Otis Kaye (1885–1974) was an American artist during the early 20th century. He is noted especially for ''
trompe-l'œil
''Trompe-l'œil'' ( , ; ) is an artistic term for the highly realistic optical illusion of three-dimensional space and objects on a two-dimensional surface. ''Trompe l'oeil'', which is most often associated with painting, tricks the viewer into ...
'' paintings of
U.S. currency
The United States dollar (symbol: $; code: USD; also abbreviated US$ or U.S. Dollar, to distinguish it from other dollar-denominated currencies; referred to as the dollar, U.S. dollar, American dollar, or colloquially buck) is the official ...
.
Life and work
Otis Kaye carried on the ''
trompe-l'œil
''Trompe-l'œil'' ( , ; ) is an artistic term for the highly realistic optical illusion of three-dimensional space and objects on a two-dimensional surface. ''Trompe l'oeil'', which is most often associated with painting, tricks the viewer into ...
'' tradition of
William Harnett
William Michael Harnett (August 10, 1848 – October 29, 1892) was an Irish-American painter known for his trompe-l'œil still lifes of ordinary objects.
Early life
Harnett was born in Clonakilty, County Cork, Ireland during the time of the Gr ...
,
John Frederick Peto
John Frederick Peto (May 21, 1854 – November 23, 1907) was an American ''trompe-l'œil'' ("fool the eye") painter who was long forgotten until his paintings were rediscovered along with those of fellow ''trompe-l'œil'' artist William Harnett. ...
, and
John Haberle
John Haberle (1856–1933) was an American painter in the ''trompe-l'œil'' (literally, "fool the eye") style. His still lifes of ordinary objects are painted in such a way that the painting can be mistaken for the objects themselves. He is consid ...
, and is esteemed particularly for his works which include U.S. currency. Kaye, however, in addition to
oils
An oil is any nonpolar chemical substance that is composed primarily of hydrocarbons and is hydrophobic (does not mix with water) & lipophilic (mixes with other oils). Oils are usually flammable and surface active. Most oils are unsaturated ...
, created
etching
Etching is traditionally the process of using strong acid or mordant to cut into the unprotected parts of a metal surface to create a design in intaglio (incised) in the metal. In modern manufacturing, other chemicals may be used on other types ...
s,
watercolor
Watercolor (American English) or watercolour (British English; see spelling differences), also ''aquarelle'' (; from Italian diminutive of Latin ''aqua'' "water"), is a painting method”Watercolor may be as old as art itself, going back to t ...
s, and
pastel
A pastel () is an art medium in a variety of forms including a stick, a square a pebble or a pan of color; though other forms are possible; they consist of powdered pigment and a binder. The pigments used in pastels are similar to those use ...
s, some including currency but others on varied themes.
Born in
Dresden
Dresden (, ; Upper Saxon: ''Dräsdn''; wen, label=Upper Sorbian, Drježdźany) is the capital city of the German state of Saxony and its second most populous city, after Leipzig. It is the 12th most populous city of Germany, the fourth larg ...
, Germany in 1885, Kaye came to Neemah,
Michigan
Michigan () is a state in the Great Lakes region of the upper Midwestern United States. With a population of nearly 10.12 million and an area of nearly , Michigan is the 10th-largest state by population, the 11th-largest by area, and the ...
with his parents when he was only three years old. In 1904 he moved to New York for a short time and there discovered his passion for art. Kaye and his mother moved to Germany where he studied engineering. He returned to the United States around 1914 and worked successfully as an engineer in the
Midwest
The Midwestern United States, also referred to as the Midwest or the American Midwest, is one of four Census Bureau Region, census regions of the United States Census Bureau (also known as "Region 2"). It occupies the northern central part of ...
until the
Stock Market Crash of 1929
The Wall Street Crash of 1929, also known as the Great Crash, was a major American stock market crash that occurred in the autumn of 1929. It started in September and ended late in October, when share prices on the New York Stock Exchange colla ...
. He began painting ''trompe-l'œil'' oils in the tradition of the great 19th-century artists, William Harnett, Peto and Haberle. Many of these works include coins and bills. Because the United States enacted a ban on painting currency in 1909, Kaye did not sell his paintings but gave them as gifts to family members and close friends. He also created ink drawings of currency, and made etchings after
Rembrandt
Rembrandt Harmenszoon van Rijn (, ; 15 July 1606 – 4 October 1669), usually simply known as Rembrandt, was a Dutch Golden Age painter, printmaker and draughtsman. An innovative and prolific master in three media, he is generally consid ...
,
Whistler and
Picasso
Pablo Ruiz Picasso (25 October 1881 – 8 April 1973) was a Spanish painter, sculptor, printmaker, ceramicist and Scenic design, theatre designer who spent most of his adult life in France. One of the most influential artists of the 20th ce ...
, as well as other artists. He expanded on these prints with compositions of his own in ink and gouache.
Kaye created larger paintings which focused on diverse themes: the economy, in ''De Jia Vu''; war, in ''Land of the Free''; religion, in ''Joshua's Horn''; art, in ''Rembrandt, What's Behind the Painting''; and even baseball in ''What a Hit!'' In addition to money, Kaye's works sometimes include pistols and musical instruments and almost always show puns and humor. Art historian Bruce Chambers wrote, "we are now accustomed to identifying Otis Kaye by the ambitious scale, layered meanings, and impeccable craftmanship of his trompe l'oeil money paintings..."
[Chambers 1988.]
Kaye lived in Illinois until just before his death in 1974 when he returned to Germany. Kaye never exhibited or sold his paintings during his lifetime. Beginning in the 1980s his works were sold at galleries and auctions in New York and quickly moved into public and private collections. In 2002 Kaye's prints were exhibited at the
Federal Reserve Bank
A Federal Reserve Bank is a regional bank of the Federal Reserve System, the central banking system of the United States. There are twelve in total, one for each of the twelve Federal Reserve Districts that were created by the Federal Reserve A ...
in Washington, DC. and published in ''Otis Kaye Trompe L'Oeil Master of Appropriation'' by Mary Anne Goley (2002).
Kaye's paintings and prints have been included in museum shows of American art in the United States and recently in Florence, Italy. The definitive catalog of Kaye's works, ''Otis Kaye: Money, Mystery and Mastery'' was published by New Britain Museum of American Art for an exhibition in 2015.
Notes
References
* Banks, Geraldine, Bradburne, James, Mitchell, Mark D. 2015. ''Otis Kaye: Money, Mystery and Mastery''. Connecticut: New Britain Museum of American Art.
* Bradburne, James. 2009. ''DeJia Vu All Over Again 'The Riddle of Otis Kaye's Masterpiece.
* Chambers, Bruce W. 1988. ''Old money: American trompe l'oeil images of currency, November 11-December 17, 1988''. New York, N.Y. (11 E. 70th St., New York 10021): Berry-Hill Galleries.
* Kaye, Otis. 2002. ''Otis Kaye: trompe l'oeil master of appropriation: February 6 to April 5, 2002''. Washington: Fine Arts Program of the Federal Reserve Board.
"Money is the Subject, Art the Object", ''The New York Times'', November 25, 1988.Schama, Simon, April 10, 2010, ''When money is just an illusion''
{{DEFAULTSORT:Kaye, Otis
1885 births
1974 deaths
20th-century American painters
American male painters
American still life painters
Trompe-l'œil artists
Artists from Michigan
Artists from Illinois
German emigrants to the United States
20th-century American male artists