Drypigment.net

Copyright © 2020 by Wendy Waszut-Barrett

On April 28, 2020, I decided to take a few hours for myself to paint. We were in the midst of “sheltering in place” and I needed to do something to make me feel truly happy. As with most people, much of my work had vanished overnight and was I was becoming increasingly depressed. As each day dragged on, there was no end in sight and I wondered if we would ever meet all of the bills. Although I write a daily blog, even that was not helping draw me out of my depression.

What became one painting, became one painting every day. All of my paintings were done in Golden liquid acrylics and ranged in size from 8″ x 10″ to 16″ x 20″.

I call them my “Quarantine Travels.” They are my daily escape from the reality of COVID-19. Each day I revisit one of the favorite locations that I have photographed over the years.

I am not done with the series, but decided to share my progress. Each day I post a final painting with process photos to my Facebook Page “Wendy Rae Waszut-Barrett.” This post is then shared to my Facebook Group “Dry Pigment.” I will periodically update this post to add new compositions.

Here is what has helps me weather the Coronavirus Storm:

I conclude the series with the painting “In the Weeds” on June 19, 2020. Some of my happiest memories of my childhood were swimming at my parents’ cabin on Lower Sylvan Lake near Pillager, Minnesota. At the time, it was one of the clearest lakes in the state, spring fed. Because of the water clarity, I could swim without goggles and look at fish and the aquatic jungle below the surface. Weeds never bothered me as they were so beautiful underwater. The sunlight that filters through water has always been magical for me.

This concludes my painting series of “Quarantine Travels.” I will still keep painting, but start a new series. While snatching a few hours each day to paint, my companions were Minnesota Public Radio Classical and Gov. Cuomo’s daily press briefing. It seemed an appropriate conclusion to my series as today signals the end to many things.

Stay safe!

I ended up starting two other series after this one. Here is the link to “Colors of Colorado” and “Mountains of Rock.”

Colors of Colorado

Mountains of Rock: Scenes of the Canadian Rockies.

Copyright © 2020 by Wendy Waszut-Barrett

I reach a milestone today – post 1000. When I first starting writing “Tales of a Scenic Artist and Scholar,” I never thought that it would go beyond 100 installments, and I would return to writing posts about painting techniques and materials.

Over a year ago I explained the reason why I write daily about the life and times of Thomas G. Moses. I am reposting it today.

Part 600: Why Do I Write?”

There is so much more information to discover online than a decade ago. I can quickly scan thousands of newspapers with keyword searches, gathering information about a late-nineteenth century scenery installations and Scottish Rite degree productions. My trips to the rare books room are almost non-existent, as I am able to access a ridiculous amount of information in a relatively short period of time. While preparing for my posts, I dig through old photos, slides and research files from my predecessors, digital collections, online archives, historical newspapers, and other public databases. It takes time though.

Why do I take time every day to blog about the life and times of Thomas G. Moses? I made a commitment to myself in September 2016 to share my discoveries, while providing me with both incentive and inspiration to continue.  When my position as Curatorial Director at the Minnesota Masonic Heritage Center was eliminated, I encountered a unique form of character assassination. It was an extremely difficult time as I went through the varying stages of grief. Much of the passion that I had for Minnesota Masonry simply died, and I had to shift my focus elsewhere.

In the middle of a particularly low point, I made a decision about my future. I decided to take the high road, ignore the continued attacks, and make a positive contribution.  I decided to share all of the information that I had gathered over the years in a public forum, one that would benefit both theatre and fraternal communities; to increase the awareness of historic scenery as cultural artifact; to change the perception of historic scenery from old stage backings to large-scale artworks created by nationally recognized artists; and to broadcast the need for proper handling and preservation of extant scenery collections. I decided to start writing – a lot.

Writing one or two pages for a daily blog makes me re-evaluate preconceived notions and accepted theories, ranging from painting techniques to basic theater history.  I try to catch things that I may have missed in the past. Hopefully, my journey will never be about being right, but about getting it right. I also gather more information than I need, as I never know if a historic scenery collection will still be hanging upon my return. Scenery and stage machinery hold telltale signs for the common practices associated with early-twentieth century scenic studios and artists. Each scenic studio had something akin to a signature. They all had a specific way of doing things, whether in the sewing room, carpentry shop, paint studio, or during an installation.  The width of cotton sheeting, the direction of seams on a backdrop, the shape of a wooden batten, the type of stage hardware, the color used to ink a composition, and the preferred fabric manufacturer are only a few examples.

It may be the next generation who pieces together my research; a primary reason that I am digitizing and posting as much as possible. Ideally, some artist, historian or scholar may be able to see the connections that I cannot at this time. I may simply be planting seeds for those that come after me. If I am able to help another along the way, that would be the best feeling of all, because then I become part of something much bigger than myself.

Theses posts and many others appear on my FaceBook Group “Dry Pigment.” Here is the link: https://www.facebook.com/groups/1281238915233859/

To be continued…

Copyright © 2020 by Wendy Waszut-Barrett

In the life and times of Thomas G. Moses, it’s September of 1918. Moses is now working for New York Studios, having resigned as president of Sosman & Landis on September 1, 1918. On October 10, he will be injured when a boy riding a bicycle accidentally knocks him down in the street. Of this incident, he wrote, “October 10^th, I was knocked down by a boy on a bicycle in Oak Park.  It was dark and I did not see the wheel.  It was thought by the doctor that I had fractured my skull.  It was a couple of months before I recovered.  Only a few days after this I was forced to go to Cleveland to look after a big Masonic order and I hope we will be able to get the contract.”

Keep in mind that this is all in the midst of 1918 Spanish Flu pandemic. The first wave of the Spanish Flu hit that spring and the second wave was already in play fall. The second wave would become recognized as the one with the worst death toll. By the end of December 1918, there was the reopening of schools, theaters, churches and business, believing that the worst behind them. A third wave hit during the spring of 1919, a full year after the first wave.

Early in October, the “Chicago Tribune” published illustrations on how to make a “germ screen,” a mask (6 Oct. 1918, page 17). Next to the instructions was another article entitled, “Influenza Cases Here Estimated 40,000 to 60,000. Majority Declared Light Attacks; No Cause for Alarm” (page 17). The article continued, “Anxious to avoid unduly alarming the public, the officials hesitate to make the big figures known generally, but they did so in order to impress upon every individual the necessity of his protecting himself against infection. As a whole the public is said to have headed the warnings issued, but thousands of Chicagoans, it was said, are still exposing themselves carelessly.” Six days later, the “Rock Island Argus” announced “Begin Manufacture of Face Masks for Rock Islanders to Wear as Preventative Measure” (12 Oct. 1918 page 12).

