palette and style of portraits like the ones that hang in The Filson have clear repercussions on present-day artists, even as these portraits continue to provoke enjoyment from Filson visitors.

Herman Gunter Family

Looking at this print and its striking use of color, I was immediately reminded of Hieronymus Bosch. Bosch, an artist born in 1450, is most celebrated for his triptych, “The Garden of Earthly Delights” (the ever-handy Wikipedia has this educational link, http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/The_Garden_of_Earthly_Delights, if you would like to view the painting).

Certainly the subject matter of the two paintings is very different, as Bosch’s triptych presents a paradise on earth, contrasted with a hellish landscape. The Gunter painting, on the other hand, is a family welcoming their patriarch home. However, both the Bosch and Gunter works utilize the scarlet end of the color spectrum to an arresting degree. Observe, for example, the extreme pink shades of the two Gunter daughters’ dresses, contrasted to their alabaster skin. One of the younger children also has a teal dress that ties into the coloring of the wall. In the Bosch, a rose-colored fountain on the left provides sustenance for creatures including a giraffe and an elephant. The middle panel presents various forms of salmon- and sapphire-shaded plant life, new and wondrous.

The Bosch painting could certainly be labeled surreal, given its fantastic subject matter. The Gunter painting, though, also has a touch of surrealism. All the eyes of this family are trained on the arrival of the father, who can be seen entering the front door by the reflection of a mirror in the far left corner of the painting. Indeed, it almost looks as if this figure is entering through the mirror itself. And, there is another mirror in the painting, the one attached to the dresser where the mother is seated writing a letter. Propped against this second mirror is…a picture of the father.

In this painting of the Gunter family, then, we see both brilliant color and reflections within reflections. I hope you enjoy this Boschian-flavored print.

Recently I had the pleasure of visiting the 21c Museum on West Main Street for the first time. The Museum has modern written all over it, from the high white walls to the steel accents to the high-gloss wood floors. Loving contemporary art as I do, I was pleasantly overwhelmed by the plethora of images in which to bask in this space.

One of the most striking installations in 21c’s Creating Identity: Portraits Today exhibition is the set of seven photographs by Loretta Lux. Lux is a fine art photographer known for what can safely be described as surreal portraits of young children. The surreal quality comes partly from the absolute cleanness of line in the photographs, a wondrous clarity that can clearly only emerge from computer manipulation. The photographs also have backgrounds that have been inserted, skies of an incredible blue or walls of an eerily reflective white.

However, it is not so much the “surrealness” of the photographs that rivets me, although certainly that is part of their appeal. Lux almost exclusively photographs children, and like her precursor Charles Dodgson (Lewis Carroll), she captures their spirit in a haunting way.

For example, in the photograph “The Bride,” a red-haired girl in premature wedding garb gazes directly into the camera, hands clasped over her heart. But her face is what is so arresting – chin thrust out, eyes solemn. Her posture is loose and relaxed, and yet the angle of her chin lets the viewer know that this calm girl is not to be trifled with. (View this photograph at www.lorettalux.de/ – Works III – The Bride)

The photograph “Three Wishes” shows the viewer the profile of a girl in a red sweater, hands together as if playing a clapping game, or carefully smashing an insect. Here again, the face is the most striking aspect of the picture – concentrated on her fingers, as if what she is holding is of the utmost importance. (View this photograph at www.lorettalux.de/ – Works II – Three Wishes)

Love Family Children by Samuel H. Dearborn

Connections between undeniably modern, manipulated portraits and portraits from the long-ago are always intriguing to discover. There are trace lines you can feel, veins and arteries that pump the blood of the past into the now. So it is that I discovered in the Filson Special Collections a set of six portraits of children, two young boys in blue suits and four young girls in dresses. These Love Family portraits, painted in 1810 by Samuel H. Dearborn, are combined onto one mat and frame, and all of the portraits are in profile, except for one girl, who turns her head and smiles at the viewer. The profiles of the children are high-contrast, a perfect sinuous tracing of noses and chins on a cream background. All of the children are calmly poised, and in their unnatural gravity we can glimpse a hint of the surreal quality embedded in Lux’s work.

To find out more about the 21c Museum, visit http://www.21cmuseum.org/museum/default.aspx. You can discover more about the Filson Collections at http://www.filsonhistorical.org/collections-and-exhibits.aspx.