Edwin Bassett Knutesen (May 26, 1901 – January 23, 1961) was an American painter born in
La Crosse, Wisconsin
La Crosse is a city in the U.S. state of Wisconsin and the county seat of La Crosse County. Positioned alongside the Mississippi River, La Crosse is the largest city on Wisconsin's western border. La Crosse's population as of the 2020 census w ...
.
Life and career
Knutesen became a student at the
Pennsylvania Academy of Fine Arts (PAFA) in 1923, where he studied under George Oberteuffer,
Hugh Breckenridge
Hugh Henry Breckenridge (1870-1937), was an American painter and art instructor who championed the artistic movements from impressionism to modernism. Breckenridge taught for more than forty years at the Pennsylvania Academy of Fine Arts, becomin ...
, and
Daniel Garber. Later he worked as an illustrator for the Wisconsin News and attended evening classes at the
Wisconsin State Normal School (University of Wisconsin Milwaukee). Knutesen moved to Paris France in 1925 where he studied at the
Ecole Des Beaux – Arts de Paris and had a studio next to that of
American Regionalist and Social Realist lithographer,
Adolf Dehn.
Knutesen returned to America in 1928 aboard the
SS ''Leviathan'' and attended the
Wisconsin State Teachers College in Milwaukee (University of Wisconsin Milwaukee) where he received his degree in art education (1930). Knutesen found work as a teacher in New Orleans, Louisiana, then worked in Charleston, South Carolina for several years before returning to Milwaukee Wisconsin in the mid-1930s. During the
Great Depression
The Great Depression (19291939) was an economic shock that impacted most countries across the world. It was a period of economic depression that became evident after a major fall in stock prices in the United States. The economic contagio ...
Knutesen was able to find employment with the
Federal Arts Project, which was funded by the WPA.
When
World War II
World War II or the Second World War, often abbreviated as WWII or WW2, was a world war that lasted from 1939 to 1945. It involved the vast majority of the world's countries—including all of the great powers—forming two opposin ...
began the WPA program was canceled and Knutesen found employment creating advertisements but continued perusing his art work. Knutesen was a member of Milwaukee Businessmen's Sketch Club and affiliated with the Wisconsin Art Teachers (WAT). He frequently exhibited in Wisconsin State Fairs and Wisconsin Painters Shows, including the Thirty-First Annual Exhibition of Wisconsin Art in 1944. Knutesen won several awards including first place ribbon for a painting he entered at the Wisconsin State fair in 1957.
Death
Knutesen died January 23, 1961, in Milwaukee, Wisconsin. A memorial exhibit was on display at the
Charles Allis Art Museum
The Charles Allis Art Museum is a museum in Milwaukee, Wisconsin. It is listed on the National Register of Historic Places as the Charles Allis House.
Allis Mansion history
The Charles Allis Art Museum was originally the home of Milwaukee native C ...
from October 1 to 29, 1961.
Quotes
* ''“Art is reflecting and accentuating man's own nature at its best”.''
Works
*"Kilbourn Avenue" – (Oil Painting) Part of the Federal Art Project of the Works Progress Administration. This painting was displayed at the offices of the League of Wisconsin Municipalities until 1993, when it was deposited with the
Historical Society of Wisconsin. This painting is of a multiracial work crew removing trees, unloading a dump truck, and jackhammering on Kilbourn Avenue in Milwaukee Wisconsin.
*"Milwaukee Yacht Club" - (Watercolor on paper)
Milwaukee Arts Board (MAB) collection.
*"Corn Husker" - (Watercolor on paper) for Federal Art Project, Works Programs Administration, Wisconsin. Bulletin of the Milwaukee Art Institute 1938 v12.
*“Milwaukee River” - (Watercolor on paper) 1938.
*Wisconsin WPA Art, shown at the Charles A. Wustum Museum of Fine Arts from February 22 through April 19, 1998 (in the Permanent Collection).
*"Planter" - (Oil on canvas) 1930s for Federal Art Program, Works Progress Administration (WPA), listed in National Stolen Art File (NSAF) database
References
{{DEFAULTSORT:Knutesen, Edwin B.
20th-century American painters
1901 births
1961 deaths
Pennsylvania Academy of the Fine Arts alumni
People from La Crosse, Wisconsin