By Dec. 1, 1918, the “Decatur Daily Review” reported, “Flu Death Toll in Illinois 22,566.” The article continued, “Springfield, Ill., Nov. 20 – Spanish influenza during the recent episode took a death toll of 22,566 in Illinois, according to figures announced today by Dr. C. St. Clair Drake, director of the state department of health. The disease is still prevalent in southern Illinois, and Dr. Drake estimates that the number of fatalities due to it will reach 25,000 by January 1. A total of 350,000 cases of the disease have been reported to the health department. This is only about one-fourth of the number believed to have existed in the state. The death rate was given by Dr. Drake as about 2 per cent of the cases.”

Moses does not make any mention of the Spanish Flu at all. In perspective, he only mentions WWI starting and ending, so his diary entries are not really a barometer to indicate historical significance of worldwide events. Overall, Moses’ memoirs don’t really highlight, or describe in detail, many things beyond theatrical projects and personalities. After all, his memoirs were to be published as “Sixty Years Behind the Curtain Line.”

We here about the constant comparison between the Spanish flu and COVID-19.  For many, this is such a distant event that one might as well compare it to the Black Death.  For my family it is a little more relevant. My grandmother was 25 years old when she survived the Spanish Flu; it was the year before she married my grandfather. This may have been why I was raised in a household where you stayed home when you were sick, taking caution to not infect others. I grew up making sure that I would not spread germs, especially around young kids and the elderly, almost to an extreme. It made sense to me even as a young kid; sometimes you alter your activities for the betterment of others – no big deal. It makes me think of those who now explain that they don’t wear a mask for themselves, but for others. In my opinion individual rites does not mean that you get to endanger others.

There are a lot of similarities between how people acted then and now, those who care and those who justify their actions of non-compliance.  Masks were recommended and public activities restricted. Certain people rebelled, citing individual liberties and freedoms. I often think that these are not people who have lost loved ones or friends to the virus – yet.

And as far as masks go, there are two kinds: those that protect you from your environment and those that protect the environment from you.  I was astounded one year when I returned to my alma mater and found surgical masks in the place of particle masks.  It was the first time I had to explain that surgical masks do not protect the wearer; they protect the environment from the wearer.  We wanted masks that protected the worker from their environment. Again, I thought that this was common knowledge, but I was wrong. When considering the big picture about the mask debate now, the general public may not understand how masks work; after all, some theatre professionals didn’t.

To be continued…

Copyright © 2020 by Wendy Waszut-Barrett

In the life and times of Those G. Moses, it’s September 1918. Moses is now working for New York Studios, having resigned as president of Sosman & Landis on September 1, 1918. On October 10, he will be injured when a boy riding a bicycle accidentally knocks him down in the street.

By mid-September Moses was looking for a studio to paint in He wrote, “We got the 20^th Street Studio for a month to month rental.  It is pretty cold there but we can manage to keep going.  We made Models and received the picture set order for the Hamlin Theatre.  $1,000.00 is not much for the set.”

Chicago’s Hamlin Theatre was constructed in 1914 and located at 3826 West Madison Street, it was a 298-set venue that would close by 1929. According to cinematreasures.org, the space was later converted into an AmVets Hall (http://cinematreasures.org/theaters/45100). I have only identified a few advertisements for the movie house to date. The Hamlin Theater is a hard one to track down because over the years there were a few Hamlin Theaters that operated in Chicago during the late nineteenth and early twentieth century.

In addition to the 1914 Hamlin Theatre, there were two other Hamlin Theatres built in Chicago during 1926; one was on W. Madison and the other on W. Belmont. The one that Moses delivered the picture set to was for the one on W. Madison.

Over the past few years, the most difficult part in tracking down Moses’ theater projects is locating the correct venue. Many theaters across the country used the same name because they were part of a circuit. Think of the names like Orpheum, Lyceum, Fox, Majestic, and so on.  There were also some cities that had multiple theaters with the same name; I just don’t understand this at all. In a few cases, two theaters with the same name would open with the same name in the same year.  Why anyone ever thought this was a good idea is astounding, as it never ended well as simply confused people.

When Moses received the picture set order for the Hamlin Theatre in 1918, it was primarily a movie house.  By 1917, the Hamlin featured the same films as the Kimbark Theatre, Milford Theatre, Oakland Sq. Theatre, Lane Ct. Theatre, Ziegfeld Theatre and Halfield Theatre.

The actual project that Moses was referring to included the painted surround for a projection screen. Unlike today’s use of a simply white screen, elaborate compositions filled the area between the projection surface and the proscenium arch.  What makes this confusing, however, is the use of the term “picture set.”  In 1918, “picture set” was used to identify the painted surround manufactured by scenic studios for movie theaters. It also identified the actual settings used for films, such as the picture set for “Tarzan of the Apes.”

On Oct. 27, 1918, the “Boston Globe” also introduced a new definition for “pictures sets” (page 36).  An article reported, “There are four stages used in “Chin Chin Chow” at the Schubert Theatre – the regular stage, and three small miniature stages on rollers, which show what are known as the “picture sets” being like small scenes viewed through a window. This stage device is new and somewhat resembles the closeups of the movies, only on a bigger scale.” This last use of “picture sets” has me a little baffled. For a little context about the production, “Chu Chin Chow” was a massive spectacle set in ancient Bagdad. The show included fourteen scenes with eighteen musical numbers and a company of three hundred.

To be continued…

Copyright © 2020 by Wendy Waszut-Barrett

There is one last person in the Buell Family that I have not covered yet, Horace Cyrus Buell. tHorace C. Buell was the he son of Nina Giles and Horace H. Buell.

[I was recently emailed by Mark Trainor who offered the following correction: Horace Cyrus Giles Buell’s grandfather was Cyrus Augustus Buell (1824-1904). His great grandfather was Horace Buell (1791-1837) of Troy, New York. I have no research showing Horace’s middle name was Cyrus].

Named after his great grandfather, Horace Cyrus Buell (1793-1870) of New York, he came from a theatrical family. His father was a portrait and landscape artist who also worked as a scenic artist. Buell & Son scenic studio was established in 1908, and the two painted many productions at the New Auditorium in Wichita, Kansas.

