 |
|
Childe
Hassam,
The Ledges, Old Lyme, Connecticut,
1907.
The Florence Griswold Museum |
It can be argued that no small town in America has an artistic heritage as
strong and venerable as Old Lyme, Connecticut. It began over one hundred
years ago, when the Barbizon painter Henry Ward Ranger arrived at Miss
Florence Griswold’s Lyme Street boarding house in the summer of 1899. Ranger
was shortly followed by other New York painters, many of whom trained in
Paris, and the Lyme Art Colony was born. It was to become known as the
country’s most important art colony in the early years of the 20th century.
The 1903 arrival of Childe Hassam shifted the focus from Barbizon and
Tonalist painting to Impressionism, the genre which soon became synonymous
with Old Lyme and Florence Griswold’s boarding house. Drawn to Old Lyme by
its bucolic fields and woodlands, its rivers and the Long Island Sound, and
its historic houses, Impressionist painters flocked to the area to board
with Miss Florence and, later on, to establish permanent residences in the
area.
In 1914, the Impressionist artists formed the Lyme Art Association, with
annual summer exhibitions held at Old Lyme’s Phoebe Griffin Noyes library.
As the Art Association grew in both stature and volume, it commissioned the
renowned architect Charles Platt to design a permanent exhibition gallery on
Lyme Street. The land was sold to the Association for $1.00 by Miss Florence
Griswold, and the gallery was completed in 1921, with Miss Florence as its
first manager. It is the only art gallery in the country whose construction
was totally financed by member artists.
An Art-Lover’s Dream
Here in this serene inlet at the mouth of the Connecticut River, early 20th
century Impressionist artists from New York and Boston sought refuge from
the trials of city life. Much of the character that drew painters to the
area over a century ago remains today. The Congregational Church, made
famous by Childe Hassam’s paintings, still stands at the end of Lyme Street.
Meandering roads and wooded lanes open to picturesque views, any of which
could have been a painting spot immortalized on canvas by Willard Metcalf or
William Chadwick.
Now the town also offers an array of charming
art galleries, specialty stores, and antique shops. Delightful inns cater to
visitors’ needs and restaurants tempt their palates. At the heart of town’s
artistic legacy is the Florence Griswold Museum, the "Home of American
Impressionism." As the historic home of the Lyme Art Colony, the Museum and
its grounds offer visitors a unique experience.
A Connecticut Lady and her Bohemian Boys
How did a generation of American artists wind up in Old Lyme? Besides the
fact that there was no loss of subject matter to chose from, the artists
found perfect accommodations with the kindred bohemian spirit of Florence
Griswold. Left with little means to maintain her family home, “Miss
Florence” had opened her doors to boarders in 1899. Artists began to appear
and over the next decade turned her stately 1817 house into the home of the
Lyme Art Colony, where noted names in American Impressionism created some of
their best works.
| |
 |
| Bermuda South
Shore, William Chadwick.
The Florence
Griswold Museum |
No Where Else in America
The artists left Miss Florence, and generations of art lovers, something
very special - paintings on the walls and doors of the Griswold House. The
tradition was imported from hostelries in the French art colonies of
Barbizon, Giverny, and Pont-Aven. The most breathtaking example is found in
the dining room, with 40 paintings by over 30 artists, a complete chronicle
of the art colony movement in America.
A New Center for American Art
Today, visitors not only enjoy touring the historic home and Miss Florence’s
gardens; they spend their time viewing paintings by America’s premier
artists in the Museum’s new riverfront gallery, with changing exhibitions
that invite return visits. The new Krieble Gallery has propelled the Museum
into a national destination. The recently opened 10,000 square foot gallery
building by Centerbrook Architects adds a twentieth century perspective with
three skylit galleries flanked by striking, curvilinear metal wings
overlooking Miss Florence’s garden and the Lieutenant River.
The Museum has one of the foremost collections of Impressionism in
America, with major works by Childe Hassam and John Henry Twachtman, and the
largest collection of Willard Metcalf paintings anywhere. Changing
exhibitions offer audiences the finest American art dating from the late
18th century to the present.
Old Lyme Today: Where Art Lives
The tradition that started in Old Lyme at the turn of the last century lives
on today, with the Florence Griswold Museum, the Lyme Art Association, the
Lyme Academy College of Fine Arts, and several private art Galleries, most
notably the Cooley Gallery. Lyme Impressionist paintings can also be seen at
the Phoebe Griffin Noyes Library, the Old Lyme First Congregational Church,
the Old Lyme Town Hall, and two of the town’s most popular historic inns,
the Old Lyme Inn and the Bee & Thistle Inn.
