Decorative Painting – Page 2

Tales from a Scenic Artist and Scholar. Part 585 – John J. Murdock and the Olympic Music Hall

Part 585: John J. Murdock and the Olympic Music Hall

In 1908, Thomas G. Moses wrote, “We did a show for Murdock at the Olympic – a failure, scenery and play.” He was referring to the newly opened Olympic Music Hall in Chicago. The venue was previously known as the Olympic Theatre before the purchase and renovation by J. J. Murdock in 1908. The Olympic Music Hall opened on November 2, 1908.

John J. Murdock and his Olympic Music Hall, from the “Inter Ocean,” 8 Nov 1908, page 30

An article in the “Inter Ocean” reported, “The work of converting this famous landmark of amusement into a music hall is being carried on day and night, the men working in shifts of eight hours each. The playhouse is now under the control of J. J. Murdock, who successfully operated the Masonic Temple roof garden, and who had been at the head of the Western Vaudeville Managers’ Association. Mr. Murdock will adopt a policy along the lines of the Palace, or Tivoli, London, England, on a more elaborate scale” (Chicago, 25 Oct 1908, page 41). The mention of the Masonic Temple Roof Garden caught my eye.

The Masonic Temple roof garden and observatory was transformed into two electric theatres by Sosman & Landis in 1894. Advertised as Chicago’s first roof garn theatre, it included two electric scenic theatres that were design, constructed and operated by Sosman & Landis. An images of the Masonic Temple roof garden theatre was even pictured on an 1894 catalogue for Sosman & Moses. Although their control of this venue was short-lived, it provides an earlier connection between Murdock and Moses at Sosman & Landis. Murdock’s association with unique and innovative performance venues such as the roof top garden and music hall provides additional context.

High class vaudeville was to be the dominant feature at the Olympic. The “Inter Ocean” published an article on the new Olympic Music Hall (8 Nov 1908, page 30). In it, the question was asked, “When is a vaudeville theatre not a vaudeville theatre?” The response was “When smoking is permitted, then it is a music hall.” In Chicago, Murdock afforded patrons that privilege. The article continued, “Mr. Murdock is a connoisseur of everything pertaining to the entertainment of the public, and realizing that the great majority of men are addicted to the smoking habit, he conceived the happy idea of permitting the patrons of the Olympic Music hall to indulge in that pleasure.” The article noted, “The new Olympic will be different from other Chicago playhouses, in that smoking will be permitted. This innovation, new to Chicago, is familiar to London and Paris theater-goers, and Manager Murdock is convinced that this feature is destined to be as popular in Chicago as it is abroad.” Another “Inter Ocean” article described the smoked-filled music hall: “Blue smoke curled upward from full 500 cigars. Maybe 1,000 men lounged back comfortably in their theatre chairs. Beside almost blessed man of them sat his wife, or his sweetheart, or his dearest friend, or maybe only his sister. Toward a rose tinted ceiling smoke drifted cloudlike and then mysteriously, as an enchantment, suddenly disappeared.”

According to Julius Cahn’s Official theatrical guides, the original Olympic Theatre in Chicago had a seating capacity of 2,127, and new music hall had a seating capacity of 1584. The “inter Ocean” provided a further description of the Olympic Music Hall’s auditorium and stage:

“Immediately above the entrance to the auditorium a series of Swiss chalet windows, with stained glass and heavy stucco ornamentation, attract the eye. The theater proper also has undergone a thorough renovation. The color scheme is of gray damask, blending harmoniously with rose and old Roman gold. The ceiling and mural decorations consist of panels of exquisite design, bordered by stucco ornaments, tipped with gold and ivory. A massive new chandelier bearing hundreds of glistening prisms and scores of electric globes hangs just above the orchestra, while at the side of the boxes on both sides two tremendous light clusters have been placed. The balcony and gallery rails have been provided with strings of lights, so that the house is capable of illumination equal to the noonday sun.

The boxes, which formerly were most artistic, have come out of the hands of the decorators as veritable bowers of rich yet tasty beauty. They have been decorated with stucco ornaments, painted in consonance with the general color scheme and provided with heavy plush maroon curtains swinging on brass rods. The entrance to the boxes, above and below, are adorned with rich curtains, that insure at once privacy and real comfort. The proscenium has been decorated in Roman gold, the façade, doing away with the curtain drop, being especially tasty…the steel curtain has been repainted and a new olio drop provided.” The article continued, “The seating capacity of the theater has undergone no change, the safety of the patrons being Manager Murdock’s first consideration when this matter was taken up. The seats above and below have been provided with cushion seats and the framework of the chairs tinted in ivory and gold…More than $30,000 was spent by Manager Murdock in the beautification of the theater, and that the money has been expended to some purpose the admirable result are ample indication” (8 Nov 1908, page 30).