Horace C. Buell was born on April 29, 1891, in Santa Monica, California. He followed in his father’s footsteps as a scenic artist, but very little is known about him. The younger Horace remained relatively absent from print, other that a few brief mentions in Kansas newspaper; the polar opposite of his younger sister. Horace C. only appears in a 1900 US Federal Census, a 1905 Kansas state census, and a few Wichita City directories and newspaper clippings. 

In 1908 Horace C. Buell was enrolled at the Wichita School of Music, the same institution where his father Horace H Buell briefly taught art classes (Wichita Daily Eagle, 6 Sept. 1908, page 12). In 1911, Horace C. Buell was listed as a student in Wichita, Kansas, residing at 1012 Lawrence Av. This was his parents home at the time.

While looking for artworks by his father Horace H. Buell, I stumbled across one painting by Horace C. G. Buell. The “G” was for his mother’s maiden name of Giles. Like the rest of his family, he was quite an accomplished artist. Unfortunately his career was snuffed out the early age of 24. Horace Jr. died on Sept 3, 1916, in Cleveland, Ohio, and was buried at the Brooklyn Heights Cemetery there.

In 1915, Horace C. G. Buell enlisted in the New Work Guard, becoming a private in Co. F, 71st Inf. A year later he was dead, gone without any obituary or published memorial.  I have no idea what happened, but the family had already splintered the year that he passed. Mother and daughter were working as scenic artists and Rapid City, Iowa, and his father was working elsewhere.

To be continued…

Copyright © 2020 by Wendy Waszut-Barrett

While looking for information about the Buell family I came across an article with both Mr. and Mrs. H. Harry Buell credited as the “Designers and Builders of Floats.”  I have previously missed this article because the newspaper credits Mr. H. “Harry” and not H. “Hervey” Buell. This is the scenic artist Horace Hervey Buell, his wife Nina Giles Buell and children Mabel and Horace C. Here is the article from the “Wichita Daily Eagle” on Oct. 12 1911.  This is simply a wonderful description of a community event and the artistic abilities of the Buell family.

“Work of Art is Electrical Street Parade.

Ten Floats Representing Historical Events, Seasons, ima and Civilization Prepared at Great Expense.

Parade Begins at 7:30 Thursday Night.

Line of March is Announced and Persons are Selected to Participate in Realistic Representations.

The Great Electrical Float parade which has been heralded far and near as the biggest conceived and built is now only a few days off, and the public is soon to be allowed to see the floats in all their glory and beauty. Months have been spent in the preparation of these floats but the tie has been well and skillfully used, and they are now completed and await only the word of the marshall of the parade to reveal their glories to the gaze of an admiring throng. Citizens of communities hundreds of miles from the Peerless Princess have signified their intention of attending the celebration of her Prophets and they will be well repaid for their trip.

There will be a slight change from the usual program and line of march. The parade will start promptly at 7:30 p. m. Thursday, October 12th, from the corner of Central and Main where it will be formed.

The parade will take its course south on Main to Lewis street, two blocks below Douglas; will double back on Main and Douglas; thence it will proceed east on Douglas to the Santa Fe tracks doubling back on Douglas to Market street, turning north on Market it will continue to First street where the parade will disband. Those having children in the parade will meet then in the second block on Market street after the conclusion of the parade.

As has been advertised so extensively, the parade will have in addition to the wonderful and unusual beauty, and educational value in their sequence, historically speaking. The first float representing the seasons covers all time, in that it represents the completed year and the completed cycle of existence, Following this, will come in detail the nine great characteristic period of human history as typified in the characteristic thought or country, or idea which dominated that period. In order that one seeing the trade may get his full value, it is suggested by committee that this article be clipped from the Eagle and taken to the parade.

The order and significance of the parade, together with a complete description of the floats and those privileged to occupy positions of hone upon them, follow. At the head of the parade will come Chief of Police, George T. Cubbon, with a pantoon [sic.] of mounted police. Following the pantoon [sic.] of policemen will be a pantoon [sic.] of cowboys from the stockyards and packing houses led my Marshall Fredericks. Following this body of Wichita Boosters, who represents one of Wichita’s greatest industries, will come the band of Oxford, Kansas, and immediately following this will be the first float, that of ‘the Seasons.’ This float is an entirely new conception of Mr, Buell, the official designer, and is one that will long be remembered. It is built in the form of a monument with four compartments in the base, representing Spring, Sumer, Fall and Winter. Those representing Spring will be Wilna Armstrong and Charles B. Payne, Harriet and Josephine Booth with be in the compartment of Summer. Raymond and Margaret Casey will represent Autumn and Elizabeth and Alfred Campbell impersonate the spirits of Winer. Surmounting these compartments will be characters representing the four seasons of human life. Anna C. Brown will represent childhood; Genevieve Saunders, Youth; Mrs. Gray and her baby will picture Motherhood; and Mrs. L. S. Carter will represent maturity of life.

Float Number 2 represents the ancient Oriental civilization, of which there were several, and all of which flourished before the Grecian era. History reveals the fact that the primal characteristics of the early days of any race was Religion, and this is portrayed in a striking manner. The Oriental idea is given by two immense pyramids, standing alone amid stretches of glittering sand. The sphinxes of Egypt and the winged bulls of Persia are the embellishments if the four corners of the floats. In a beautiful oasis in the midst of the desert appear the characters of the ancient religions. In a temple which will slowly revolve, spear Moses, represented by James Lawrence; Zoroaster by Dan Thurston; the priest of Buddha by Randall Cline; and the worshipper of Isis by Victory Mead. As an escort to this float will come the patrol of Midian Temple, under captainship of C. A. Baker, and accompanied by their inimitable band from the deserts of Arabia.

Float number 3 will take up the next era of human development and will represent the power and glory of Rome. This float has been skillfully designed and embodied a thrilling and lifelike picture if the Eternal City, as it burned in the time of Nero. The float is very gorgeous , and is one upon which the most action will take place. Nero, impersonated by Edwin Johnson, will sit high above the tumult upon his throne, enjoying the terrible sight. The Roman soldiers impenetrable in their reserve and steadfast in their discipline, will be represented by Jim Davidson, Fred Dold, Walter Innes, Theodore Johnston, Robert Campbell and Paul Johnston. Among the terrified populace, rushing in horror from the conflagration, will appear Marshall Mueller, Lloyd Taylor, Arthur Wolf, Gladys Wallace and Elizabeth Avey. A guard of Roman soldiers will be furnished by the Y.M.C.A.

