Louis Aston Knight (1873 — 1948) was a French-born American

artist An artist is a person engaged in an activity related to creating art, practicing the arts, or demonstrating an art. The common usage in both everyday speech and academic discourse refers to a practitioner in the visual arts only. However, th ...

noted for his paintings of landscapes. One of his paintings, ''The Afterglow,'' was purchased by U.S. President Warren G. Harding in 1922 to hang in the White House.

Biography

Aston Knight, the son of

Daniel Ridgway Knight Daniel Ridgway Knight (15 March 18399 March 1924) was an American artist born in Chambersburg, Pennsylvania. Biography Knight was a pupil at the École des Beaux-Arts, Paris, under Gleyre, and later worked in the private studio of Meissonier ...

and Rebecca Morris Webster Knight, was born in Paris in 1873. He was raised in Europe and received his early training with his father. He later continued his studies with Tony Robert-Fleury and

Jules Lefebvre Jules Joseph Lefebvre (; 14 March 183624 February 1911) was a French figure painter, educator and theorist. Early life Lefebvre was born in Tournan-en-Brie, Seine-et-Marne, on 14 March 1836. He entered the École nationale supérieure des Be ...

. Aston Knight exhibited his first work at the

Paris Salon The Salon (french: Salon), or rarely Paris Salon (French: ''Salon de Paris'' ), beginning in 1667 was the official art exhibition of the Académie des Beaux-Arts in Paris. Between 1748 and 1890 it was arguably the greatest annual or biennial art ...

in 1894 and continued exhibiting there throughout his lifetime, winning an honorable mention in 1901, a third class gold medal in 1905, and second class gold medal in 1906. His favorite subjects were the cottages and gardens in the towns surrounding his home in

Beaumont-le-Roger Beaumont-le-Roger () is a commune in the department of Eure in Normandy region in northern France. Geography The commune is located in the valley of the Risle on the edge of the forest with which it shares its name. It is crossed by the Paris- ...

. He was noted for his ability to render "the transparency, the reflections and the movements of water." He married Caroline Ridgeway Brewster at the home of State Senator

Joseph Sherman Frelinghuysen, Sr. Joseph Sherman Frelinghuysen Sr. (March 12, 1869 – February 8, 1948) represented New Jersey as a Republican in the United States Senate from 1917 to 1923. Early life and family He was born in Raritan, New Jersey, on March 12, 1869, to Frede ...

in Raritan, New Jersey in 1907. They had two sons, Ridgway Brewster Knight and George William Knight, and a daughter, Diane Knight Todd, whose childhood playhouse was a frequent subject of Knight's paintings. He was promoted to officer of the Légion d'honneur, the highest decoration in France, in 1927. (Registration and payment required) His auction record is $108,000, for ''A Cottage Along the River'', secured at Sotheby's, New York on 30 November 2005. The painting was purchased by Rehs Galleries, Inc., New York, and the title was corrected to ''Beaumontel'' (as inscribed on the reverse by the artist).Rehs Galleries, Inc.
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Selected paintings

File:Venice2.jpg, ''Venice'' File:Summer Garden. Louis Aston Knight.jpg, ''Summer Garden'' File:Honfleur, France.jpg, ''

Honfleur Honfleur () is a commune in the Calvados department in northwestern France. It is located on the southern bank of the estuary of the Seine across from le Havre and very close to the exit of the Pont de Normandie. The people that inhabit Honf ...

'' File:Market Place, Rouen2.jpg, ''Marketplace,

Rouen Rouen (, ; or ) is a city on the River Seine in northern France. It is the prefecture of the Regions of France, region of Normandy (administrative region), Normandy and the Departments of France, department of Seine-Maritime. Formerly one of ...

'' File:The Blue Cottage. Louis Aston Knight.jpg, ''The Blue Cottage''

References

External links

Louis Aston Knight exhibition catalogs from The Metropolitan Museum of Art Libraries
* ttp://www.normandythenandnow.com/the-painter-of-pretty-normandy-louis-aston-knight-picture-post/ Paintings by Louis Aston Knight of Normandy, France 1873 births 1948 deaths 19th-century American painters 19th-century American male artists American male painters 20th-century American painters 20th-century American male artists American expatriates in France {{US-painter-1870s-stub