To be continued…

Tales from a Scenic Artist and Scholar. Part 563 – Thomas G. Moses’ Oak Park Studio

Part 563: Thomas G. Moses’ Oak Park Studio

At the beginning of 1907, Thomas G. Moses wrote, “I started right by painting all of New Years day on several oil paintings. My new studio on the third floor is certainly the right thing. I have more than made the cost from work done in the studio.”

Thomas G. Moses in his third floor studio. Oak Park, Illinois.

Moses’ third-floor studio was in the same house that he and Ella purchased on May 1, 1893. This coincided with the opening of the Columbian Exposition; projects leading up to the world fair funded the Moses’ ability to look for a home in the Oak Park area. In 1892, Moses’ work turned a $5,000 profit, today’s equivalent of $130,000. The couple eventually selected a one-year-old house in Oak Park, Illinois. Moses recorded that their new home had “very fine wood-work, a large stable, driveway, and a 60 x 178 foot lot.” They bought the house for $8,575.00, today’s equivalent of $222,238.22. Moses also had a perfect spot for a home studio with plenty of light and away tucked away on the third floor.

Moses had always kept a studio in their previous homes, justified by the income he brought in from any extra work. In 1885 he wrote, “I had the front room nicely decorated by Mitchell and Halbach and I more than enjoyed the little studio. With the extra work from the outside, it paid me to keep the room for a studio.” Similarly in 1907 he wrote, “My new studio on he third floor is certainly the right thing. I have more than made the cost from work done in the studio.” By 1913, he commented, “I had over three hundred pictures in the studio.”

The third floor studio in his Oak Park home was his escape. It was located high above the bustle of daily household activities, offering a peaceful space to work hone his artistic skills, remember past sketching trips and plan for the future. The house was always full of people; first there were the children, and then later grandchildren. Their youngest Thomas “Rupert” Moses followed his father into the theatrical trade, with his family lodging with them in both Chicago and California. While Rupert, his wife, and their three daughters lived with Tom and Ella, there was the rule to not disturb grandfather while he was painting in his studio.

Granddaughter Marilyn fondly remembered her grandfather’s studio in a an article “My Grandfather: Artist Thomas G. Moses.” Her reminisces were shared with me by a great-grandson in 2017. Marilyn wrote, “Grandfather had a studio on the third floor of his house. He spent most of his time up there painting…Grandmother tried to ‘protect’ Grandfather from his grandchildren or maybe it was his working time which was important. I didn’t realize the reasons behind the rules. I would go up to the studio to watch. It was quite exciting to see the sets develop. Grandfather taught me how to make furniture out of cardboard and put me to work. I made tables, chairs and lounges.”

To be continued…

Tales from a Scenic Artist and Scholar. Part 314 – Solomon E. White, Scenic Artist for “On the Suwanee River”

Part 314: Solomon E. White , Scenic Artist for “On the Suwanee River”

By 1879, Solomon E. White was listed as living at 276 John Street in Cincinnati. He was thirty-eight years old and publicly recognized as a scenic artist for almost fifteen years. The following year, the White family returned to Grand Rapids, where they lived at 43 Curtiss Street. White would work as a scenic artist and fresco artist in the city for the next five years.

Little is known of White’s career after 1885. Unfortunately, I could not find his name in print again until a decade later. By 1895, White was again listed in the Cincinnati Business Directory section as a fresco decorator. However, he did not stop working as a scenic artist. That same year, White created the settings for “On the Suwanee River.”

The Notable Kentucky African Americans Database recorded that during a trip to Florida, White made several sketches of the region. He used his artwork as source material for the scene design and painting of “On the Suwanee River.” The touring production visited Newark, Ohio, in 1899. Julius Cahn’s Theatrical Guide also included this touring production in several issues.