Following the development of Rome, the world fell into a period of desuetude and decay. Learning in and the arts of civilization seemed to have disappeared, and savagery and superstition were rampant. The fourth float represents a scene in the forests of Germany among the old Saxon ancestors, before they assumed the habits and habiliments of civilization. Amid the forests, peopled by wild beasts of various sorts, will appear the Druids in their fire worship, before their rough stone altars. The Druids will be represented by Howard Anderson, and Nellie Hewey, Hortense Thompson and Milton Hutchinson. The Modern Woodmen of America will furnish and escort, i uniform, for this float.

Next in order is the Wichita Union band.

Float Number 5 will represent the Middle Ages and will represent a scene from King Arthur’s court. Irwin Bleckley will impersonate King Arthur and will be attended by two princes, Jack Stewart and Walter Taylor, and two guards, Neal Kirkwood and Rolle Thorpe. At the opposite end of the float will be the representation of knighthood rescuing womanhood from oppression. Orio Thorpe will be the Knight, and Ruth Mueller the fair damsel to be rescued. The dragon is pictured as a terrible creature, Harold Clark will see that the dragon does his duty.

Float Number 6 is a most beautiful allegorical representation of that period of awakening and development commonly called the Renaissance. This float of a beautiful galley, or ship. The oarsmen being represented by Gertrude McCullough, Ida Wilson, Ruth Heppe, Katherine Lewis, Genilee Gregg, Marion Dunn, Nannie Brubacher and Koa McComb. The pilot will be Gladys Warren. The spirit of the Renaissance, Katherine Stewart, while Hazel Johnson will impersonate the Herald which proclaims the coming of an enlightened age.

The seventh float will represent the landing of the Pilgrims. This float is certainly a work of art. A beautiful picture of the rugged, rock-ribbed coast, upon which are gathered a band of Pilgrims, while in the distance, in beautiful perspective rides a little bark, tempest-tossed upon the turbulent waves. the pilgrims will be Homer Hutchinson, Lawrence Rorabaugh, Grosvenor Charles, Aldrich Lasen, Robert Johnson, Marian Hutchinson, Nora Woods, Lillian Bailey, Helen Moore, Marie Gilbert, Lawrence McComb. The Indian will  be impersonated by M. W. Longnecker.

Following this float will come the Moose band of this city.

The eight float will represent  the United States, and will be one of the most beautiful and unique floats every seen anywhere. The idea of this float is ‘Zangwell’s idea of the ‘Melting to.; Columbus will be seated upon and immense throne and will be attended by four soldiers, Upon the front of the float are Liberty, Justice and Equality, represented by Helen Charles, Edith Saunders and Stella Armstrong. In the center fo the float is the Melting Pot from which arises the American flag as a result of the blending and amalgamation of all races.

The Ninth float will represent Kansas, and the spirit of the commonwealth is to be Miss Edith Gilbert, She, as queen, will be attended by her maids of honor, Anel Saunders, Francis A. Brown, Henrietta Allen, Helen Johnston, Cecil Gilbert, Dorothy Booth and Francis Williard. The center of this the float will be an immense cornucopia filled with overflowing products of the state. The best fruit in all lines has been contributed and will make a memorable show, presiding in all this display will be Pauline Ayers and Leon Cain.

The last float will of course be the climax of all ages and will represent Wichita, the Peerless Princess. The form of the float will be a monument to the greatness of the city. An immense granite monument has been built, surmounting which will be Miss Mabel Buell, representing Wichita. Upon the four wings of the base stand an Indian by the Buffalo he has killed, represented by Horace C. Buell, and the cowboy with his trappings, represented by David Jackman. These two representing the pioneers of the valley. Upon two other wings appear the mechanic and the traveling man represented by Phi Patterson and Harry Schuler. These representing two of the factors of the present financial greatness, Upon the front and rear of the float appear Bessie Applegate, May Weiss, Evelyn Rorabaugh and Helen Booth. representing Fairmount, Mr. Carmel, Friends and the High School, while Katherine and Margaret Ayres appear as pages to the queen.

In addition to these, the following gentlemen will be the marshals of the parade: J. A. Hopkins will be chief marshall of the floats, hill Messrs, Jay Gill, R. B. Campbell, Paul Wall, J. N. Chappie, R. E. Bird, C. L. DeLong, M. E. Garrison, Walter Parrott, James Crossfield and others will assist by being marshals with each float.

The committee consisting of G. M. Booth, H. W. Stanley, Lyman Woodruff and C. L. DeLong have worked tirelessly at the making a success of this parade, as of the other features of the carnival, and they feel that the result has justified the efforts put forth. They believe that no better float parade was every put on by any city. While this committee, however, has had supervision of the entire carnival, the particular task of designing building and decorating these floats has been delegated to H. Harry Buell. Mr. Buell is an artist of much ability and has in times past, as in this present instance done some exceedingly creditable work along artistic lines. Mr. Buell has been most ably assisted in the painting and decorative work by his daughter Mabel Buell and his son Horace Buell, who, seem to inherit a wonderful talent along this line. The detail work outside of the painting and construction, and of costuming has been left almost whole to Mrs. Buell, and she has made a great success of her work as Mr. Buell has at his. Wichita is to be congratulated upon having artists with the ability of the Buells.”

To be continued…

Copyright © 2020 by Wendy Waszut-Barrett

Yesterday, I explored the 1884 antics of Horace H. Buell when he shipped himself in a crate from Chicago to Manhattan, Kansas. His strange journey made headlines across the country. At the time he was married to Fannie B. “Nina,” future head of Buell Scenic Co.

