Peter Neagoe (7 November 1881 in Odorhei,

Austria-Hungary Austria-Hungary, often referred to as the Austro-Hungarian Empire,, the Dual Monarchy, or Austria, was a constitutional monarchy and great power in Central Europe between 1867 and 1918. It was formed with the Austro-Hungarian Compromise of ...

– 28 October 1960 in

Woodstock, New York Woodstock is a town in Ulster County, New York, United States, in the northern part of the county, northwest of Kingston, NY. It lies within the borders of the Catskill Park. The population was 5,884 at the 2010 census, down from 6,241 in 2000 ...

) was an American writer and painter. Born in

Transylvania Transylvania ( ro, Ardeal or ; hu, Erdély; german: Siebenbürgen) is a historical and cultural region in Central Europe, encompassing central Romania. To the east and south its natural border is the Carpathian Mountains, and to the west the Ap ...

, the majority of his work was interested in his native Romanian folk life.

Personal life

After attending primary and secondary school in

Săliște Săliște (german: Großendorf or ''Selischte''; hu, Szelistye) is a town in Sibiu County, in the centre of Romania, west of the county capital, Sibiu. Declared a town in 2003, it is the main locality in the Mărginimea Sibiului area. Geograph ...

Sibiu Sibiu ( , , german: link=no, Hermannstadt , la, Cibinium, Transylvanian Saxon: ''Härmeschtat'', hu, Nagyszeben ) is a city in Romania, in the historical region of Transylvania. Located some north-west of Bucharest, the city straddles the Ci ...

and

Blaj Blaj (; archaically spelled as ''Blaș''; hu, Balázsfalva; german: Blasendorf; Transylvanian Saxon dialect, Transylvanian Saxon: ''Blußendref'') is a municipiu, city in Alba County, Transylvania, Romania. It has a population of 20,630 inhabita ...

, he moved to

Bucharest Bucharest ( , ; ro, București ) is the capital and largest city of Romania, as well as its cultural, industrial, and financial centre. It is located in the southeast of the country, on the banks of the Dâmbovița River, less than north of ...

in 1900 where he studied at the Romanian Academy of Fine Arts and was a colleague of

Constantin Brâncuși Constantin Brâncuși (; February 19, 1876 – March 16, 1957) was a Romanian Sculpture, sculptor, painter and photographer who made his career in France. Considered one of the most influential sculptors of the 20th-century and a pioneer of ...

. At the same time, he also took courses in philosophy and law at the

University of Bucharest The University of Bucharest ( ro, Universitatea din București), commonly known after its abbreviation UB in Romania, is a public university founded in its current form on by a decree of Prince Alexandru Ioan Cuza to convert the former Princel ...

. Between 1901 and 1903 he left the country without parental consent, and after a short stay in Germany emigrated to America. Arriving in New York City in 1906 he worked at several different jobs, while continuing his art studies at the

National Academy of Design The National Academy of Design is an honorary association of American artists, founded in New York City in 1825 by Samuel Morse, Asher Durand, Thomas Cole, Martin E. Thompson, Charles Cushing Wright, Ithiel Town, and others "to promote the fin ...

and the Art Students Association. He was married in 1911 to Anna Frankeul, a painter. After

World War I World War I (28 July 1914 11 November 1918), often abbreviated as WWI, was one of the deadliest global conflicts in history. Belligerents included much of Europe, the Russian Empire, the United States, and the Ottoman Empire, with fightin ...

he returned to Europe, settling in Paris. There he came into contact with Dadaist and Surrealist painters of the time and was reunited with Brâncuși, to whom he dedicated his book ''The Saint of Montparnasse'' (published posthumously in 1965). He also stayed intermittently during some summers with the Shakers at Mount Lebanon Shaker Village, where he spent some time during his youth in America. In 1933 Neagoe returned to the United States, publishing two novels in the next three years and a volume of stories on topics of Transylvanian and Romanian history. He visited Romania as the guest of the Romanian Writers' Society in April 1937. During

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 ...

he worked at the U.S. Army Intelligence Bureau. His writing output decreased during this time, until he returned to literature with an autobiography of his boyhood, ''A Time to Keep'' (1949). His personal friends included

James Joyce James Augustine Aloysius Joyce (2 February 1882 – 13 January 1941) was an Irish novelist, poet, and literary critic. He contributed to the modernist avant-garde movement and is regarded as one of the most influential and important writers of ...

Ezra Pound Ezra Weston Loomis Pound (30 October 1885 – 1 November 1972) was an expatriate American poet and critic, a major figure in the early modernist poetry movement, and a Fascism, fascist collaborator in Italy during World War II. His works ...

and

Gertrude Stein Gertrude Stein (February 3, 1874 – July 27, 1946) was an American novelist, poet, playwright, and art collector. Born in Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania, in the Allegheny West neighborhood and raised in Oakland, California, Stein moved to Paris ...

. His major work was well reviewed, but his publishers found that it had little public appeal - on his death his papers were found to contain hundreds of unpublished short stories. The papers of Neagoe and his wife are at

Syracuse University Syracuse University (informally 'Cuse or SU) is a Private university, private research university in Syracuse, New York. Established in 1870 with roots in the Methodist Episcopal Church, the university has been nonsectarian since 1920. Locate ...

in Syracuse, New York. The English Department at Syracuse offered a competitive creative writing award for graduate students in his name.Syracuse University English Graduate Handbook, 2014–2015
sec. 3.10d, p. 31.

Works

* ''Storm'', 1932 * ''Easter Sun'', 1934 * ''There is My Heart'', 1935 * ''Winning a Wife'', 1936 * ''A Time to Keep'', 1949 * ''No Time for Tears'', 1959 * ''The Saint of Montparnasse'', 1965

References

* Aurel Sasu, ''Biographical Dictionary of Romanian Writers'', vol MZ, Ed Parallel 45, Pitesti, 2006, pp. 185–186 * Victoria Anghelescu

March 18, 2009, ''Adevărul''

Syracuse University, Syracuse New York

External links

Special Collections Research Center,

Syracuse, New York Syracuse ( ) is a City (New York), city in and the county seat of Onondaga County, New York, Onondaga County, New York, United States. It is the fifth-most populous city in the state of New York following New York City, Buffalo, New York, Buffa ...

{{DEFAULTSORT:Neagoe, Peter 1881 births 1960 deaths People from the Kingdom of Hungary People from Odorheiu Secuiesc 20th-century American novelists American male novelists 20th-century American painters American male painters American people of Romanian descent Austro-Hungarian emigrants to the United States Romanian writers Novelists from New York (state) 20th-century American male writers 20th-century American male artists