Photograph by Will Dickey–Cypress trees on the bank of the Suwannee River near Live Oak, Florida. (www.willdickey.com)

The Dixon Evening Telegraph reported that this “popular play of the Sunny South” held “an indefinable charm” (Dixon, Illinois, 8 Dec. 1902, page 5). It brought “its clientele back to the theatre to see a re-enactment of this pretty story” year after year. The article continued, “Stair & Nicolai have given the play a thorough scenic environment for this, its sixth season, and the company is practically the same as it has been in the past. Stella Mayhew will again be seen as the old colored mammy, Aunt Lindy. Miss Mayhew’s portrayal of the role is a characterization of rare excellence. As an entirety ‘On the Suwanee River” is a classic in comparison with the average attraction playing the popular priced theaters.”

The managers for the production were Stair & Nicolai. This was George H. Nicolai and E. D. Stair. They also ran the Majestic Theatre in New York, with Stair as the Lessee and Manager and Nicolai as the business manager. The theatrical managing firms of Stair & Nicolai and Stair & Havlin were both located at 1493 Broadway in New York City. Nicolai was a silent partner in Stair and J. H. Havlin in their enterprise. They partnered in many ventures as Nicolai was Stair’s brother-in-law.

Stair & Havlin managed a large chain of theaters primarily situated in smaller cities and towns from the East Coast to Kansas City, offering melodrama and farce. Many of the attractions were proprietary, but the company also featured Broadway hits that toured the major theatrical centers. Stair & Nicolai also managed the productions of “The Night Before Christmas,” “Don Caesar de Bazan,” and “Romeo and Juliet” during 1901.

White would have first encountered Stair in Grand Rapids, Michigan. Stair was the lessee for the Grand Opera House. Stair and C. J. Whitney were lessees for the Power’s Theatre in Grand Rapids too. These were just two of many theatres where Stair was listed as a lessee, often with another partner. Other venues were in Detroit, Cleveland, Chicago, and Louisville. Stair also managed the Kery & Mason touring company

After White’s painting of the scenery for “On the Suwanee River,” little is reported about White until his passing in 1912. He died a widower in Cincinnati. Solomon E. White was 71 years old.

To be continued…

For more information about Solomon E. White, here is the link to Notable Kentucky African Americans Database – (http://nkaa.uky.edu/nkaa/items/show/2507)

Tales from a Scenic Artist and Scholar. Part 213 – Mitchell & Halbach, Fresco Artists

After the West Virginia sketching trip in 1885, Thomas G. Moses found himself quite busy with both work and study. He remained at Sosman & Landis Studio, did some extra work at the Lyceum Theatre, and even joined a class as Crossman’s Studio to study figure drawing. Despite his busy schedule, Moses also managed to complete a few watercolors for a collector named Fanning. For these commissions he received the “magnificent sum” of $100.00 per dozen, averaging four pictures a week; each was 14 x 22. Fanning wanted Moses to go to New York City and do nothing but paint woodland scenes, but he had to refuse. Work was too plentiful in Chicago and he had the responsibility of a home and family there. He wrote, “I was ambitious to do something besides a scene painter, to leave something besides a name, which is about all a scene painter leaves as his scenic work is soon painted out.”

That year Moses also created some perspective interiors for the decorating firm of Mitchel & Halbach. He started when the company opened under the direction of Otto W. Mitchel and J. Fred A. Halbach.

Mitchel & Halbach was a Chicago theatrical decorator firm. Like P. M. Almini and Otto Jevne who preceded them, both of the founders advertised as fresco artists, working all over the country in state house, theaters and private residences. Otto W. Mitchel was a decorator and furnisher born in Vesbeck, near Hanover, Germany on October 8, 1853. He arrived in Chicago by 1873 and he immediately began studying studied Fred M. Atwood. In 1880, Mitchel married Edith Geiger in 1880 and had a son, Louis. By 1885, he engaged in a decorating and furnishing business with J. Fred A. Halbach, forming Mitchel and Halbach. The company incorporated as Mitchel & Halbach Co., on April 13, 1908. Company offices where initially located at 195 Wabash Ave in 1887, 264 Michigan Ave. in 1905 and at 718 S. Michigan Ave. in 1911, and 1715 S. Michigan Ave. in 1922. Mitchel was a Mason, Republican, and member of the Chicago Athletic Club.

Fred A. Halbach was born in Peru, Indiana, on December 25, 1856. He began his artistic career with the firm of William Cheney in Toledo from 1871-1877. In 1877, he moved to Chicago where he continued to develop his skills as a decorator. In 1880, he moved to New York where he was employed as a designer and decorator at Pottier & Stymus, a prominent American furniture and design firm. They made furniture in Neo-Greco, Renaissance Revival, Egyptian Revival, and Modern Gothic Styles, employing 700 men and 50 women by 1872.