Buell was born in 1857, one of four boys born to Cyrus A. Buell, a hatter. At the age of thirteen, Buell moved with his family to Wabaunsee, Kansas and then Manhattan, Kansas. At the age of 18, Buell was sent to Brooklyn to live with his uncle, where he worked as barber. Eventually he returned Manhattan, Kansas, initially working as a barber and later an artist. In Manhattan he established his own art studio by the age of 22 years old. On May 30, 1879, the “Manhattan Nationalist” included an advertisement for H. H. Buell’s “new photograph gallery” (page 2). Located over the post office, Buell’s services included tintypes, photographs, crayon portraits and oil portraits. By the early 1880s, Horace opens another art store in Topeka, Kansas. On April 15, 1882, “The Topeka Daily Capital” reported, “H. H. Buell, a telented [sic.] young artist of this city, proposes giving an art drawing at an early day in Union hall. He has a number of beautiful paintings and artotypes to dispose of” (page 8). Interestingly, in Topeka Buell was active in the Knights of Pythias, Topeka Lodge No. 38, (Daily Commonwealth, 29 Jan. 1882, page 1).  

By the summer, however, Buell sets his sights on better opportunities in Chicago and left Topeka. “The Topeka Daily Capital” announced, “H. H. Buell went East yesterday to take a position under Geo. Pullman, of the palace car company” (13 June 1882, page 8). It was purported that Buell met his future wife there, as she was a Pullman relative. By the end of the year. Buell married Fannie B. “Nina” Giles on Dec. 1. The Buell’s were encountering financial difficulties in the Windy City by 1884, and work was not a plentiful as Buell had hoped. On May 31, 1884, the “Salina Semi-Weekly Journal,” reported, “Manhattan is just now enjoying the excitement of a novel romance. Saturday night a large box of express matter was rolled out at the station, and on being opened was found to contain a young man who figured quite prominently here two years ago, a crayon artist, society blood and capital guard. H. H. Buell is his name. He was in Chicago, got broke there, wanted to get home, so shipped himself C.O.D., by express. Lawrence Herald” (page 4). Note there is no mention of his wife, at all. Buell did not return to Chicago and was still living in Manhattan the next year. The “Manhattan Nationalist” reported, “H. H. Buell has been doing some nice work in his line lately. All who have ever seen anything from his brush recognized unusual ability. The battle scenes that added so much to the impressiveness of the opera house were his latest works” (5 June 1885, page 1).  This was the first mention that I have located to date that mentioned Buell as a scenic artist.

By 1886, both Buell and his wife were living in Kansas City, Missouri, at 1328 Lydia Ave. Not much is known of their life in Kansas other than nearby familial ties. Soon, they headed west, settling in California by early 1890s and welcoming two children to their home – Horace, Jr. (1892) and Mabel (1896). In regard to their daughter, sources vary about a birthdate. 1896 is Mabel’s birthdate on census reports and the gravestone that she shares with her daughter. However, newspapers and the social security administration list consistently list Mabel’s birthday as 1900. Keep in mind that newspaper articles give Mabel’s age as four years younger than she actually was at the time. So, working as a sixteen-year-old scenic artist by herself in 1916 really meant that she was twenty; this puts a slightly different take on her wunderkind status in retrospect.

By the turn of the twentieth century, the Buell family moved Portland, Oregon.  The 1900 US Federal census lists a 41-years-old Horace Sr. working as a portrait and landscape artist and living in Portland with his family.  Nina Giles Buell, was still listed as “Fannie B.” in this census, but the children remain the same Horace C. and Mabel A., ages 8 and 6 respectively. Both children were attending school.

The Buells returned to Kansas in1904, the same year that Buell’s father  (Cyrus Augustus Buell (1820-1904) passes away. Until 1904, Buell artistic endeavors are primarily absent from print, as he was working as a portrait artist and not connected with any theatrical productions. There are mentions of his checking into hotels and visits home to Manhattan, Kansas. In 1904, the “El Paso Herald” announced, “H. H. Buell of San Francisco, has completed the work of painting a large oil painting of the city of Alamogordo, 12×21 feet, for the Alamogordo Townsite company, to be displayed at the World’s Fair. It is a beautiful piece of work”  (3 June 1904, page 2).

In 1905, a snapshot of the Buell’s life was again captured in a state census report. Horace H. Buell, Fannie B. (Nina) Buell, Horace C. Buell and Mabel A. Buell are listed and living together in Manhattan. The “Manhattan Nationalist” included a Buell advertised: “Portraits and frames. Studio at residence, southwest corner of Fifth and Houston. –H.H. Buell, Artist”  (31 March 1905, page 4). Later that summer, Buell’s advertisements noted that his studio was located on North Second Street, opposite of the Manhattan Marble Works. The second advertisement announced, “We make portraits and photographs at the summer school of painting and photography, Positions furnished to students in photographic retouching as soon as qualified” (Student’s Herald, Manhattan, Kansas, 8 June 1905, page 2).

Not everything went well for Buells in Manhattan. The “Manhattan Nationalist” reported an unfortunate incident at the Buell home: “The other night, after H. H. Buell had installed water pipes in his house, he felt water dripping on the bed where he slept. He got up to investigate just in time to avoid a large mass of plastering which fell from the ceiling. As the ceiling is high, he probably made a lucky escape” (30 June 1905, page 4). This just made me think of the crate story.

The family left Manhattan and moved from Kansas City to Wichita in 1908, presumably for better employment opportunities. In Wichita, Buell became the scenic artist for the Wolfe Stock Company, providing scenery for their production of “The Princess and the Girl” at the New Auditorium that summer (Wichita Daily Eagle, 18 June 1908, page 12). He also painted the scenery for “Salomy Jane” that fall.  Of the production, the “Wichita Daily Eagle” reported, “Mr. Horace H. Buell, the Wolfe scenic artist, and his assistants, have made a record for themselves painting the life-like reproduction of the famous California redwoods in which the Bret Harte stories are laid” (11 Nov 1908 page 10). Buell’s son, Horace C. Buell was sixteen years old at the time. Buell’s scenic work in Wichita continued with the help of his children and wife. By December 1908, the scene painting work for Manager Wolfe at the New Auditorium was credited to Messrs. Horace H. Buell & Son (6 Dec. 1908, page 15). Horace Sr. and Horace Jr. painted scenery for “The Eternal City”. The “Wichita Daily Eagle” reported, “For the past two weeks the scenic artists of the New Auditorium, Messrs. Horace H. Buell & Son, have been busy preparing the backgrounds for this richest of all plays, and they will show the Holy City as true to life as it is possible for brush and colors to depict on canvas.” In 1923, Mabel would recall, “Of course I learned much from my father, though even he was more often than not loath to have me around. It was my brother who used to act as his ‘paint boy,’ cleaning his brushes and mixing his paints. But I made the most of my opportunities. I hung around and picked up what information I could, and always kept in mind that some day I was going to climb to the bridge and do scene painting all by myself.’

