Marguerite Stuber Pearson (August 1, 1898 — April 2, 1978) was an American artist, a painter in the style of the Boston School.

Early life

Marguerite Stuber Pearson was born in

Philadelphia, Pennsylvania Philadelphia, often called Philly, is the largest city in the Commonwealth of Pennsylvania, the sixth-largest city in the U.S., the second-largest city in both the Northeast megalopolis and Mid-Atlantic regions after New York City. Sinc ...

, the daughter of Arthur G. Pearson and Ottelia M. Stuber Pearson. Her father was a confectioner who later operated a movie theatre. At age 16, she survived polio; she used a wheelchair through the rest of her life. She studied art at the

School of the Museum of Fine Arts, Boston The School of the Museum of Fine Arts at Tufts University (Museum School, SMFA at Tufts, or SMFA; formerly the School of the Museum of Fine Arts, Boston) is the art school of Tufts University, a private research university in Boston, Massachusett ...

, and independently. Her instructors included

Edmund C. Tarbell Edmund Charles Tarbell (April 26, 1862August 1, 1938) was an American Impressionist painter. A member of the Ten American Painters, his work hangs in the Boston Museum of Fine Arts, Metropolitan Museum of Art, National Gallery of Art, Smithson ...

Aldro Hibbard Aldro Thompson Hibbard (August 25, 1886 – November 12, 1972) was an American plein air painter known for his depictions of snowy landscapes, particularly of Vermont. Hibbard worked in oil, as watercolor couldn't be used in January and February ...

Harry Leith-Ross Harry "Tony" Leith-Ross (27 January 1886 – 15 March 1973) was a British-American landscape painter and teacher. He taught at the art colonies in Woodstock, New York and Rockport, Maine, and later was part of the art colony in New Hope, Pennsy ...

, and

Howard Giles Howard Giles (born December 22, 1946) is a British-American social psychologist and a Distinguished Research Professor of Communication at the Department of Communication, University of California, Santa Barbara. He was the chair of the departmen ...

Career

Pearson was known for traditional paintings of women seated in warm domestic scenes, at a piano, knitting, or reading, for example. She also painted some nudes, still lifes, and landscapes. Her models were sometimes dressed in older period fashions and surrounded by historical furnishings. An early show of hers, at the Somerville Public Library in 1924, was greeted with appreciation for both her works and her "battle against great odds". She became a member of the

Guild of Boston Artists The Guild of Boston Artists (The Guild) was founded in 1914 by a handful of Boston artists working in the academic and realist traditions. Among the founding members were Frank Weston Benson, William McGregor Paxton and Edmund C. Tarbell, who ser ...

in 1930, and had regular shows under their auspices into the 1950s. An approving reviewer for ''

The Boston Globe ''The Boston Globe'' is an American daily newspaper founded and based in Boston, Massachusetts. The newspaper has won a total of 27 Pulitzer Prizes, and has a total circulation of close to 300,000 print and digital subscribers. ''The Boston Glob ...

'' commented that "She doesn't distort the faces or figures in her portraits... she doesn't upset the laws of gravity in her landscapes. She sees straight and she paints straight." A later show at the Guild, in 1947, impressed another reviewer with the "compelling calm" and "perceptive tenderness" of Pearson's portraits. Her works were also a feature in the annual art show in

Springville, Utah Springville is a city in Utah County, Utah, Utah County, Utah that is part of the Provo–Orem metropolitan area. The population was 35,268 in 2020, according to the United States Census. Springville is a bedroom community for commuters who work ...

for decades, from the 1930s into the 1970s.

Personal life

Marguerite Stuber Pearson lived permanently in

Rockport, Massachusetts Rockport is a seaside New England town, town in Essex County, Massachusetts, United States. The population was 6,992 in 2020. Rockport is located approximately northeast of Boston at the tip of the Cape Ann peninsula. Rockport borders Gloucester ...

from 1942, in a home and studio she had custom built to her needs. She died there in 1978, aged 80 years. She left many of her unsold paintings to the

Rockport Art Association Rockport Art Association is an art association in the United States. It started as an artist's cooperative and became a gathering place of New England artists of the 20th century. The artists Aldro Hibbard, Antonio Cirino, Paul Strisik, Anthony ...

, which also has an archive of her papers, photographs, and sketchbooks. She also remembered the

Springville Museum of Art The Springville Museum of Art in Springville, Utah, United States is the oldest museum for the visual fine arts in Utah. In 1986, the building was listed on the National Register of Historic Places. As of 2012, the museum's director is Rita Wrig ...

in her will, with two paintings. In 2011, the Guild of Boston Artists hosted a show of Pearson's works. The Rockport Art Association gives an annual gold medal award named for Pearson.Rockport Art Association
''Summer Prospectus''
(2016).

References

{{DEFAULTSORT:Pearson, Margaret Stuber 1898 births 1978 deaths 20th-century American women artists Artists from Philadelphia People from Rockport, Massachusetts Painters from Pennsylvania Painters from Massachusetts Boston School (painting) Polio survivors Wheelchair users