By 1885, Halbach had returned to Chicago where he met Mitchel. Halbach was a Republican and member of the Royal Arcanum, Royal League, Union League, Athletic Club, and the O’Klok Klub.

Mitchel & Halbach interior decoration for Spark’s New Theatre in Fort Smith, Arkansas.

Mitchel & Halbach added the finishing touches to theatrical, commercial, and residential interiors, specializing in hand-painted frescoes, glazed and stenciled canvas-on-plaster wall coverings, stained glass work, and other decorative painting.

Mitchel & Halbach decorated the historic Adams House in Deadwood, South Dakota.

By 1911, the firm was credited with decorations for over 300 theatres nationwide, including the New Majestic Theatre (Houston, TX), Empire Theatre (NYC), Broadway Theatre (NYC), American Theatre (NYC), Weber’s Music Hall (NYC), Chicago Opera House, Columbia Theatre (Chicago), Hooley’s Theatre (Chicago), New Orpheum (Los Angeles, CA), New Orpheum (Salt Lake City), New Orpheum (New Orleans, LA), New Orpheum (Memphis, TN), New Orpheum (Denver, CO), and many other.

One of the more famous venues that they decorated was the 1911 (Sparks) New Theatre in Fort Smith, Arkansas. Interior decorations were a mixture of Beaux-Arts and Art Nouveau styles. The theatre was designed by the architectural firm Boller Brothers of Kansas City and intended as a live performance venue with a large fly space, an orchestra pit that seated up to twenty musicians and an auditorium that seated 1,200 people on the main floor, two balconies, and two sets of boxes. In 1929, $20,000 was spent to purchase equipment to show “talking movies” and the venue changed with the times. By the 1930s the space was remodeled in the Art Moderne style. The New Theatre was the only theatre in Fort Smith that would admit African Americans. The upper balcony was reserved for African American patrons during the days of racial segregation.

George Sparks had been a wealthy Fort Smith businessman who had been impressed by a 1903 performance at the New Amsterdam Theatre in New York. After returning to his hometown, he decided to build a similar theatre. Unfortunately, Sparks died in a shipwreck off the California coat in 1907. However, his estate left enough money in his will to build both a theatre and hospital in Fort Smith by 1911.

Exterior sign on Spark’s New Theatre in Fort Smith, Arkansas.

To be continued…

Tales from a Scenic Artist and Scholar. Part 164 – Thomas G. Moses at P. M. Almini & Co.

I have often found myself being in the right place at the right time. Whether intentional or not, I stumbled into the right room and met the right people. This happens to many individuals over the course of their lives. Life throws a series of opportunities at us. Occasionally, one will make contact. Hopefully, you are able to later look back, connect the dots, and reflect on these moments with profound appreciation. If I had not missed all of the necessary deadlines to attend college in Duluth, I never would have ended up in the Twin Cities. If Lance Brockman had not happened to say, “You should think about taking scene painting class” when I handed in my first production model for Tech II, I could have never started painting for VEE Corporation that summer.

I look at Thomas Moses traveling to Chicago in 1873 and seeking out a master painter for the C. & N. W. Rail Road. He could have arrived and found employment at many businesses as the city built itself up after the devastating fire two years earlier. As an inexperienced boy from a small town, many established art studios could have said “no.” Would anyone else beside Mr. Michaels have gone out on a limb to not only help this young artist find work and lodging, but also write a letter on his behalf to an irate father? Michael managed to bring Moses to the foremost painting studio in the area and help him secure a position. There were dozens of places to work as a decorator in Chicago at the time.

Mr. Michaels also found Moses a place to stay. It was a room with another artist, a man by the name of Nichols. They both worked for P. M. Almini & Co. Moses. In his manuscript Moses noted that Mr. Nichols was a very good pattern maker at the studio, but “a hard drinker.” Regardless of either attribute, he was very kind as Moses got adjusted to living in the big city. In all reality, Moses’ adventure in the big city could have ended in disaster as “a green one from the country.”

Moses was just one of many artists who found their start with Peter Magnus Almini (1825-1890).