The Buell’s were still living in Wichita in 1911 when Buell began working for the Wichita College of Music’s art department.  The “Wichita Daily Eagle” reported, “The art department, under the direction of H. H. Buell, late of Paris and London, will be a success…H. H. Buell, who is a thorough artist, will be in a position to give very valuable instruction as well as produce some specially artistic work” (22 Jan 1911, page 6). Little is known of his trip abroad, the timeline or purpose. However, his trip to Paris was again sited when Buell received the contract to design electrical floats for the Peerless Prophet’s Parade that year too. The “Wichita Daily Eagle” reported “Paris Man to Design Electrical Floats. Contract Let to H. H. Buell for $2,000 Feature of October Jubilee” (23 July 1911, page 3). In the “Hutchinson News,” Buell was actually noted as the “well known scenic artist” (9 Sept. 1911, page 1). It is uncertain when Horace H. Buell & Son became known Buell Scenic Co. 

By 1912, Horace was working as an itinerant artist and mentioned in a few newspapers across the country, including Jacksonville, Florida. Four years later, his wife and daughter were working in Sioux City, Iowa at the Princess Theatre, with not mention of Horace H. Buell. This is the same year that Horace Jr. passed away.

The notice of Horace H. Buell’s own passing was brief, and appeared in only few papers. The “American Art Annul” reported, “Buell, Horace Hervey. – a painter and head of the Buell Scenic Company, died in New York, December 22, 1919” (Vol. 16, page 266).

To be continued…

Copyright © 2020 by Wendy Waszut-Barrett

If you need a good belly laugh, this may be the post you want to read. Horace Hervey Buell was the father of scenic artist Mable Buell and husband of scenic artist Nina Giles Buell.

Born in New York in 1857, Horace was one of four boys. He had an older brother that was three years his senior (George K.), and two twin brothers that were his junior by two years (Walter and Warren Cyrus). Remember the name W.C. Cyrus when you get to the second newspaper article.

When he was quite young, his father (Cyrus Augustus Buell) left to fight in the Civil War. A hatter by trade, he returned to civilian life to run a hat shop in Albion, New York. In 1870, the Buell family moved to Wabaunsee, Kansas. The 1870 census listed Cyrus as a farmer, but he soon returned to his former profession as a hat merchant.  By 1875, Horace was sent to live with his uncle in Brooklyn, New York, working as a barber. Five years later in 1875, Horace returned west, still working as a barber and living with his family in Manhattan, Kansas. By the early 1880s, Horace opened an art store in Topeka. After experiencing only mediocre returns, he set his sights on better opportunities in Chicago. By 1882, he was married to Miss Nina Giles. Two years later, Horace made headlines in newspapers across the country – not for his art, but for his antics. 

In 1884, he is low on funds and decides to save eight dollars by mailing himself in a wooden crate, C.O.D.  This story is published and republished at the time. Over the decades the story of Horace H. Buell continues to pop up in newspapers here and there; the tale outlives the memory of Buell as a scenic artist. It is well worth reading.

Here is one version published in the “The Garnett Republican (30 May 1884, page 8):

“A Strange Journey.

Truth is often stranger than fiction, and the following proves the saying: Residents of Topeka will remember that a few years ago a young man named Horace H. Buell arrived in Topeka and opened an art studio, but finding that his efforts to gain a reputation and a living were not as successful as he wished, he left the city and went to Chicago. There he became a Pullman car conductor and eventually married, our informant thinks, a relative of the Pullmans. At any rate he was in Chicago last Thursday and wanted to go to Manhattan, but didn’t have the funds to pay for a ticket. He at length determined to go as express matter, and with this in view, arranged a box in which he could sit quite comfortably, and he could, if necessary, release himself. He then went to the express office and left an order for a wagon to call at a certain address and get a box which he billed as from H. H. Buell to Horace Buell, Manhattan, Kas., and directed that it should be sent and the charges collected at Manhattan. His scheme worked perfectly. The box was taken to the depot, weighed and put abroad the cars, and then the adventurous Kansan was so en rout to his old home by the Blue. Once an express messenger suspicioned that something was wrong and said he was going through the box, but he changed his mind. The box weighed 247 pounds, and at Kansas City Buell heard a voice say, ‘I believe I’ll let this box lay over.’ But fortunately the strange freight was re-loaded, and at 1:27 o’clock Saturday morning was thumped out on the platform at Manhattan. All had gone well so far, and Buell was congratulating himself o the success of his scheme, but when the last jolt of the box was over, and he was ready to take an active part in the strange journey, he discovered that the box was lying bottom side up, or so it was impossible to work the release. He therefore waited a more favorable opportunity, expecting it would come when he had been tumbled into the express office. Fate was dead against him, though, for when the box was placed in its position to remain until delivered in the morning, the occupant found himself standing on his head and unable to assume any other position. The express agent, having all his goods in the room, then proceeded to ‘check up’ and used the box for a table. The unfortunate victim of his own ingenuity was forced to listen to the satisfactory ejaculations of the agent, who seemed to require a long time to complete his work. At length, being unable to bear it any longer, Buell yelled, ‘How much longer is it going to take you to check up?’ The agent was frightened and fled to another room, but soon reappeared with a friend, and two revolvers were leveled at the offending box. The agent supposed a robber was hidden in it, announced his intention of perforating it, whereupon Buell begged to be released, when he promised to explain all. The men at length consented, and a sorry looking individual, a satchel and the remains of a lunch, were polled out on the floor. Buell paid the express charges, $9.25, and thinks he succeeded fairly well – in saving the difference between that amount and the fare, which was $17.55. [To put this in perspective, today’s equivalent of $17.55 is about $450 today]. Buell organized a company under the name of the Topeka Zuoaves, and was quite well known here. At one of the masquerades given in the skating rink he took first prize for the best character.”

A few months after the incident, Buell explains himself in the “Holton Recorder” (12 July 1884, page 1). Under the title “New Way of Travel,” the article reports, “My name is Horace Buell, and I have relatives living in Manhattan. From my earliest youth I have displayed wonderful talent for art. Believing that there was a field open for me in the larger cities I sought a situation, and for a time was successful, but I lost my health, and being severely distressed and in need, resolved to return home. Too proud to write for means to defray my expenses, I hit upon the plan which has landed me to-night, thirty-six hours from Chicago. The way I managed to get billed out of the city was very easy. I called t the main office and told them I had a box which I wished to ship to Manhattan, giving instructions where it could be found, I then packed myself in it and was soon speeding westward. Once I was left in the car for some time alone, and had a chance to stretch myself. Before entering the box I supplied myself with sufficient crackers and cheese to sustain me for fours days, and suffered only for water. I don’t feel much worse for the trip, it was an easy matter to brace myself in the box so I would not be injured.”