The
Old Lyme Art Alliance
In 2003, the Florence Griswold Museum, the Lyme Art Association, the Lyme
Academy College of Fine Arts, and the Cooley Gallery got together to form a
collaborative group, which was named the Old Lyme Art Alliance. Profiles of
the members follow:
The Florence Griswold Museum: This National Historic Landmark, home
of the Lyme Art Colony from 1899 to the 1930’s, is located in the heart of
Old Lyme. The Museum’s campus includes the 1817 Griswold House, a boarding
house frequented by the American Impressionists beginning at the turn of the
last century.
Situated on eleven acres by the Lieutenant River, the Museum has one of the
foremost collections of Impressionism in America, with major works by Childe
Hassam and John Henry Twachtman among many others, and the largest
collection of Willard Metcalf paintings in the world. With the 2002 addition
of the Krieble Gallery, the Museum’s collection represents some of the
finest works by American artists who lived or worked in Connecticut and
spans a period of 150 years from the late 18th to the early 20th centuries.
The mission of the Florence Griswold Museum is to inspire and educate a
diverse audience on Connecticut’s art, history and landscape, with special
emphasis on the Lyme Art Colony. Related to this mission, the Museum offers
frequently changing art and history exhibitions, educational programs for
both children and adults, an extensive archival collection for scholars, and
recreated historic gardens. The Museum first opened in 1947.
The Lyme Academy College of Fine Art: Founded in 1976, the Lyme
Academy is New England’s only independent College of Fine Arts and one of
only three such accredited schools nationwide dedicated exclusively to
traditional education in the fine arts.
The College features two galleries, the Chauncey Stillman Gallery and The
Sill House Gallery, both free and open to the public. The galleries carry
traveling exhibitions, and one-person and thematic exhibits, as well as
showing the work of faculty, students and alumni, all of which are for sale.
The mission of the College is to preserve and promote the western traditions
of drawing, painting, printmaking and sculpture by providing educational
opportunities that meet the highest standard of academic and artistic
excellence. The College grants a BFA degree, three year Certificate and Post
Baccalaureate Certificate; it serves one hundred full-time and one hundred
part-time students, and has an extensive summer program.
The
Lyme Art Association: Opened in 1921 as a permanent exhibition home for
the Lyme Art Colony Impressionist artists who boarded with Miss Florence
Griswold, the Lyme Art Association continues as a vibrant art center open to
the public with free admission. Professional as well as developing artists
mount major exhibitions throughout the year and form the core of the Art
Association, which now boasts over 850 members.
The mission of the Lyme Art Association is to advance the cause of
representational fine arts by owning, maintaining, and preserving an
historic building and galleries in Old Lyme, holding art exhibitions, and
conducting educational programs for the benefit of the local community and
the general public. In addition to its frequently changing exhibitions, the
Association offers studio art classes year-round, with emphasis on the
individual student’s creative development and growth. Classes are offered
for students of all ages, skills and experience.
The Cooley Gallery: Established in 1981, The Cooley Gallery is a
commercial art gallery in Old Lyme’s historic district, specializing in fine
American paintings and works on paper of the 19th and early 20th Centuries,
as well as select Contemporary Realist art.
The gallery exhibits, for sale, works of The Hudson River School,
Connecticut and American Impressionism, the American Barbizon school, and
always a few interesting surprises. Housed in an historic building on Lyme
Street, they offer four light filled picture galleries of art and sculpture
with regularly changing special exhibitions. The gallery is owned and
operated by Jeffrey W. Cooley, who is a charter trustee and major supporter
of the Florence Griswold Museum.
The Old Lyme Art Alliance envisions itself growing and evolving over time,
to realize a long-term goal of making the public aware of Old Lyme’s focus
on art, past and present.
Spend the Day, Spend the Weekend
The Old Lyme Inn and The Bee and Thistle Inn are consistently highly ranked
in travel guides for their restaurants and accommodations. The Cooley
Gallery is considered a preeminent purveyor of American art, the Lyme
Academy College of Fine Arts graduates some of tomorrow’s top artists, and
the Lyme Art Association is the longest continually operating art
association run by professional artists in the country. A stroll down
historic Lyme Street gives visitors a study in American Colonial
architecture with homes grand and modest, boutiques, antiques shops, and an
ice cream parlor. Shore Road offers nature lovers a chance to connect with
wildlife and natural areas along the Connecticut River Valley and Long
Island Sound.
Old Lyme is the gateway to spectacular side trips. Old Saybrook and Essex,
Connecticut are a hop across the Connecticut River and feature shopping and
attractions like the Essex Steam Train and Riverboat and the Connecticut
River Museum.
The artists who founded the Lyme Art Colony were in search of rest and
renewal as well as inspiration. A century later, travelers in their
footsteps still find the same in the remarkable town of Old Lyme.