Almini and Otto Jevne (1823-1905) founded a fresco painting and decorating firm in Chicago during 1853, each having arrived in the country just a few years before forming their partnership. Almini was from Sweden and a previous assistant superintendent in the decorating of the royal palace in Stockholm. He also had worked as a fresco artist throughout Russia and Finland. Jevne was fresco painter from Norway with a variety of skills in both stained glass and fresco work. The 1862 publication titled “History of Chicago; Its Commercial and Manufacturing Interests and Industry; Together with Sketches of Manufacturers and Men Who Have Most Contributed to Its Prosperity and Advancement with Glances at Some of the Best Hotels; also the Principal Railroads which Center in Chicago,” included the firm of Jevne & Almini in his chapter “Interior Decorations.” It recorded that the firm had “inculcated and infused a higher level of Fresco Painting.” Jevne & Almini were not simply known for their plaster innovations and decorative painting skills. The two were also well known publishers, printing descriptive lithography of landscapes, architecture, publishing a journal devoted to art and architecture titled “Chicago Illustrated” with portfolios that provide many if the visual records from the bustling city before the fire of 1871.

Advertisement in “Chicago Illustrated” for Jevne & Almini.

After the 1871 fire, Jevne and Almini separated, each going their own way and founding new companies. Otto Jevne & Co. was initially located at 79 and 81 Dearborn Street, later moving to 226 E. Washington Street. and P. M. Almini & Co. (344 State Street). Jevne advertised as both a fresco painter and glass stainer, but Almini was the greater success by far.

Additionally, Jevne & Almini had advertised as “dealers in artists’ and painters’ materials, oil paintings, steel engravings, chromo lithographs, &c.” As a paint supplier, they knew all the local artists. They were also credited with establishing the first art gallery in Chicago, the forerunner to the Academy of Fine Arts (1879-1882) and later the Art Institute of Chicago.

Ad for Jevne & Almini’s free art gallery in Chicago, Illinois.

Furthermore, Almini was a member of the Academy of Design and vice-president of the Master-Painters and Decorator’s Association of Chicago. He was also the treasurer of the National Association of Painters and Decorators when it was founded. His connection to the fine art world and the artists that he employed in his decorating studio provided a perfect situation for an aspiring artist from Sterling, Illinois.

At the same time that Moses found employment with Almini, the company participated in the Inter-State Industrial Exposition of 1873. This was the perfect place and time for Moses to find his first job. Their description in the souvenir catalogue noted:

“P. M. Almini & Co., 344 State street, Chicago, made a fine and attractive display of artists’ material, paints, oils, brushes, foreign and domestic designs in fresco, etc., the whole presenting and exhibition of much attraction to all, being arranged in a highly commendable manner.”

Chicago was building itself up again after the fire and many of its artists were along for the ride.

To be continued…

Tales from a Scenic Artist and Scholar. Part 122 – Thomas G. Moses and the Decorating Firm of Jevne & Almini

I first encountered the Jevne & Almini Company when creating an index for the typed manuscript of Thomas Gibbs Moses. It was an independent study project for my mentor, Lance Brockman. This decorating firm would remain in the back of my mind for almost three decades until I started making a few connections during January 2017. Moses was one of many nineteenth-century scenic artists who would begin their careers at the fresco studio of Jevne & Almini.

Advertisement for Jevne & Almini, Fresco and House Painters. This is the place where many scenic artists found their first job in Chicago, Illinois.

While working as a decorator for the company, Moses recalled a project at Hooleys Theater where he first encountered the scenic art of Charles Graham (1852-1911). In 1874. Moses wrote, “In June I was sent to Hooleys Theatre to work. On the scenery [were] employed J. Francis Murphy and Chas. Graham. I was put in charge of the proscenium boxes, mostly gilding. I could see the work being done on the paint frame. I was more convinced that scenery was what I wanted to do; more opportunity to do landscapes.”

View of Hooley’s Theatre interior and proscenium boxes that Thomas Gibbs Moses worked on in 1874.

Hooley’s Opera House, the Parlor of Home Comedy, was dedicated on 21 October 1872 and later became known simply as Hooley’s Theater (1872-1924). Located at 124 West Randolph Street, the cut stone and iron building occupied twenty-three feet of street frontage.

The auditorium had a seating capacity of 1,500 and the stage was 50 feet wide and 65 feet deep. Mr. Hooley and his stock company first appeared on Monday evening, 31 August 1874. This upcoming performance was why an eighteen-year-old Moses was working at the theater that June.

Charles S. Graham work that sold at auction. It reminded me of many “Rocky Pass” compositions painted for the stage.