There is only one question that I would like to ask Buell: “Did you tell your wife?”

To be continued…

Copyright © 2020 by Wendy Waszut-Barrett

I explored the life and career of scenic artist Mabel A. Buell in the past two posts.  However, the Buell family’s history is complicated and will take a few more posts bit to unwrap. This is the most interesting theatre family that I have encountered to date, so I am going to take a little time and enjoy myself. The tales surrounding Buell’s would be an absolutely fascinating book; maybe even a miniseries as there is romance, death, intrigue and kidnapping.

To start with, it was a theatrical family entirely composed of scenic artists: Horace H. (father), Fannie “Nina” Giles (mother), Horace C. (son) and Mabel A. (daughter). The patriarch was a well-known scenic artist, assisted by his wife, son and daughter.  The son was initially selected to follow in his father’s footsteps, but passed away in 1916 at the young age of 24.  Although the patriarch of the family actively once discouraged his daughter from the profession, she had also assisted him on projects when he needed an assistant and was an accomplished artist in her own right. Regardless of her father’s warning, Mabel became a scenic artist and was actively working the year her brother passed.  In fact, in 1916 both Mabel and her mother were listed as scenic artists in the Sioux City Directory, working at the Princess Theatre. There is no indication of what their father is doing at that time, but in 1912 he was working and living in Florida. 

Horace Sr. passes away in 1919, and both mother and daughter now constitute the Buell Scenic Company. In many newspaper reports, they explain the desire to continue the Buell name in the scenic art world, an acceptable rationale for two women running a scenic art business.  Mabel makes the paper as a petite pretty blond who holds a union card and works just as hard as the men who dominate the world of scenic art.  The mother is listed as head of Buell Scenic Company and becomes a member of the Vaudeville Artists’ Club. 

In 1923, the Mabel marries Herbert Schulze, also a scenic artist and designer, but a sickly one with a heart condition.  Three years later, the mother “retires” from heading Buell Scenic Company, but is still involved as a consultant. Interestingly, she retires the same year that her granddaughter Joy is born to Mabel and Herbert. My guess is that she opted to stay home with her granddaughter so that her own daughter could keep working. The family of four – mother, daughter, son-in-law and granddaughter –  all live in Manhattan during the 1930s.

It is in the mid-1930s, however, that the daughter meets Yates Stirling, Jr., a retired admiral. She begins working with him on several projects, including providing illustrations for his various publications, such as “Sea Duty: Memoirs of a Fighting Admiral.” They also partner to create the musical comedy “Sea Legs.” Then, as now, some of society has a hard time believing men and women can work together and maintain a platonic friendship without some sort of romantic liaison, so there is speculation that the two were having an affair. Whether this is the case or not, really doesn’t matter, but Stirling’s family had a problem with it.  But is in the in 1930s and 1940s that Stirling becomes an increasing involved with the Buell family, going on extended absences with the three Buell women to work on his writing projects. This is at the same time Mabel’s husband, Herbert Schulze, nears the end of his life. He passes away in 1940 at the relatively young age of 48. At the time of his passing, Schulze was no longer living in the Buell home, but lodging with others and still working as a scenic artist. Other than a heart condition listed on his WWI draft card, there is no indication of what caused his early departure.

Stirling’s relationship with the Buell’s only became a problem because of his children. His adult children were not happy with his new friendship and the time spent with the Buell family, to the extreme. There is all sort of drama revolving around his activities at the Buell’s and the reported disappearance of the admiral. In fact, when he left with the Buell’s to work on another publication in Florida, his children reported him missing and hired a detective. After Stirling requested that more personal items be shipped to him in Florida due an extended stay, the children broke into the Buell’s home and left with their father – who was in his 70s at the time. During the home invasion, 18-years-old Nina Buell was injured in “a scuffle with the admiral’s offspring” (“Tampa Bay Times,” 15 May 1946, page 11). Other reports proclaim that her injury occurred after she pulled a gun on the invaders and they were trying to disarm her, hence injuring her hand. Nina was even pictured in the newspaper with her granddaughter inspecting her injury. Charges against the Stirling children were filed and the drama continued.

Nina Fannie B. Giles Buell is a fascinating character in her own right.  Various historical records list provide a variety of names for her, including Nina G., Nina C., Nina B., Fannie G., Fannie B. and Fannie C. Buell; yes, they are one in the same. When Mabel and her mother were painting at the Princess Theatre in Sioux City in 1916, she was listed as Nina C. Buell. Upon her passing though, newspapers remembered her as Nina Giles Buell and her position as “Former Scenic Firm Head” (Tampa Tribune, 31 Dec. 1947, page 2).  

“The Miami News” announced, “Woman Theatrical Designer Dies” (30 Dec. 1947, page 1). The “Post Standard” reported, “Palm Beach, Fla. – Mrs. Nina Giles Buell for many years the head of Buell Scenic company, theatrical designers of New York city, died here yesterday after a short illness” (Syracuse, NY, 31 Dec. 1947, page 1). The Jan. 10, 1948 issue of “The Billboard” announced, “Mrs. Nina Giles, head of the New York theatrical designers, Buell Scenic Company, December 31 in New York. She was a member of the National Vaudeville Artists’ Club” (page 42). Nina was not simply window dressing or doing the accounting for a scenic studio, she was a major presence in the company, both designing and painting; still associated with the company two decades after her retirement.

Nina’s obituary is indicative of her unusual life. I have always found newspaper obituaries fascinating.  Until you actually write one and submit it to the newspaper, it’s not an activity that one ponders. Having to encapsulate one’s life while contemplating length, and if an issue, overall expense. I have read thousands of obituaries to obtain little bits of information about others’ existences to gain little crumbs of truth. As the obituary is often submitted by a family member, typically they know how the dearly departed wanted to be remembered; what was really important to include about their life. On Dec. 31, 1947, “The Palm Beach Post” reported, “Mrs. N. G. Buell Dies in Resort (page 2).

