Sam Middleton (April 2, 1927 – July 19, 2015) was a mixed-media artist from New York City. He travelled all over the world with the US Merchant Marine, lived in Mexico and Sweden and eventually settled down in the Netherlands where he "was part of the considerable contingency of expatriate African American artists". Settling in Holland in 1961, he established himself as one of The Netherlands' premier artists. His work is part of the Whitney Museum permanent collection, which included him in its 1962 exhibition ''40 Artists Under 40'' and was included in the 2015 inaugural exhibition for the museum's new building on the High Line. Middleton was born in New York City and grew up in the Harlem neighborhood of the city. Known for his personal style, Middleton liked to use abstract expressionism in his work, basing his color, lines, and compositions around sound and harmony. Middleton specialized in working with collage.

Early life

As a young boy growing up in Harlem, Middleton often visited the nearby Savoy Ballroom and music – jazz and classical – became important inspirations for his artistic endeavors. Working at the Savoy, Middleton designed costumes, and painted record and book covers. Middleton’s early painting was heavily influenced by the musicians of the Harlem renaissance, such as

Duke Ellington Edward Kennedy "Duke" Ellington (April 29, 1899 – May 24, 1974) was an American jazz pianist, composer, and leader of his eponymous jazz orchestra from 1923 through the rest of his life. Born and raised in Washington, D.C., Ellington was based ...

, Ella Fitzgerald, and Billie Holiday. When he was 17, Middleton left Harlem to work on a boat with the Merchant Marines, to get away from Harlem and have time to paint. While abroad, Middleton visited art galleries and museums for inspiration.

Career

Middleton struggled as an artist in the United States, due to his race and status, but continued to refine his technique, studying with other Black creatives like

Beauford Delaney Beauford Delaney (December 30, 1901 – March 26, 1979) was an American modernist painter. He is remembered for his work with the Harlem Renaissance in the 1930s and 1940s, as well as his later works in abstract expressionism following his move ...

. In 1956, Middleton won a scholarship to the Institute Allende in San Miguel Allende, Mexico, and studied in Mexico for the next several years. In 1959, after significantly advancing his technical skill and having the opportunity to showcase his art, Middleton travelled to Europe to paint, living in Spain, Sweden, France, and Denmark before settling in the Netherlands in 1961. After moving to the Netherlands, Middleton returned to Harlem periodically, but never again held residence in America, despite calls from fellow African Americans to return. Middleton found greater creative freedom in Holland while holding onto his jazz influences.

Emigration

Middleton moved to the Netherlands as part of a wave of African American artists, along with Deborah Simon, Sherard Van Dyke and Lorina Harris. He remained in Europe to escape racism and lack of opportunity for African Americans in the United States, but was uninvolved with the civil rights movement. Because of his expatriate status, and the fact that his artwork wasn’t focused on his race, Middleton’s paintings are largely absent from African American art collections in the United States. He did, however, become a figure in the Dutch art community, and opened his doors to other African American artists who came to the Netherlands, helping them gain traction in Europe. Middleton was able to display exhibitions of his artwork in a prominent Dutch art gallery, an opportunity that was limited to very few Black artists in America. He lived in Amsterdam for many years but, fascinated by the landscape, settled in Oterleek and Schagen in North Holland in 1973. Music, (both classical and jazz) and the landscape of North Holland, created the climate of his

abstract expressionist Abstract expressionism is a post–World War II art movement in American painting, developed in New York City in the 1940s. It was the first specifically American movement to achieve international influence and put New York at the center of the ...

work. Middleton’s style evolved to reflect newfound inspirations, like the expansive tulip fields of the country. His paintings became fuller and softer, while maintaining their distinct jazz connections. Middleton taught at Atelier '63 in

Haarlem Haarlem (; predecessor of ''Harlem'' in English) is a city and municipality in the Netherlands. It is the capital of the province of North Holland. Haarlem is situated at the northern edge of the Randstad, one of the most populated metropoli ...

and the Royal Academy of Art in ‘s Hertogenbosch, jobs that provided enough income to fuel his artistic career. He married twice, had three sons, one daughter and eight grandchildren, one great. Collage by Sam Middleton

List of artworks

''Out Chorus,'' 1960, part of the Whitney Museum collection ''Cymbals,'' 1962 ''Hymn to Democracy,'' 1962 ''Social Realism,'' 1964 ''Everyone's Music Book,'' 1975 ''Summer Wind,'' 1976 ''Black Music,'' 1993 ''Solo,'' 1993 ''Table Top Still Life,'' 1996 ''Monk Lost in Music,'' 2001

References

External links

"Sam Middleton - Afro-American Artist in the Low Countries"
Oogland Filmproducties. Vimeo. {{DEFAULTSORT:Middleton, Sam 1927 births 2015 deaths American artists American emigrants to the Netherlands