Painted detail from St. Louis Scottish Rite Rocky Pass scene, 1924, that reminded me of Graham’s painting.

Full composition of Rocky Pass backdrop at the St. Louis Scottish Rite.

Charles S. Graham (1852-1911) was born in Rock Island, Illinois. He became a topographer in 1873 for the Northern Pacific Railroad and it was this position became his training ground as a draftsman and artist. However from 1874 to 1877, Graham painted theatrical scenery in both Chicago and New York. It just so happened that it was on one of his first scenic art jobs that Moses encountered his scenery painting. By 1878, Graham started as the staff artist at Harper’s Weekly and remained there until 1892. He was also a contributing illustrator for a variety of other publications, including the New York Herald, the Chicago Tribune, the American Lithograph Company, and Collier’s. The work of Graham is best known in the publication “Peristyle and Plasaisance” where he created a series of watercolors depicting scenes from the 1893 Chicago world’s fair. Advertisements stated that the illustrations illustrated “nooks and corners of the Fair as no photograph could do.”

Advertisement noting Charles S. Graham’s contribution to “Peristyle and Plaisance.”

Color plate depicting scene from 1893 World Fair. Watercolor by Charles S. Graham.

Amazingly, it was one of Graham’s 1878 illustrations for Harper’s that caught my eye years ago as it beautifully captured scenic artists at work in a theater.

Charles S. Graham illustration of scenic artists at a theater in 1878. Collection of Wendy Waszut-Barrett.

Detail of performance going on below the working scenic artists. 1878 illustration by Charles S. Graham.

Detail of Charles S. Graham signature on illustration. Collection of Wendy Waszut-Barrett.

It was created for “The Sunday Telegraph” (New York, September 28, 1902) and titled “The Scene Painter is No Ghost.” Here is the article that accompanied Graham’s illustration:

“How many theatregoers can give the names of three scene painters in New York? Playhouse patrons admire their art, and even applaud it on opening night, but they know nothing about it, and it is a most unusual occasion when the artist is called before the curtain. He is not discussed at clubs or in the drawing rooms. The cheapest show girl in a Broadway burlesque, with just about brains enough to remember he name over night, gets her picture in the magazines several times in the course of a season and is written about as if she really was of some importance.

Up on the paint bridge, seventy feet above her head, is the scene painter. He is putting the finishing touches to a drop that has taken him many days to paint and more years of hard study to learn how. The press agent never worries him for his photograph, the dramatic reporters couldn’t find him if they went back on stage. The show is over, the lights are put out and a deathly stillness settles upon the theatre. The watchman lazily makes his rounds and finds the scenic artist and his assistants at work finishing a drop or a border or priming new ones. When the artist leaves the theatre the streets are still. He reaches home and over his pipe wonders if the game is worth the candle.”

To be continued…

Detail of Charles S. Graham 1878 illustration depicting scenic artists at the theatre. Collection of Wendy Waszut-Barrett.

Tales from a Scenic Artist and Scholar. Part 121 – Peter Gui Clausen and the Decorating Firm of Jevne & Almini

There were many scenic artists that began their artistic careers at Jevne & Almini in Chicago, including Peter Gui Clausen (1830-1924). I am starting with Clausen as we share the same birthday, June 19.

Peter Gui Clausen. Photograph from the Minnesota Historical Society collection.

Clausen was born at Korsor on the Island of Zealand, Denmark, and educated in the elementary schools of Ringsted. At the age of thirteen, he apprenticed to a Master Decorator for seven years. In 1850 he attended the Royal Academy of Art in Copenhagen. Although he was conscripted in the army the following year, he continued to paint and soon returned to Copenhagen to complete his studies. In 1852 Clausen received his diploma and joined the firm of Bing and Grøndahl Porcelain Company. This would later be the same company that produced the twentieth-century blue Christmas plates. I have my Grandmother’s set hanging on a wall.

While studying in Copenhagen, Clausen also worked as a gold engraver, portrait artist, and landscape painter. By the age of twenty-seven, he moved to Lund, Sweden, and established himself as a master painter and decorator. His commissions included frescoes at Lund University, Ridarholm Church, and the King’s Palace in Stockholm. During this time, he also married his first wife, Amelia Sophia Bergholtz. By 1863, Clausen was conscripted again as a cavalryman in the Danish Army, fighting in both Germany and Austria.