Here is the article as it was written and submitted:

“Services for Mrs. Nina Giles Buell, former theatrical designer of New York, who died Tuesday morning at her apartment in the Paramount Bldg., will be held at 2 p.m. today at the graveside in Hillcrest Cemetery. The Rev. Ryan Wood, pastor of the Memorial Presbyterian Church will officiate.” I am going to stop here to point something out. Buell dies on Tuesday morning, the announcement and burial is the next day.  I had no idea that a burial could occur that quickly, when considering the process that I have encountered in the past. This suggests that there was no need to plan a memorial service for friends or family coming from afar. Continuing with the article:

“Mrs. Buell, who would have been 82 in a few days, died after a short illness. For many years she headed the Buell Scenic Co., and after her retirement from active work in 1926, she was consultant to their daughter, Mabel Buell, a widow of Herbert Schulze, scenic designer, who uses her maiden name professionally.

“Mrs. Buell, her daughter and the latter’s daughter, Joy, came to Florida in April 1946, after spending some time in Miami Beach. They have made their home in Palm Beach for more than a year, where Miss Buell has been engaged in doing murals for a number of clubs.

“Mrs. Buell was born in Milwaukee, where her father was the second white man to settle in the community. For several years she worked for the Presbyterian Board in slum work in Portland, Ore. Later conducting a kindergarten which the board built for her in Mexico near the border.

“She was married to Horace Hervey Buell, portrait and mural artist.

“Their children, Mabel and Horace Cyrus Giles Buell, who died in 1916, were born in California, and when they were both quite young the family went abroad, living in London for two and a half years.

“After Mr. Buell’s death in 1919, Mrs. Buell who managed his business affairs and her daughter devoted themselves to their scenic business for years, and did sets for many shows, including a number of Schubert productions.

“Mrs. Buell was a lay member of the National Vaudeville artists Club, did many sets for vaudeville acts and was beloved by the profession.

“Though there are many nephews and nieces in California, immediate survivors include only the daughter and granddaughter.

“Friends who wish may view the body from 10 a. m. to 1 p. m. today at the Mizell-Simon Mortuary.”

To be continued…

Copyright © 2020 by Wendy Waszut-Barrett

The following article was written by Henry T. Parker and published in “American Magazine” (August 1923, page 68). Keep in mind that this was the same year that Sosman & Landis closed their doors. Times were certainly changing.

“A Successful Woman Scenic Artist.

When Mabel Buell was a child of two, and barely able to crawl about a California beach, she grasped a stick and began to draw figures bigger than herself in the sand. When she was ten she painted two heroic tapestries for a hotel in southern Florida. When she was a year older she “splashed” huge signs over a theatre curtain in Savannah, Georgia, and when she was fifteen she climbed an eighty-foot ladder to a ‘bridge’ above a theatre stage and began to paint her way down, rung by rung, to success, paradoxical as that may sound. To-day, at twenty three, she is called upon for some of the biggest productions along Broadway. She is the only woman scenic artist in America.

“Her success, she says, is due to the fact that she has always held to one ideal and has reused to be swayed from it by criticism, handicaps, or disappointment. Even from those earliest days on the California beach she knew that she could never deal in the miniature in art. She wanted only the heroic, the statuesque, the bigger-than-life-itself. But once did she try to evade the issue. Then, at the insistence of her father, she studied landscape and portraiture for two years in London.

“Scene painting is an exacting art. It calls for a physical strength and endurance that is not demanded in any of the allied arts. Many times, especially when one is working in stock, and one or more complete sets must be turned out each week, the scenic artist is called upon to work for thirty and forty hours at a stretch. And when one considers that every minute of each of those hours is filled with wielding a brush that weighs from five to eight pounds, turning the big windlass that raises or lowers your canvas, mixing one’s own paints, and forever considering the details of colors and lights that are involved, it is easy to realize that scene painting is not child’s play.

“I talked with Mabel Buell of the arduous side of her work, as she paused after ‘sweeping’ a sky line across a forty-foot canvas that was destined to be a back drop for a new production by the Coburns. Miss Buell looks all of five years younger than her confessed twenty-three. She is small, slim, and dainty, and her trim knickers and tailored smock were so bedaubed with pigments that she looked as though she should have been in a nursery, coloring cut-out dolls, rather than tackling the huge canvas that hung before here.

‘Hard work? Of course, it is hard work,’ she said; ‘but then so is everything else that is worthwhile. I am never so happy as when I am ‘way up here on my bridge with my paints, brushes and canvas. It is only then that I am really living my life as I first conceived it, and I know that I would be miserable if I couldn’t do it. I despise the detail of little work, and have ever since I was a child in pinafores. Making a set in miniature drives me to distraction and sometimes – even when I am in a hurry to finish a model to show to some manager or director – I have to quit and come up here in this atmosphere of bigness to think things out and get the right perspective.

‘But I do know that it is the so-called drudgery of the thing that turns most women against scene painting as a means of expression and livelihood. I have had hundreds of girls come to me and ask about my work and by what means they, too, might take it up and succeed at it. And they have all seemed highly interested until I have told them that the real scenic artist must of necessity do all or most of his own painting, then they have turned away.

‘It was simply too much for them, and very wisely, I presume, they have sought other fields more suited to their tastes. Not necessarily that they are afraid of so much of it and also of the handicaps that beset every woman who takes up scene painting as a profession, for there is, as always will be, a great prejudice against women in this field.’

‘It was probably the knowledge of this fact that, more than anything else, led my father to try and discourage me against it. Even to-day many theatrical managers are inclined to refuse to allow women on the bridge, and it is only there that one can work satisfactorily. The scenic artist naturally sees only part of his work at the time. The vast canvas is stretched out before him, and, unless he knows the exact scale on which he is working, the perspective is likely to go all wrong.

‘I have found many men, managers, electricians, stage carpenters, and others, who have been only to glad and willing to help me in every way. That is – as soon as they learned that I knew my business and was competent to do the work for which I have been employed. But they must be convinced, and therein lies the hardest part for the girl who is trying to break into the game. Of course I learned much from my father, though even he was more often than not loath to have me around. It was my brother who used to act as his ‘paint boy,’ cleaning his brushes and mixing his paints. But I made the most of my opportunities. I hung around and picked up what information I could, and always kept in mind that some day I was going to climb to the bridge and do scene painting all by myself.’”

To be continued…