Clausen immigrated to the America in 1866 and settled in Chicago, finding employment with Jevne & Almini. The following year, the firm sent Clausen to Minneapolis to do some fresco work at the First Universalist Church, although the building was later destroyed by fire in 1888. The following year Clausen moved to Minneapolis and established a studio. Two significant projects that he completed in 1869 included views depicting the reconstruction of St. Anthony Falls. Forty-five years later, these same paintings would be used for reference when reconstructing the falls again.

Peter Gui Clausen, Reconstructing St. Anthony Falls, 1869.

By 1870, Clausen advertised as a “fresco and sign painter, a painter of scenery, flags and banners, landscape and ornamental work of every description.” In 1871 he married his second wife Julia Chilson (Kjelson). Over the years Clausen partnered with a variety of artists, continuing to work as a fresco painter, teacher of fine arts, sign painter, scenic artist and panorama painter. He completed a variety of projects across the country while maintaining multiple residences.

Peter Gui Clausen painting in his Minneapolis Studio. Photograph part of Minnesota Historical Society collection.

At the age of fifty-seven, Clausen completed the first section of his “Panorama of the New Wonderland Yellowstone National Park.” It was part of a promotional series for the government. The June 1, 1887, St. Paul Globe published, “Beginning on June 9, 1887, it [will be] displayed at the Grand Opera House in St. Paul” (page 3). The newspaper also commented that the scenes were “painted from nature.” The Sunday, July 3, 1887 Brooklyn Daily Eagle (NY, page 15) noted, “ A Western concern is about to revive a form of pictorial entertainment that was supposed to have become obsolete several years ago the rolling panorama. One Professor Clausen has covered 6,000 yards of canvas with pictures of Yellowstone Park, and the panorama has been made public in Minneapolis amid general acclamation.”

The final work took three years to paint landscapes depicting scenes from Wyoming to Washington. His continued scenic work for theatrical stages in the Twin Cities area and midwestern region included the Minneapolis’ Metropolitan Opera House, St. Paul Metropolitan Theater, Minneapolis Lyceum Theatre, Academy of Music, Brown’s Theatre Comique, St. Paul Grand Opera House, Pence Opera House, Mabel Tainter Theatre in Menomonie, Wisconsin, and the Opera House in Fargo, North Dakota.

Mabel Tainter Theater. Menomonie, Wisconsin.

In 1904, Clausen was listed as an employee of the Twin City Scenic Company. In 1924, Clausen passed away and is buried at Lakewood Cemetery in Minneapolis, Minnesota.

There is something magical about inadvertently posting a tale on his birthday, and mine. Here’s to celebrating our 137th and 48th birthdays today!

To be continued…

Tales from a Scenic Artist and Scholar. Part 120 – Jevne & Almini

Drapery painting for the theater has a long tradition dating back centuries. Many of the earliest examples depict the same techniques practiced by early-twentieth century artists. It is part of a painting tradition that creates a composition to be viewed from a distance. The three-color painting techniques described in the past two installments to depict drapery for the stage were not only used in eighteenth century painted curtains and scenery for court theaters, but also in ceiling frescoes. Murals placed high above used the same techniques that early-twentieth century scenic artists also would produce for the stage. There remained the separation of color and value that allowed the eye to complete the illusion, making these painted compositions extremely successful when viewed from a distance.

Schloss Roseneau ceiling mural, Austria. Photograph by Wendy Waszut-Barrett, 2016.

Yankton, South Dakota, Scottish Rite Front Curtain. Photograph by Wendy Waszut-Barrett, 2014.

Painted detail from Yankton, South Dakota, Scottish Rite Front Curtain. Photograph by Wendy Waszut-Barrett, 2014.

The similarities were not coincidental as many scenic artists found early work and training in fresco studios. As I began compiling a database on North American scenic artists this past fall, I repeatedly encountered nineteenth century scenic artists who began their careers at fresco studios. I had started explored the connection between theatre decorators and scenic artists while touring Europe last year; large-scale paintings intended to be viewed from a distance followed many of the same rules that scenic artists used in terms of value and technique. One decorating studio that provided a start for many nineteenth century scenic artists was the Chicago-based firm of Jevne & Almini. Founded by Peter Magnus Almini (1825-1890) and Otto Jevne (1823-1905) in 1853 many theatre artists and recent immigrants found work in their studio.

Jevne was born near Lillehammer, Norway, and learned the trade there as a fresco painter. He had a variety of skills in both stained glass and fresco work. In 1872, he applied for a patent concerning the improvement in lath-and-plaster walls and ceilings. The invention related to a novel form of wooden lath and “the combination therewith of plaster in such a manner that the wall or ceiling may be made of much thinner and lighter, and at he same time have a firmer texture and be less liable to exhibit the lines or strains caused by lath over time in common walls and ceilings” (US Patent 124,138).

Peter M. Almini, pictured in “The History of Swedes in Illinois.” Photo downloaded from internet, 2017.

Almini was born in Linderås, Småland, Sweden, and learned his painter’s trade in Eksjö, working his trade in Russia and Finland. For six years, Almini lived in Stockholm and was the assistant superintendent in the decorating of the royal palace.

The two immigrated to the United States around during the early 1850s. What they created for many public spaces, Americans gazed at in wonder. In I. D. Guyer’s 1862,“History of Chicago; Its Commercial and Manufacturing Interests and Industry; Together with Sketches of Manufacturers and Men Who Have Most Contributed to Its Prosperity and Advancement with Glances at Some of the Best Hotels; also the Principal Railroads which Center in Chicago,” the firm of Jevne & Almini is highlighted in the chapter “Interior Decorations.” The publication states that Jevne and Almini had “inculcated and infused a higher level of Fresco Painting” in the city since 1853. The firm is credited with decorating the Crosby Opera House, the Sherman House, the Chicago Chamber of Commerce, Trinity Church, First Presbyterian, Wabash Avenue Methodist Church, and many State Capitol buildings that included Georgia, Illinois, Iowa, Kansas, and Wisconsin. They also were involved in the decoration of many early Masonic Halls, including those in the American Express Building.

Jevne & Amini were not simply known for their plaster innovations and decorative painting skills. The two were also quite infamous as publishers, printing a journal devoted to art and architecture titled “Chicago Illustrated.”

In 1865, Jevne & Almini joined with Louis Kurtz to form the Chicago Lithographing Co. Kurtz drew the prints for one of the company’s portfolios, titled “Chicago Illustrated.” Their portfolios are some of visual records depicting life in this bustling city before the fire of 1871. They had a winning talent for not only printing descriptive lithography of landscapes, architecture and cityscapes, but also printed letterheads, cards, bonds, and checks.

Kurtz (born Ludovicus Ferdinandus Josephus Kurtz von Goldenstein) had previously gained recognition in Milwaukee as a scenic artist at his father’s German-language theatre. Moving to Chicago in 1864, he produced some of the stage designs for McVicker’s Theatre and Crosby’s Opera House.

Crosby’s Opera House. Print by Jevne & Almini, published by Chicago Lithographing Co.

It was his work at Crosby’s that introduced him to Jevne and Almini as they had decorated the building. This trio later added Otto Knirsch and Edward Carqueville to their ranks at Chicago Lithographing Co. Knirsch and Carqueville had previously worked at the Edward Mendel and Currier & Ives firms.

Many visual artists for the theatre found their initial vocation as illustrators, draftsmen, and decorators. Jevne & Almini was the perfect firm to expose artists to a variety projects and unique skill sets. As previously discussed, scenic artists often worked for a variety of venues during the nineteenth century, not just the theatre. They found work wherever they travelled whether it was illustration, drafting, sign painting, interior decoration, or stage scenery. Additionally, Jevne & Almini advertised as “dealers in artists’ and painters’ materials, oil paintings, steel engravings, chromo lithographs, &c.”

Note advertisement at bottom of page for Jevne & Almini.

They are credited with establishing the first art gallery in Chicago. This would be the forerunner to the Academy of Fine Arts (1879-1882), later the Art Institute of Chicago.

After the 1871 fire, Jevne and Almini separated, each going their own way and founding new companies: Otto Jevne & Co., 226 E. Washington Street and P. M. Almini & Co., 344 State Street. Whether together or apart, their contributions as two of the leading figures in Chicago’s art scene and businessmen paved the road for many future immigrants working in the city. Of special note is the assistance that Almini provided to fellow artists as a member of the Academy of Design and vice-president of the Master-Painters and Decorator’s Association of Chicago and the treasurer of the National Association of Painters and Decorators when they were founded. As many other artists, he studied ancient and modern art, always sketching for study and leisure. He was also one of the charter members of the Svea Society, organized in 1857. Interestingly, Almini also became a Mason, belonging to both the Ancient and Accepted Scottish Rite and the Ancient Arabic Order of the Noble Mystic Shrine.

To be continued…